What softening in the luxury market?!

If you read the source article in the NYP it implies the apt was very unique and desirable (not another new dev condo), not priced properly and never listed online. NYP says the final sale price was below other comps in the building, so if its all true... the bidding war was just due to auctioning up to market value.

Sounds like maybe a not properly informed/advised elderly couple selling their apt. A decent broker would not have let that happen (think of the potential lost commission).

It is interesting that it traded much over ask. However, it is a unique part of uber luxury where people want to belong to a club. Hard to extrapolate it to the general luxury market.

You'd think it'd be an elderly couple, but it was an estate sale of the late Robert Ellsworth. You'd think the administrator would shop it better, but who knows since the whole thing was in litigation.

Even in a soft market, if you ask $5 for a $10 bill it's not surprising if someone will bid the price up to $9.