Back in July, The Observer learned that William Lie Zeckendorf had found a buyer for his half of the old Wasserstein pad at 927 Fifth Avenue, which he had purchased for $29.1 million only seven months earlier. The purchase price was rumored to be as high as $34 million, well above the $31.5 million ask and a good explanation for why Mr. Zecekendorf might ever think of selling, given the quick turnaround. It turns out, the sale was even higher than that.
Plummeting stock market? Global recession on the horizon? Didn’t seem to bother Scott Bommer, founder of uber hedge fund SAB Capital, and his wife, Donya. The Times revealed the couple as the buyer of the Zeckendorf pad, and they paid $34.6 million for it, meaning an extra $600,000 in Mr. Zeckendorf’s pocket. There must be something about the apartment at 927 Fifth which begs buyers to unload their wallets, throwing in many millions of extra dollars to seal the deal. Remember, Mr. Zeckendorf paid well over the $26 million ask, as well.
Mr. Zeckendorf is no stranger to wise-if-often-eyebrow-raising real estate deals, of course. There was his record-setting sale at 15 Central Park West last December, raking in an extraordinary $30 million profit. For their part, Mr. and Mrs. Bommer are no newcomers to the world of luxury flips: they sold their Ritz pad for $3o million, according to The Times, after buying it three years prior for $28.5 million.
He’s got a long way to get to enter William Lie territory.
