For the mere mortals among us, a break-up entails fights over favorite chairs and copies of dog-eared books, disagreements over the number of months left on the lease or discussions of whether one partner can afford to carry the mortgage alone.
But for celebrities, it’s not only an occasion for tears and temper tantrums, but a war over the magazine spreads, google hits, tabloid storylines and the rarefied real estate they called home(s). Given to carving small kingdoms from their co-op buildings, stacking up condo units like so many Legos, and amassing townhouse complexes and triplex penthouses, celebrities do love a massive renovation. After all, who, having left their mark on the cover of Vogue or a post-Soviet country’s GDP, can resist putting a personal stamp on their home? But as we well know, renovations have a tendency to strain even the happiest marriages.
The only problem is potentially having to give it all up in the wake of a divorce, a negotiation that not infrequently plays out as the parties try to recalibrate their respective social currencies, post-split. Does staying mean winning or losing? A coup or a crisis? Is it better to rule the former roost or buy a spectacular bachelor(ette) pad? How some of New York’s heavy hitting power couples divvied up their properties.