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Midtown’s shimmering Art Deco crown jewel is officially for sale—again. The Chrysler Building, that spired symbol of 1930s New York glamour, has hit the market after a courtroom soap opera that ended with a $21 million eviction notice and a developer ousted from their lease, reports Crain’s New York Business.
For the first time since 2019, the skyscraper’s leasehold is up for grabs. Cooper Union, which owns the land beneath the tower, has tapped real estate firm Savills to shop it around. Just don’t expect a bargain. While the asking price is under wraps, the last sale, involving RFR and the now-insolvent Signa, closed at a fire-sale $151 million, down from a staggering $800 million in 2008. Of course, whoever takes the keys will still owe Cooper Union $32 million annually in rent, rising to $41 million by 2028. Pocket change!
Built as a “monument to me” by auto tycoon Walter P. Chrysler, the 77-story tower has been everything from a Depression-era office oasis to a backdrop in Sex and the City and Men in Black 3. Today, it’s 100% leased on paper. But behind the stainless steel gargoyles and red Moroccan marble lobby lie cracked ceilings, finicky elevators, pest problems and lobby tourists who try to sneak past the turnstiles. “There’s been times where we would get water from any of the fountains and it would just be completely brown,” one tenant told the New York Times last year. “My office just ended up shipping giant bottles of water from Costco.”
Savills’ pitch? Potential. “It’s a great opportunity to reimagine what is the crown jewel of the New York City skyline,” said David Heller, an EVP at the firm.
With rents at $65 to $79 per square foot—half the price of shiny neighbors like One Vanderbilt—the Chrysler is a relative steal. But prospective buyers should bring vision, cash and maybe a pest control contract. As Ruth Colp-Haber, a real estate broker, told the Times, “It’s a tale of two buildings.” One is an icon. The other needs a serious glow-up.
If you’ve got a few hundred million lying around and a dream of putting your name on the skyline, the Chrysler Building is waiting—just mind the mice on your way in.