Copyright New York Post
Once envisioned as the pinnacle of Manhattan’s luxury condo boom, 432 Park Ave. was supposed to rise above it all. At nearly 1,400 feet, its stark white concrete grid and minimalist silhouette were marketed as architectural purity incarnate. Today, a decade after its debut, the tower’s pristine image has fractured — literally. The building now finds itself under intense scrutiny from engineers, litigators and brokers alike. As for residents, that’s a different story. “Chunks of concrete will fall off, and windows will start loosening up,” structural engineer Steve Bongiorno told the New York Times. “You can’t take the elevators, mechanical systems start to fail, pipe joints start to break and you get water leaks all over the place. The building just becomes uninhabitable.” The issues trace back to construction. From the start, developers Harry Macklowe and CIM Group prioritized aesthetics, instructing their team to develop a brilliant white concrete mix for the 96-story tower. That decision proved controversial among project engineers. In a 2012 internal email, Rafael Viñoly Architects director Jim Herr warned that they were “going down a dangerous and slippery path that I believe will eventually lead to failure and lawsuits to come.” The warning proved prescient. Holes, cracks, and uneven textures plagued early mock-ups, prompting a back-and-forth over what to prioritize. “Color or cracks,” Silvian Marcus, a structural engineer at WSP, told The Times. The developers chose color. Cracks soon appeared on the finished facade, prompting growing concern that the building, with its extreme slenderness ratio of 15:1 and wind-vulnerable design, was being pushed to its physical limits. “The building is being stressed beyond what was intended,” Bongiorno added, who reviewed the problems independently. Repair estimates vary, but the most comprehensive plan floated would involve a $160 million facade overhaul. Engineers suggest sealing and cladding the building to prevent further water intrusion and structural degradation. “What a disaster! This is definitely not a reflection of how other [supertall] buildings were constructed,” one brokerage head told The Post “This is purely the result of poor decision-making by the developers. Talk about putting form above function!” Yet not all industry voices agree the building is doomed. A former top broker in the tower dismissed the drama. “It’s old news. Everything works. I can promise you there’s no sloshing in the tub! There were noise problems but they were fixed,” the source told The Post. “There is no creaking anymore. I’d be shocked if people are moving out. If someone gave me an apartment there, I’d move in.” Despite the ongoing issues and sensational headlines, the building hasn’t lost all its appeal. In 2024 alone, 10 units closed, and high-end rentals continue to move. In October, a unit reportedly went into contract for $77,000 a month. “There’s still people wanting to live there,” Douglas Elliman broker Keyan Sanai told The Post. “They’re trading at a slight discount. But the bottom line is people are still purchasing these. There’s two sales in August. We are now in October.” Still, he warns against over-optimism. “People are still willing to live there at an absurd price, in my opinion. We always talk about, in our business, what’s called a fool’s errand. Unit 71B, for example, if the owner says, ‘I want $30 million for it,’ I wouldn’t take the listing because it’s a fool’s errand,” Sanai said. Indeed, multiple listings appear to back Sanai’s skepticism. Unit 71B has been asking $35 million for three years — unchanged from its 2018 sale price of $34.75 million. Unit 71A also listed for $35 million in January 2022 and hasn’t budged. Unit 86A came on in 2023 at $35 million, was delisted in 2024, and recently reappeared at $32 million — still below its 2017 purchase price of $38 million. These aren’t anomalies. Unit 94A has dropped from $33 million to $29.75 million. Unit 66B has lingered at $29.5 million after being listed at $32.5 million in 2020. Unit 55A saw two price cuts, from $33 million to $29.5 million. And Unit 52B has seen its ask shaved down six times since 2020, from $12.95 million to $10.5 million. Despite all this, deals continue to happen — just not always painlessly. “Yes, a lot of people do have their apartments listed. That is true. They’re maybe panic-selling,” Sanai said. “But a lot of people are still paying.” A woman who has lived on a high floor in the 80s since 2016 pushed back strongly on the idea that 432 Park is falling apart. “We are very happy and we feel very safe,” she told The Post. “We have no problems at all.” She dismissed the widespread concerns as “rumors of people that people started. Yes, before they had some problems but everything has been fixed.” She emphasized that “they are monitoring everything,” and was blunt in her assessment of the backlash. “This is bulls–t. People are trying to put down the value of this building,” she said. In her view, “the people that live here are the most happy. This is all rumor.” Another resident, who gave the first name of Michael and has lived in the building for seven years, struck a more measured tone. “I think it’s a bit exaggerated, and if it really is as bad as the article said, then yes something should be done,” he said. “As far as my experience here, it has been great.” He said he had never seen falling debris or any visible external defects, adding, “If something is truly wrong with the building’s structure, I trust it will be fixed.” Even support staff inside the building — nannies, dog walkers, personal trainers — said they’d never heard complaints from their clients. “Not that they could recall,” one noted. A doorman declined to comment. And as lawsuits between the condo board and developers grind on, buyers are still coming. The building remains a global icon — and a lightning rod for debates over ego-driven design, engineering risk, and the fragility of brand in luxury real estate. “They really should call it the Teflon building,” Sanai said. “Because based on the amount of bad press, nobody should be transacting there. And yet the numbers are still pretty decent.”
