A trio of Upper East Side developments will test the traditional northern boundary for luxury buildings, the Financial Times reported. 

The projects — 1280 Fifth Avenue, 4 East 102nd Street and 1212 Fifth Avenue — will test the East 96th Street line Manhattanites have long considered the separation between the Upper East Side and Harlem. But the new developments offer the amenities of buildings to the south and all three were designed by “brand-name” architects. While 1280 Fifth Avenue and 4 East 102nd Street are new developments, by Brickman and Durst Fetner Residential, respectively, 1212 Fifth Avenue is a conversion. 

The Robert Stern-designed 1280 Fifth, the furthest north, at 109th Street, is anchored by the African Museum of Art. As The Real Deal previously reported, sales, which had been handled by Brown Harris Stevens, was recently taken over by Core. The 116-unit building has a rooftop pool and a private dining room, in a dramatic departure from the rest of the neighborhood’s building stock. 

Meanwhile, 4 East 102nd Street — a 52-floor, 230-unit rental building — was designed by famed Argentine architect Cesar Pelli’s son Rafael and 55-unit 1212 Fifth Avenue by S. Russell Groves, who is best known for designing retailer Tiffany’s boutiques, the Financial Times said. The 1212 Fifth building, at 104th Street, offers a 24-hour concierge and a gym. 

So far buyers are not too hesitant to move to the “transitional” area, the paper said. More than 15 percent of 1280’s units are reportedly in contract, while at 1212 Fifth over a dozen apartments have been sold. The East 102nd Street building will be completed next spring. 

“I’ve spent several years looking for a pre-war condo that’s on Central Park and fully modernized,” an Argentine attorney who bought a pair of apartments at 1212 Fifth Avenue told the Financial Times. “For me, the developers have done an elegant job of blending the old with the new.” [Financial Times]

The world’s wealthiest individuals are continuing to purchase luxury residential property in the key international cities despite fluctuation in the global economic marketplace, according to a report by Christie’s International Real Estate cited by real estate expert and former columnist for The Real Deal Michael Stoler on his blog. 

More than 67 percent of Christie’s agents reported an increase in sales activity in the first eight months of 2011 when compared with the same period in 2010, especially in cities like New York, Beverly Hills, London, Paris and Hong Kong. Overall, the homes of the super rich in the top 10 cities worldwide rose by an average of 10 percent in value in the first six months of this year. More than 87 percent of buyers paid cash, the report notes. 

Giles Hannah, director of sales for Christie’s International for Europe, said: “Like a fine wine or an old master, an exceptional property is bought to be enjoyed and will always find a buyer.”

Demand for luxury condominiums in Manhattan has been driving an improved rate in closed sales in the third quarter, according to preliminary data, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

With only three days left in the quarter, there have so far been 150 closed sales for $4 million or more recorded, including 18 at the Laureate, the Stahl Organization’s 70-unit condominium on West 76th Street and Broadway, the Journal said. Sales of expensive co-ops were also strong during the quarter. 

“There has been a real uptick for properties of that size and price range,” said Hall Willkie, president of Brown Harris Stevens, which manages sales at the Laureate. “This is a difficult time in the economy, but if properties are priced well in New York they sell.” 

Pamela Liebman, president of the Corcoran Group, said she is seeing a phenomenal growth in demand for luxury residents in comparison with properties on the lower end. 

“I have never seen such a demand in the super-luxury market as I have seen this year,” she said, “[but] we are a little bit anxious about how the rest of the year plays out for the regular people.” [WSJ]

The luxury market is defined as the top 10% of all condo and co-op sales, in terms of price.  For this past quarter, Q2, ending June 30 – the luxury market was comprised of sales above $2.9M, a 2.5% decline from last quarter’s 90th-percentile price ($2.975M). The number of sales above $2.9M dropped by 18.6% since last quarter and by 13.0% since last year.  Downtown had the most closings in this category as it made up 33.8% of all luxury closings.

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