Above all else, it is a rarity to walk inside something that is truly record-breaking, and that is what this penthouse is. Right now, we are inside a space allowing cameras to see it for the first time ever. This is the highest residential home on the planet, with the tallest private ballroom on Earth and the highest residential terrace in the world. This is the penthouse at Central Park Tower, comprising three floors on the 129th, 130th, and 131st floors of 217 West 57th Street in New York City. We have 17,545 square feet interior, and we have 1,433 square feet of exterior terrace. Unlike anything I have ever seen, this home is the most expensive home in the United States. We are priced at 250 million dollars, and it couldn’t be more worth it.
The Central Park Tower: A 1,550-foot marvel above the city.This is a tour unlike any we have ever done before; this is the definition of a property trophy. This is like buying a Monet, a Picasso, a Dali, or a Basquiat; this is a true work of art. So let’s get going because we have a lot to see.
The Pinnacle of Engineering and History
Now, this is the pinnacle home in this tower. Central Park Tower where we are is the newest and most luxurious residential tower not only in New York but, I would say, in the world. The amenities which we’re going to show you are incredible, from multiple swimming pools to multiple living spaces and a 100th-floor private club and restaurants curated by three Michelin-star chefs. The staff and everything else implies top-of-the-line luxury and services here. But this apartment is so unique because it was designed specifically to be the ultimate trophy home. Not only is it the highest residential home on Earth, which is already a record, but how do you take a space and find this type of volume? How do you take one space that’s almost 18,000 square feet and create the perfect home?
Just the engineering feat of taking one space and carving out the perfect seven formal bedrooms, eight full bathrooms, three powder rooms, one family formal kitchen, one Chef catering kitchen, one Grand Salon, and one private ballroom is incredible. There are so many other bonus spaces; I mean, there’s a lot here, and it is truly perfect. The building itself has a really, really interesting history, and you can’t fully appreciate this penthouse without knowing where this all started. The tower was first put together, basically the assemblage to build this massive skyscraper that’s 1,550 feet in the air, starting in 2005. It’s been nearly 17 years, and this is the first unveiling of this penthouse, but the construction timeline of the building alone took nine years on top of all the years of planning.
There is a cost to all of this. Now you might say, okay, 250 million dollars for one big penthouse, but there’s no assistance to just get to this floor. To build the building, all the time and effort that goes into it and all the costs are immense. The final construction costs for Central Park Tower are about 3 billion dollars to get to this point. The developer Extell, led by Gary Barnett, is a visionary because no one else would imagine a space such as this to bring this to market for one special potential purchaser. I’ll get more into the history because I am so fascinated by the engineering feats, the mechanical feats, and the structural feats. This building has the largest and heaviest tuned mass damper in the world in any building, which keeps the building from moving and making it more comfortable for the residents. It’s almost 2.4 million pounds, this huge counterweight; it’s insane and crazy. There’s 360 million pounds of concrete just in this whole building; it’s wild.
Views That Defy Logic
I can’t believe we haven’t actually shown you the park yet, so let’s go look at the park. You’re going to see a lot of Central Park on this tour because Central Park is what makes this building. It is called Central Park Tower, rising nearly 1,600 feet over the most famous park in the world, and it’s really incredible to see. At this time of year, as the park changes colors, it’s completely wild. But you’re also looking at every other building in New York City; you’re seeing every state. You are looking as far as the Atlantic Ocean, deep past Massachusetts at this point, looking as far south as the eye can see and as far north as the eye can see. You can actually see the curvature of the Earth at this level. There is no other home on the planet like this.
The Grand Salon and Dining
Now, this is the Grand Salon, and I wanted to spend a lot of time in this space with you really showing you this because you’ve got over 27-foot ceilings. It’s an amazing room, and this room alone is nearly 3,000 square feet. Before we get to any of the rooms, I just want to take in the volume of this space. The furnishings, and this is the first time we’ve shown them ever, are exquisite; they’re all brought in custom from all over the world, from Brazil to Italy. We found the perfect pieces curated by Cheryl Eisen and her team at IMG. This piece alone was so much fun; this is done by Vicki Barranguet, a Uruguayan artist based here in New York City. All of the art you’ll see is curated by Natasha Roberts of The Know, so we’ve had some amazing partners who’ve come together to bring the best of the best into this space.
