A Once-Pink Manhattan Townhouse Gets a Paint Job and $29.95 Million Price Tag

Located on Waverly Place in Greenwich Village, the 22-foot-wide house is now a golden-yellow color and measures about 6,800 square feet with another 1,700 square feet of outdoor space, said listing agent Jim St. André of Compass. The house has five bedrooms, including a primary suite with an oversized dressing room and a fireplace. 

The Novogratzes bought the once-pink house for $8.5 million in 2019, records show. The couple, interior designers known for television shows such as Bravo’s “9 By Design,” moved into the house about six months ago, and currently live there with two of their seven children, they said.

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Built in 1826, the home was commissioned by Thomas R. Mercein, president of the New York Equitable Fire Insurance Company, according to the Greenwich Village Historic District designation report. In 1920, it was redesigned by the architect William Sanger, whose wife Margaret Sanger founded Planned Parenthood. Mr. Sanger added a curved roofline framing a large arched window as well as arched doorways. 

Ms. Novogratz said they had been eyeing the home for years, buying it from the estate of Celeste Martin, whose family owned it for decades. The house was in bad shape after being neglected for years, she said, and there was little to salvage except for some wooden beams.

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Mr. Novogratz said the couple wanted to keep the pink exterior, which he said was painted around 60 years ago. They worked with the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission since the house is in a historic district. “Landmarks didn’t want us to go in that direction,” he said. Instead, they reverted to a color similar to the original. 

The couple took the house down to the studs and rebuilt it with finishes including Venetian plaster, custom millwork and German reclaimed-wood flooring, they said. On the fourth floor, the Novogratzes reconfigured a space they affectionately call “the ballroom,” which spans about 650 square feet with roughly 22-foot-high ceilings and a large, arched window. The room also has a mezzanine level, leading to a roof terrace with views of the Empire State Building and the Freedom Tower. The couple said they moved a staircase from the center of the space to the back of the room, and brought in a baby grand piano. The home’s art and furniture aren’t included in the offering, although Mr. St. André said they could be purchased separately. 

The property also has a high-speed elevator and a backyard with mature trees brought in from the Berkshires. The Novogratzes adopted a mini Australian shepherd named Winter just before Covid. “It happens to be our first time having a dog, we have a proper backyard in the middle of Greenwich Village for her,” Ms. Novogratz said. 

They declined to say how much they spent approximately on the three-year renovation, which was interrupted by Covid. “In a sense, it kept us sane,” Ms. Novogratz said, of having a creative outlet during the pandemic. 

Mr. Novogratz said the house is the couple’s 10th townhouse project in New York. In 2016, they sold a West Village townhouse for $14.5 million after buying it for $4.3 million in 2007, records show. In Los Angeles, they are currently selling a modern Spanish home that they purchased for just over $4 million in 2018, records show. The Bird Streets mansion, first listed for $17.995 million in 2021, is currently asking $12.995 million, according to Zillow. 

During the first quarter of the year, the number of luxury sales in Manhattan dropped 37.5% from 2022’s first quarter, according to real-estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel. The average luxury sale price rose 1.7% year-over-year. 

Write to E.B. Solomont at [email protected]