Bucking the Trend, 'Freakonomics' Author Buys Classic NYC Prewar Co-op

There’s nothing freaky about choosing the Upper West Side for your place of NYC residence. And that’s what “Freakonomics” author Stephen Dubner and his wife, Ellen Dubner, picked when they closed on a $5.4 million co-op at 15 West 81st Street.

The 3-bedroom, 3-bathroom unit was listed for $5,995,000, then reduced to $5,695,000, so the author-turned-podcast host can still bring his market analysis and data-mining acumen that won him fame and respect for his bestselling book.

And while the hottest neighborhoods are Union Square, the Financial District and, of course, almost anything in hipster Brooklyn, it’s nice to see the Dubners make a classic choice by heading to one of the city’s most enduring neighborhoods.

The classic prewar building the Dubners bought into host the kind of oversized rooms that made the UWS such a compelling setting for the likes of J.D. Salinger’s books and Woody Allen’s movies.

Built in 1929, the neo-Renaissance-style co-op was the work of Emery Roth, designer of the famous Beresford and San Remo buildings. And then there are the views of such iconic NYC landmarks as the Museum of Natural History and Central Park West. Some trends never die.

Related:

• Hilary Swank Renting Her West Village Condo for $20K
• Julia Roberts’ Greenwich Village Penthouse Listed for $4.5M
• Gandolfini’s Former West Village Condo Up for Rent: $21K