The Grand Salon featuring 27-foot ceilings and curated designer furnishings.You’ll also notice there’s a low-lying nature to the furniture. When you have this type of glass, these types of ceilings, and these types of views, the furnishings should accent the space, not take away from the space. That said, the dining room is so powerful I want to see what you think.
Welcome to the formal dining room in the highest penthouse on Earth. Now obviously, at nearly 18,000 square feet, the Grand Salon could be your dining room, or the conservatory which we haven’t even seen could be your dining room. But I love this space because there is the juxtaposition between nearly 30-foot ceilings and the intimacy of the table.
For a formal dinner for a table like this with this gorgeous Panda marble, with these chairs by Adrian Pearsall and this chandelier by Gabriel Scott, it brings it kind of home. There’s a lot of homes that we show mostly in Los Angeles in different parts of the world where they’re beautiful and expensive, but how could you live there?
They feel almost uninviting sometimes, but this penthouse has the exact opposite effect. It is incredibly grand and incredibly luxurious, and there’s nothing like it in the entire world, but you can also live here. You can use this; you can have a fashion show here with 300 people, but you could also play video games in the main living room with the biggest screen on Earth. That’s what makes this home so much fun.
Look at these Southern views; here you can really see the curvature of the Earth, but you can also see the angle of Manhattan in a way that I’ve never been able to see before unless I’m in a helicopter. You have the entirety of lower Manhattan.
You can sit here and you can watch the ball drop in Times Square. I don’t know if we can zoom in on that, but that’s Times Square right now, and the ball is up there already waiting for the new year. We are looking down on skyscrapers; we are in a building that is so tall that we are looking down on little buildings that on the ground are super tall skyscrapers.
We’re above the top of 432 Park Avenue, we’re above 111 West 57th, and we’re above 157 West 57th, which was the first Billionaires’ Row tower built by this same developer. It’s crazy; we are above the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. I found it; it’s right there, little guy.
Dining above the clouds: Looking down on the Empire State Building.Kitchens, Offices, and Hidden Gems
Now if we wrap around this way, we’ve got Kitchen number one. The kitchen is gorgeous with custom stone and beautiful marble throughout; the whole kitchen is custom by Smallbone of Devizes. So, true luxury custom kitchen. You’re doing your dishes here or your staff is doing the dishes, and you’ve got that view that is so crazy it looks fake. Like we are so high up, it just looks fake, and these views are protected.
There’s no other building that could be this high right here. I remember selling that penthouse right there at the Park Imperial at 230 West 56th Street and needing a band to come in so I could get it sold. I actually sold all three penthouses there. I could stand here and run you through my entire history as a real estate broker with everything that I’ve sold over the years because it’s nuts. We are above The Edge right now at Hudson Yards.
The kitchen here isn’t just the kitchen; it’s fully eat-in. You have top-of-the-line appliances, there’s Miele everything, but you could also do your own thing. All of the furniture in this room has been imported from Brazil and fits the room perfectly, and the wallpaper is so cool; it’s like day waves, almost cloud-like. This is a view we haven’t seen yet either together because you’ve got 360-degree views here. So now we’re looking directly out over the Hudson River, so New Jersey, Newark Airport, and again as far as the eye can see Due West.
The Chef’s Kitchen by Smallbone with panoramic river views.Something that we actually don’t talk about a lot in these tours but something I have to mention here is the grand entry foyer. We started the tour in what is called the Grand Salon because that’s what it is, but this hallway is so extra wide in part because it just makes it that much more luxurious. It’s a great art hallway and a great gallery space. You’ll see as we go through there’s some exquisite art that’s hanging on the walls, but just imagine some of the most expensive artwork in the world just gracing these hallways only in the entryway.
This is the conservatory. We call it the conservatory not just because we have a telescope but because you are truly above all else. The website for this apartment is TheOneAboveAllElse.com because it is the tallest home on Earth. We’re above every other residential tower in New York City and around the world, and we’re above light pollution here.
