Nineteen contracts were signed last week at $4 million and above, a typically robust total for the first week in December---and beating last year’s total of 18 signed contracts for the same week. Condos outsold co-ops, 12 to 4, and there were 3 townhouses in the mix. At first, two stats looked alarming: Negotiability (24%) and Days On The Market (696)—except those figures were skewed by the No.1 sale, and that was…..

….a townhouse at 15 East 90th Street, asking $16.5 million, reduced from $35 million when it started on the market in May 2015. Cycling thru 3 different brokerage firms over the course of 1,651 days, this 5-story, 25-foot-wide, Georgian-style house was built in 1926 by famed architect Mott Schmidt. It has 10,021 square feet including 5 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, 3 powder rooms, 6 fireplaces, and an elevator. The house has a wide sweeping staircase, a garden, and terraces on the top floor and roof. It completed a renovation in 2015. Annual real estate taxes total $135,838.

The No. 2 contract was 11CD at 1060 Fifth Avenue, asking $15.75 million. This 12-room co-op is configured as 5 bedrooms, 6.5 bathrooms, and a library. A 30-foot living room with a fireplace, a formal dining room, and staff quarters all have views of Central Park. The unit has a 25-foot eat-in kitchen, and comes with four storage rooms and 2 silver vaults. The building has a fitness facility that includes a gym with workout equipment, half-court basketball, a resistance swimming pool, and a golf simulator.