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NYC’s $39.5M Astor Suite at the Plaza Is the Week’s Priciest New Listing

NYC’s .5M Astor Suite at the Plaza Is the Week’s Priciest New Listing

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It’s been on and off the market since 2008, but the Astor Suite at the Plaza Hotel in New York City made its reentry this week with list price of $39.5 million. That eight-digit price made it this week’s most expensive new listing on realtor.com®.

With a pedigreed past and a luxe location, this three-bedroom unit brings quite a backstory. Here are but a few of the facts we dug up about this week’s priciest place.

It’s not the most expensive unit in the building

Despite its enormous price tag, the Astor Suite is only second-best when it comes to price at the Plaza. The honor of most expensive unit in the building goes to the penthouse belonging to fashion mogul Tommy Hilfger. The designer’s dwelling has an equally tortured history in search of an elusive buyer. His price of $58.9 million has held firm since November 2016—yet it’s quite comedown from the $80 million he sought in 2015.

Living room

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Its owner is a fashion mogul with a penchant for real estate

Hilfiger isn’t the only fashionable resident of the Plaza. The Astor Suite was purchased in 2007 by Jürgen Friedrich, who founded the European operations of Esprit in 1976. For those who don’t remember the casual line of clothes, just know that it was inescapable in the ’80s and that the wave of popularity transformed Friedrich into a billionaire.

Property records indicate Friedrich also owns a Southampton, NY, mansion known as the Linden Estate. And he’s also had trouble unloading this home, which has been on and off the market since 2008. On a related note: The Linden Estate was available for rent last year from August through Labor Day. The price for the privilege? A measly $1,150,000!

Friedrich also owns a historic Victorian in Sag Harbor, NY. That home’s on the market, too. Built in 1796 and currently asking $14.2 million, the house served as the summer White House for President Chester Arthur. It was available for rent last summer for the low, low price of $390,000.

Bedroom

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It’s been a pricey rental

Friedrich’s penchant for playing pricey landlord hasn’t been restricted to the Hamptons. The Astor Suite was also on the monthly rental market for a time, asking an eye-popping $165,000 month in 2011, according to the New York Post. In 2012, the monthly rental price was reduced a bit to $125,000. We weren’t able to confirm whether he found a tenant for his place at the Plaza, but this luxury lease might have been the ultimate try-before-you-buy opportunity.

Famous past residents

According the listing, the Astor Suite earned its name because it was once the home of businessman John Jacob Astor. Other famous residents of the suite include the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and John F. Kennedy.

For a closer look, here’s a video of the Astor Suite from 2011: