Hard-‘luxe’ stor
Suit: Shoddy work at $6.1M 5th Ave. condo
New York’s most expensive one-bedroom apartment has allegedly turned into the city’s priciest money pit — as the new owners of the $6.1 million Fifth Avenue digs have filed a lawsuit claiming the place is riddled with problems, The Post has learned.
John Goodman and wife Diane say they bought the 1032-square-foot condo in December because of the building’s many luxe amenities, such as a private Daniel Boulud restaurant and “in-residence sommelier service.”
But they said the pad turned out to be a highpriced mess.
“I paid full asking price. But I didn’t get what I was promised,” Goodman told The Post.
In their Manhattan Supreme Court suit against developer Michael Shvo and BSD 685 New York Propco LLC, the Goodmans said the pricey unit’s problems include warped custom millwork, rippled wallpaper, missing doors and no heat emanating from the “radiant heated” floors.
Despite noticing some of these issues before closing on the place, the Goodmans said they still went through with the purchase because they thought the errors would be addressed.
After the closing, however, Goodman said he was virtually ghosted by the building’s owners.
“I was treated with the utmost respect and decency — until the final $5 million plus was wired,” Goodman said. “I’ve bought a lot of real estate and I’ve never paid anything like this — nor have I ever plaid close to $6,000 a square foot.”
The issues for the Goodmans at the fully furnished “turn-key” residence also included missing items, such as only two place mats for their tableware serving for six.
Goodman thought that problem would be easy to fix. At the sales office, Goodman said, everything looked great. The building was under construction but there were “sophisticated photos and renderings,” plus the Mandarin Oriental’s name instilled confidence.
“It checked all the boxes,” Goodman said.
‘Extort’ bid
The four place mats were eventually delivered without charge earlier this month, he said.
The apartment’s expected delivery date was December 2022, although there were delays. The deal closed in December 2023.
The Goodmans expressly named Shvo in the lawsuit, which called him out for “unprofessionalism to an alarming degree, including the use of foul language, refusal to acknowledge errors and outright toxic conduct.”
Shvo declined to be interviewed. In a statement, his spokesperson said: “This is a shameless attempt to use the courts and the press to extort money by an individual with a history of frivolous lawsuits. Our developments are best-in-class and this is the only complaint of this nature at the property. Nonetheless, we went above and beyond our obligations to accommodate an individual who after closing the transaction and moving into the property decided that he wants changes made in the unit.”
Despite the aggravation, Goodman says: “I don’t regret the purchase. It’s just that the experience is second to none. So here we are.”
Added Goodman’s lawyer, Adam Glassman: “Ultimately, we want it to be made whole and for the Goodmans to live in an environment that they expected.”
The Mandarin Oriental could not immediately be reached for comment.