Thursday, August 28, 2008

Another $70,000,000 Penthouse Hits the Market

A new insanely (and probably unrealistically) priced property has hit the market with a fat $70,000,000 asking price. But children, this time it's not in New York, Palm Beach or Los Angeles, but in Your Mama's old San Francisco stomping grounds.

According the good folks at the San Francisco Chronicle, real estate tycoon Victor MacFarlane has decided to sell his massive and unfinished penthouse located atop the super swank St. Regis Residences San Francisco. The condo-tel project towers over the corner of 3rd and Mission Street right next door to the magnificent Museum of Modern Art and di-rectly across the street from the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts where our good pal Falsetta Knockers sometimes dances and prances for all the well heeled performance art lovers living in Quake City.

Moneybags MacFarlane famously scooped up all three of the (unfinished) pricey penthouse units at the St. Regis back in late 2005 for a reported $30,000,000, which at the time was the highest price ever paid for a condominium in San Francisco. And like so many rich and/or famous types, he's changed his real estate mind just three years later.

Seventy million San Francisco clams with buy some filthy rich biznessman (or woman) a behemoth building topper that sprawls across (approx.) 20,000 square feet, includes four terraces, and features 360 degree views through the aluminum framed windows including the 22-foot high glass openings in the corner living room. If a deep pocketed buyer acts quickly they will be in the advantageous position of being able to choose finishes and day-core.

According to the SF Chronicle, the penthouse is currently scheduled to include an entrance foyer with a winding stair case and a 2-story waterfall (which sounds like a bad idea to Your Mama), six bedrooms, 7 full and 4 power rooms for a total of 11 terlits that we imagine will require at least one full time gurl to keep pristine, four fireplaces, 2 offices, a 13-seat movie thee-ay-ter and home gym with sauna and steam room because no one spending this kind of money for a penthouse wants to pump iron with hotel guests or view a film with all the common people at the AMC Metreon located just a block away.

Although Mister MacFarlane's company, the eponymous MacFarlane Partners, reportedly received a default on a one billion dollar debt and recently laid off 15 employees, his publicist told the S.F. Chron that Mister MacFarlane's decision to unload the penthouse was for lifestyle reasons and not business related. Uh-huh. Okay.

Anyhoo, Your Mama sits slant eyed with cynicism about this whole thing and we thinks we smell a man who might be looking for a little real estate publicity. Given that highest amount of money ever known to be paid for a residence in San Francisco (single family or condo) is $32,000,000, we think Mister MacFarlane's price is a little, well, bloated. But then again, what do we know? Perhaps some Asian potentate or high-tech titan will come along looking for all the free publicity and billionaire back slapping that will come along with purchasing a penthouse for an amount of money equal to the G.D.P. of some small countries.

Photo: Darryl Bush for the San Francisco Chronicle

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is one pricey condo. The most expensive one on the market in my area is priced at $875,000, an absolute steel! Here you couldn't pay more than $3.5 million for a house. Interesting how everyone complains how expensive it is (ABQ) but have they looked at prices elsewhere?

Anonymous said...

David Duchovny has entered treatment for sex addiction.............talk about self promotion. That's like Tommy Lee entering Big Dick Disability therapy

Anonymous said...

What a joke. Mama reported on his house a month or so ago. He will ask everyone to respect his privacy, no really.........but keep reading and thinking about me as I careen toward B list status.

Alessandra said...

$70mm and it's unfinished? One must be seriously insane to consider it.

Anonymous said...

I guess having Al Gore as a neighbor really shoots up the price.

lil' gay boy said...

Lovely view from the top of one of my favorite cities; guess it's height gives you an extra 32 feet per second/per second to enjoy it on the way down when the big one hits……

Anonymous said...

I doubt it.

Anonymous said...

It's not $70mm for an unfinished space, if you could read... its being finished and a buyer can choose the finishes. Dumb@$$

Anonymous said...

9:25 = Victor MacFarlane

Anonymous said...

It would be one thing if the condo were located in Seacliff (no high rises there) or Russian Hill. But the neighborhood is still VERY iffy. In 10 years it will be lovely, but now...? No way I would live there.

Anonymous said...

i'm sorry, nothing is worth $70 million south of market. period. somebody needs to get a grip on reality.

Anonymous said...

"Some shit rich dumb russian will be dumb enough to buy it"

Wealthy Russians prefer Europe. They have no need to live or own in San Francisco. Wealthy Russians buy in cities that already have many of their own - they stick together. It's rare that you ever read about them buying crazy priced property in the U.S.

Anonymous said...

I think this is a great opportunity for the investors here to make a good investment i their own area. This is a great offer.

Anonymous said...

Only tiburon and belvedere is where i would have a pied a terre . It is really nice there.

Ivy Lane said...

Mmmmm...I think the guy's a fool to think he will get $70 mil for that...?? I guess he has his head in the sand at his beach house and isn't listening to the NATION on what the market is doing... Yes, San Fransico maybe more healthy than the Mid West real estate wise..but not THAT healthy for an unfinished pent house! Will be interesting to see who buys it, WHEN they buy, and how much they shell out!

Anonymous said...

I can't imagine anyone buying a "home" in SoMa! As a corporate apartment to impress your die-hard Giants fans from Tokyo, the location would make since... But even then, at that price it should be a finished apartment. I'd take a penthouse at The Summit for half that price.

