The residential market in downtown Manhattan is hot, and with prices soaring ever higher, home flips are up. There were roughly 58 apartment flips – defined as changing hands twice within a three-year period – downtown over the last three years, according to CityRealty’s new blog, 6sqft.com. And here is a look at some of the biggest moneymakers.
In May, the Winklevoss twins, best known for scoring a $300 million settlement against Facebook, dropped $14.5 million on apartment 6A at 20 Greene Street in Soho. For seller, Justin Ehrlich, that represents a 51 percent profit. Just one year before, in April 2013, the developer purchased the unit for just $9.6 million.
The Sequoia, located at 222 West 14th Street, was one of the first luxury buildings in the Meatpacking District. And in January 2012, a Long Island businessman picked up apartment 10E for $1.2 million. The 1,105-square-foot unit sold this year for $1.875 million to a Chicago-based buyer, for a 56.3 percent profit.
Okay, this one isn’t really “downtown,” but that didn’t stop it from flipping to the tune of a hefty profit. Built in 2013, the 20-story NoMad building’s unit 16B was sold to a New Jersey-based buyer for $2.18 million. That was in October. By January, the apartment had sold again to an Italian businessman for $2.65 million — a 21 percent profit.
This 4,500-square-foot Soho apartment was purchased by a Nyack, NY-based buyer in October 2012 for $8.9 million. Just 17 months later, the unit had flipped for a 55.1 percent return when a Chicago-based buyer nabbed it for $13.8 million. [6sqft] – Christopher Cameron