One thing that you also see when we go to the terrace upstairs is we’re above sound. So the noise that you hear in New York City dissipates at about a hundred stories, and on the terrace level, we’re at 131 stories. So the honking and the New York City vibe and energy you have downstairs, where you pull in your private bulletproof Escalade into the valet parking spot, disappears, and you come upstairs and you’re in complete serenity. This could be a sitting room or your dining room too, but I think it makes for an amazing moment here. This couch is from Studio 27, and these alternating rings in the chandelier are by Cameron Design House.
This is the office to end all offices with all custom furniture. You have this really, really cool cork and metallic wallpaper that will shimmer at night. So as you’re doing huge deals and you’re here buying a company or doing whatever you do as the king or queen of the world, the entire room in here will glitter with the New York City lights and the starlight because you can actually see the stars up here.
It’s really pretty insane. I’m so obsessed with the park; from here you can count all the baseball fields and you’re looking down at the ice rink now. Everyone’s skating around; these people must be tourists so they don’t have jobs since it’s like a Thursday right now.
The Architectural Wonder: The Staircase
Also on this floor, you obviously have bathrooms, a significant amount of storage space, and you’ve got your own private elevator that hits all three floors so you never have to take this massive staircase I’m about to show you if you don’t want to.
You have a gorgeous den we’ve outfitted with all Bang & Olufsen equipment; it’s pretty insane. And then you have the grand staircase. Now this staircase alone took years of planning, design, and coordination.
You have a nearly 50-foot glass atrium here, and you can see this staircase from space when it’s lit up at night. You can see it from multiple states and from airplanes. The staircase is an architectural wonder and it is also a piece of art in and of itself.
The chandelier floats over 40 feet; it is such a wow moment. Structurally, this staircase is cantilevered and self-supporting because you’re not going to tie into the exterior beams. The staircase isn’t tied into the facade; you just have it tied into the slabs and then anchored as you go up.
You’ve got this curved glass and this incredible banister, and then you have this amazing view of Manhattan, the entirety of the Upper West Side, and the Hudson River as you go up and as you go down.
The sculptural staircase floating within a 50-foot glass atrium.The Residential Level: Floor 130
On the landing for the 130th floor, we’re nearly 1,400 feet, actually a little bit over, in the air right now. You have your residential floor with your secondary bedrooms, your secondary Junior Suites, the bathrooms, and the bedrooms. The views, the volume, and the closet space from every bedroom are incredible; they are all fit for royalty. And then you have the primary suite to end all primary suites.
Behind me is a sitting room because when you enter this primary, you might need to take a second just to remind yourself how amazing you are for owning this penthouse. This could also be a dressing room, but you have every single view here. Again, looking out over the park, there’s no need for privacy here because no one can see you; you’re above everything and everyone. So yes, we have window treatments and yes, you will have blinds and shades, but you’re never going to need them ever.
Down this hallway, you have two primary bathrooms on opposite ends of the hall. This one has this incredible view and your floating tub with gorgeous stone floor-to-ceiling. Because you have two bathrooms, you have singular vanities, massive rain showers, and huge water closets. Then this view; just imagine taking a bubble bath here. It is pure serenity, very Zen, and very much a spa environment up here. This is, I think, the highest primary bathroom on planet Earth and probably the highest tallest residential tub in the US.
Then you have your primary bedroom with custom furniture throughout because you have such high ceilings. You are awoken gently by the sun coming out of the East, and you have Northern lights out over the park and the entirety of Manhattan the entire day. The room is so large; the bedroom has an entire separate sitting area. Behind us are two humongous dressing rooms and walk-in closets. You could completely reconfigure this whole floor if you want to. If you wanted to have a 2,000 square foot dressing room, you could easily do that. It’s kind of fun here because, through this reflection, you’re looking down into the Grand Salon where we started the tour because these windows are part of that double-height space.
The Ballroom Level: Floor 131
At the top of the stairs, floor 131, we are 1,416 feet in the air. We reach our private ballroom. We’ve left the ballroom unfurnished because I think it’s so exquisite to see it almost naked, and you can imagine what you can do with the space on your own. You have nearly 30-foot ceilings, making this the highest private Ballroom on the planet. You can do a full plated dinner here with hundreds, or you can do a fashion show here.
