A penthouse suite in New York City just broke the real estate record for most expensive home in America, going to a buyer this week for $238 million. Needless to say, that is a load of money.
The penthouse is situated in a tower being built along the southern border of Central Park in midtown Manhattan. The New York Times reports that the unit combines two apartments for a total of 24,000 square feet. That boils down to nearly $10,000 per square foot. Before this sale, the most expensive home in the U.S. went for only $137 million; it was located in the East Hamptons.
The penthouse’s new owner, Ken Griffin, is exactly who you’d expect him to be: a hedge fund billionaire who founded a Chicago-based investment firm called Citadel and whose real estate portfolio spans the country and crosses over into London. Forbes has him ranked as the 45th richest person in America. He set the real estate record for most expensive home purchased in Miami in 2015—it cost him $60 million—and last year snagged the most expensive home in Chicago for $59 million.
The owner of the $238 million apt., Ken Griffin, switched from Dem to GOP after Dems tried to crack down on hedge fund tax breaks – clearly he needed the government help! Charles Koch thanked him in 2011 for giving $1 million to the Kochs' political fund — all in Dark Money. https://t.co/9Zx2UqAncY
— Jane Mayer (@JaneMayerNYer) January 24, 2019
And as New Yorker reporter Jane Mayer pointed out on Twitter, Griffin is a donor to the Koch brothers’ political fund, which backs GOP candidates. The Guardian reports he also donated to Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush Super PACs ahead of the 2016 Republican primaries. Money’s gotta protect money.
Meanwhile, the rest of us will continue renting stuffy two-bedroom apartments until we die.