Anonymous said...

He got fucked like everyone else in 2005

I guess members of the illumati, boheimian grove were sandbagged by the public in their little schemes

moron

tops it is worth 1MM

dickhead take the loss be a man

you can afford to lose 29MM you will make us tax payers pay for your losses anyway just like your cronies are doing

Anonymous said...

I will offer 20MM for the whole building

SOLD !!!!!!!!!!

so_chic_darling said...

What an ugly building it looks like a bank headquarters from the mid 70s, and yes that is a shitty neighborhood to live in even despite the museums, I have spent lots of time in San Francisco over the years and would choose a great house on a hill over this monster any day.

Anonymous said...

anyone have a real link for this place ?

it is not listed anywhere

thanks

Anonymous said...

Wonder if the units can be resubdivided and sold separately? Is that done? Who the hell is going to pay $70 million? It isn't a bad neighborhood, but not one you'd want to live in 24/7. Nice for a crash pad, and--again--a $70 mil crash pad?

Can't find any photos or floorplans anywhere for the St. Regis. I thought I saw them online at one time when units were first for sale. Probably taken down because the building is sold out. I read a few weeks back about this luxury real estate tour a local agent put together to attract buyers to theses high end bay area homes. Some of the SF listings look like at a steal at $15 million:
http://www.sanfranciscofinehomes.com/properties.htm

Anonymous said...

It is amazing how people who do not live an city can comment on the neighborhood or area. No matter where you are in SF, the property is going to be extremely expensive. The burbs, including Tiburon, have taken a huge hit, but the City is still strong. I live in the City, and work a few blocks away. That area is hot. The Four Seasons is a block away, and the properties start at over $1M. The Ritz Carlton Residences is about a block away. There are great buildings going up everywhere around there. What should be discussed is the HOA fees--a few years ago, a 2 bedroom that was going for over $2.5M had HOA fees of over $2,000 per month.

And while everyone talks about properties on a hill, they should take a look at those homes. There are a bunch on the market for $50M or $60M.

Anonymous said...

Does this place have a view....with a telescope could I see the jumpers and the Golden Gate Bridge?

Anonymous said...

The owner, macfarlane

He is african american

no wonder

well this one will not sell at 70MM

maybe he priced it so high so that he would get 20MM in the end ?

Anonymous said...

You all need to learn to read. The unit was unfinished when he bought it and is being sold finished. DUMBASSES!

Alessandra said...

Excuse me, Anon 10:02pm, this is the second time you've made your rather rude statement about the literary skills of the children. Please rest assured (because we are beginning to suspect that you are the seller or his agent) that our reading comprehension is up to par.

From Mama: "If a deep pocketed buyer acts quickly they will be in the advantageous position of being able to choose finishes and day-core."

If the deep-pocketed buyer acts quickly...meaning that in a year, this option may not be available to a buyer. One wonders if the developer will put his own finishing touches or leave it bare and unimproved while he moves on to the next project.

Also, I think you are missing the point here. MacFarlane purchased the property with presumably the same deal from the developer in regards to the finishing touches. He made the purchase for $30mm and is now asking $70mm for an unimproved property. Some of us find that $40mm difference to be a bit ridiculous.

Feel free to call us dumb asses. Just know that our dumb asses see through your arguments very clearly.

Anonymous said...

if he does not sell it ?

will he

quietly take it off the market ?

let it go into forclosure ?

subdivide it and sell it that way ?

declare bankruptcy ?

if you notice I kept my post clean this time

the building may be worth 70MM

but not the penthouse

Anonymous said...

The Penthouse at the Fours Seasons SF sold for $7 Million before it was even built pre-2000, and the Penthouse below that one sold 30 minutes later for double. At the time, it sounded incredible. Maybe $70 million seems way overpriced now, but maybe it won't sound so bad 8 years from now. I don't believe the 2nd Four Seasons penthouse has more than 4000 square feet and lacks outdoor spaces, so 20000 square feet is really quite extraordinary in a SF high-rise.

Downtown Views are amazing, especially at night in SF. The skyline's incredible if you have a Transamerica Building, Bay Bridge (maybe Telegraph Hill) views + western views towards Twin Peaks and southern views towards Candlestick/Silicon Valley.

I betcha it's gonna go back to 3 penthouses at $20-25 million each. That sounds about right, unless Larry Ellison tires of buying Malibu properties and megayachts OR a young Facebook billionaire wants the biggest the downtown area can offer. People keep talkng about Russian billionaires, but maybe a Chinese billionaire as a crashpad for his child/grandchild as a Freshman at UC Berkeley or Stanford. And there is a large Russian community in SF.

If broken up, you'll never find a home this large again downtown.

I'd still prefer a mansion on Broadway with land and water views + indoor pool. Danielle Steel's 1 SF city block mansion now sounds like a steal in this day and age when you consider it's then HEFTY approximate $10 million price, circa 1990, pre-renovations.

Anonymous said...

I think that there is/was a property on Pacific Ave in Pacific Heights that sold for more...

chris said...

Is the building earthquake proof? Are you sure of that?

Anonymous said...

anon may be rude with his finished vs. unfinished comment, but his point should be well taken. any idea what it takes to put in 11 terlits and HVAC or power? the building was designed by SOM. I'm sure they would enjoy the dumbazz critique, even though I agree with you.