One of the priciest apartments in New York (it rents for $50,000 a month) has been leased by News Corp for the private use of Rupert Murdoch while a new apartment he bought two years ago is being renovated, The luxury apartment, a penthouse, is in a building owned by New York developer Donald Trump on Manhattan’s exclusive Park Avenue. Penthouses in the building range from 4,000 to 7,000 square feet, have oak floors and most have roof terraces.
According to the Wall Street Journal , News Corp started leasing the apartment in May, In addition to the monthly rental (which works out at roughly 1,000 pounds a day) News Corp pays an additional $500 a month for utilities such as electricity.
Murdoch, whose salary and bonus topped $25 million, last year, recently sold the loft-apartment he owned in Manhattan’s Soho District where he lived for several years How much he sold it for is not known – but it ison record that he paid $44 million for the penthouse he bought two years ago from Laurence Rockefeller on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. It is this apartment that is being renovated.
Details of the temporary rental and the costs involved were revealed, according to the WSJ, in regulatory financial documents filed with the Government . Although the rental being paid has raised some eyebrows, it is not unknown for a company to pay for a company executive’s secondary residence if it is deemed necessary.
According to a spokesman for News Corp, Murdoch’s” primary residence” these days is in Los Angeles – where News Corp has multiple interests. While Mr Murdoch’s New York home is being renovated his family is staying at their home in Los Angeles, said the spokesman . Then added: “Given Mr Murdoch’s business requirements in New York the company decided that for its convenience it would pay for an apartment in New York for Mr Murdoch for the duration of the renovation He will pay taxes, the spokesman added, on the benefit
The Murdoch family has owned homes on both coasts of the US for many years Six year ago after his divorce from his second wife Anna, Murdoch sold his home in Beverly Hills to News Corp. But he bought it back two years ago for $13 million . News Corp, the WSJ noted, subsequently reported a gain on the sale of $800,000.
The cost of Mr Murdoch’s temporary quarters in New York may be high – but not unheard of these days according to a leading real estate brokerage firm.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
