11:47:42 | 2012-05-29
(New York, NY) — Recent reports have shown that over the past few years, the number of billionaires in Russian and the Ukraine has increased drastically. Many of these billionaires are also successful investors. This recent spike in the number of ultra-wealthy individuals in this region of the world hasn’t only impacted the Russian and Ukrainian markets, but it has surprisingly had a drastic impact on the New York real estate market as well.
A crop of these Russian billionaires have shown a great deal of interest in the high-end New York properties that make up the current NYC luxury real estates market. Current billionaires looking to buy some of the ultra high-end real estate in New York are finding that many of the most coveted properties in New York are being snatched up by Russian investors. There has been a recognizable history of wealthy Russian investors looking to invest in New York real estate in the past, however, with the number of billionaires in Russia and the Ukraine tripling in the past few years, their influence in the market can be seen more than ever.
Those in the New York market are noticing that there is not only an increase in the number of transactions from Russian investors, but the size of these transactions is growing as well. One of the most publicized investments made from one of these wealthy investors came when billionaire, Dimitri Robolovlev put $88 million into a penthouse at 15 Central Park West; one of the most exclusive and prestigious buildings in all of New York City. The property wasn’t even for the billionaire’s own use; the apartment was for his daughter and was listed as the most money ever paid for a New York City apartment. Even more surprising was the recent investment made by Russian billionaire Alexander Rovt who paid $303 million in cash for an office building at 14 Wall Street.
With big purchases like this being made, and numerous other multi-million dollar acquisitions from Russian billionaires occurring in New York, the prevalence of this very specific type of buyer in the New York luxury real estate market cannot be ignored. With trends like this, there is no denying that New York seems to be the place for some of Russia’s most influential billionaires to now call home.
—Email richard@brokerpulse.com
