Central Park Tower Condo Leads Manhattan Luxury Contracts

Manhattan’s luxury market picked up steam last week, crowned by a unit at Extell Development’s Central Park Tower. 

The condo at 217 West 57th Street, asking $20.5 million, was the priciest of 24 homes in the borough asking $4 million or more to find buyers between Aug. 24 and Aug. 30, according to Olshan Realty’s weekly report. The total was up from just 15 deals inked in the previous period. 

Gary Barnett’s firm initially sought nearly $25 million for Unit 68E when it began marketing condos off of floor plans in 2018, though the developer has dropped the price several times in the years since, in keeping with a slew of discounts at the Billionaires’ Row supertall. 

The apartment spans more than 3,100 square feet and has three bedrooms and three bathrooms. It also features 11-foot ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Central Park. 

Amenities in the tower, known as the world’s tallest residential building standing at 1,550 feet, include indoor and outdoor pools, a fitness center and residents’ lounge on the 100th floor. An in-house team with Extell is heading sales at the property. 

While the number of pending deals has dipped over the last few weeks, as is typical for the market at this time of year, it hasn’t slowed down the borough’s trophy market, which has so far outperformed last year’s numbers. Since the start of 2026, buyers have signed contracts for 218 properties asking $10 million or more, up from 202 in the same period in 2025.  

The second most expensive home to snag an inked deal was the sixth floor at 988 Fifth Avenue, with an asking price of $18.5 million. The prewar condo, which hit the market last May with a price tag just under $20 million, last traded for $11 million in 2008.

The renovated apartment has five bedrooms and four bathrooms spread across roughly 3,600 square feet. It also features a limestone fireplace in the living room, a formal dining room and views of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Central Park. 

Amenities in the 12-unit building, built in 1925, include doormen, storage units and a live-in resident manager.

Compass’ Elizabeth Sahlman, Lorand Kovacs, Clay Ezell and Becca Schreiber had the listing.

The building’s penthouse is on the market again, relisted with a price cut in May after it was pulled in early April. The duplex with a wraparound terrace is now asking just under $28 million, down from $29 million when it hit the market last August.

Of the 24 properties to enter contract, 12 were condos, seven were co-ops and five were townhouses. 

The homes were priced at a combined $189 million, which works out to an average of $7.9 million and a median of $6.2 million. The typical home spent more than two years on the market and was discounted by 16 percent.

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