You have private elevator entrance is there and building elevator entrance through that door. The single pane pieces of glass here are 12 feet high, floating over the park. It’s nuts to me; when I first got into the business, I remember walking down Central Park South looking up at One Central Park West and looking up at the Time Warner Center and just being in awe of how tall those buildings were as residential towers. Now we are above helicopters. This is a true work of art, a true trophy, and a wonder of the world really. You could do anything here; you could also make this a basketball court or you could go to town and be crazy in here.
Before I take you to the terrace, I want to show you the catering kitchen because it is so special and no other penthouse has this. For all of my chefs out there or anyone who just likes to entertain and have a party, remember this penthouse has two full kitchens. This is an entire Chef’s catering prep kitchen with multiple refrigerators and multiple freezers. Again, you can have a dinner in this ballroom with hundreds of people and be completely fine. This penthouse was designed not just for a family but also for someone who could entertain if you want to and really entertain. It is the most functional home; you can entertain here and feed them dinner here. We just had a mastermind for some of the top agents around the world who flew in from everywhere, from Dubai to all over the world, and we just had a dinner here in the ballroom, and it was insane.
The 131st-floor private ballroom with soaring 30-foot glass walls.The Highest Terrace in the World
I know you’ve been waiting, so let’s go. I’m going to take you to a terrace 1,416 feet above New York City. The pièce de résistance, the crème de la crème, the highest terrace on the planet. It is private just for the penthouse owner. You look up, and you have the remaining of the skyscraper here, over a hundred feet of building above you but nobody else. It is large enough to put whatever you want up here really. Now, I’ve sold many penthouses around the city and many penthouses around the world, in fact, and never before have I seen anything like this. Most of the time, by the time you get to the top of a building that’s this high, you don’t have a terrace because most buildings are too narrow. This building happens to be extra, extra large; the floor plate is so large. There’s a cantilever on this building at about the 30th floor where the building actually gets wider before it goes up, wider than the base.
You have anchor weights here for your furniture, but I don’t know if you can tell but it is so calm up here. Like I said, you’re above noise. The only noise that I can hear right now on this terrace off of the ballroom is I guess one or two helicopters. The glass is so reflective that you actually have this amazing reflective wall that makes a space feel even bigger. This glass is completely protective; it protects you from the wind and protects you from the elements. You are going to get a lot of sun up here if you come out here in the summer, so just SPF beware. It’s all triple-paned and extra high, so for kids, dogs, and families, it’s incredibly safe and really amazing. You also have a separate entrance right there that takes you back to kind of the staff quarters and back to the catering kitchen.
The highest private terrace on Earth, protected by glass wind walls.Conclusion
This is the penthouse at Central Park Tower, the first tour we’ve ever been able to do on video. The only thing we’ve released up until this point have been photos of specific moments. We still can’t show every bedroom; we’re keeping those private for our future owner. But we wanted to give you more than just a sneak peek, a true property tour of one of the most fantastic homes that will ever be created ever. To be completely honest, it is a true engineering feat. It took three billion dollars of construction to get to this point, and on a clear day, you can see six states. It is insane. Look how small everything else is. You’ve got MetLife over there, Chrysler, and One Vanderbilt, which is The Summit where people spend all that money just to get up there to see those views. You’re looking right down into Times Square as the avenues converge, completely wild.
This developer also actually had the opportunity to build this building to either match or be higher than One World Trade which is 1,776 feet, and they chose not to because One World Trade should be the owner of that. There’s no need for this building to be even taller than One World Trade and the Freedom Tower and everything that the World Trade Center means to the world and to New York City specifically. You see the Statue of Liberty and every single bridge; there’s truly nothing like this for a trophy property owner or somebody who just wants the best of the best, never to be replicated ever again.
This is the penthouse at Central Park Tower, the highest residential home on the planet with the tallest private ballroom on Earth and with the highest residential terrace in the world. It has 17,545 interior square feet, seven full bedrooms, eight bathrooms, three powder rooms, two kitchens, and incredible storage space. The amenities from the 100th-floor club include a private liquor tasting room, Cigar Room, and Lounge where you can hold events or do weddings. There are indoor pools, outdoor pools and lounges, a private cinema in the building, basketball, squash, an incredible fitness center, an entire spa center just for you, and a wellness floor in this building. The dedication to luxury in Central Park Tower is unlike anything I have ever seen before. So this is the penthouse, the one above all else, now asking 250 million dollars. Thank you so much for watching this one of a kind.