Luxury tower on NYC's 'Billionaires' Row' faces facade crack issues
432 Park Ave condo board sues developers over alleged defects in one of Manhattan's tallest residential buildings
Cracks may be widening in commercial real estate market
FOX Business host Liz Claman reports on recent data on the national commercial real estate market on 'The Claman Countdown.'
The slender 102-story tower at 432 Park Ave., sitting on a stretch of ultra-luxury residential skyscrapers known as Manhattan's Billionaires’ Row, is experiencing issues with its facade, according to a recent report.
The facade of 432 Park Ave. – one of the tallest residential buildings in the Western Hemisphere, is visibly damaged with hundreds of cracks, indicating that the structure is struggling to withstand the wind and rain, according to independent engineering experts, construction reports and court filings obtained by The New York Times. The engineers warned that if the problems aren't addressed, then the building could eventually become uninhabitable or pose safety hazards for pedestrians below, according to the report. Those fixes could come at a hefty cost, with the engineers estimating it could be in the ballpark of nine-figures, the Times reported.
Thousands of pages of court documents, public records and private correspondence between the buildings’ residents and planners, reviewed by the Times, showed that members of the buildings' team of developers, engineers and architects were concerned about the concrete even before they broke ground on construction. The issues have prompted lawsuits from members of the building's condo board.
NEARLY 1 IN 5 AMERICAN HOMES SLASH PRICES AS BUYERS GAIN UPPER HAND IN SHIFTING MARKET
The city is arguing that the most recent inspections revealed that its facade is safe. A spokesperson for 432 Park also told FOX Business that the claims the building is unsafe are baseless.
The skyscraper 432 Park Ave. is reflected in a glass facade. (Benno Schwinghammer/Picture Alliance via Getty Images)
The building was designed by Rafael Viñoly and rises 1,396 feet above Park Ave. between 56th and 57th streets. It is described as an extraordinary creative collaboration that melded "Palladian-proportioned rooms with the highest engineering technology, honest materials and versatile planning," according to its website.
The New York City Department of Buildings said buildings in the city that are more than six stories tall are subject to the requirements of the department's Facade Inspection & Safety Program, commonly referred to as Local Law 11. This law requires building owners to hire a qualified exterior wall inspector (QEWI), and have their building’s facade inspected at least once every five years. Those inspection reports are required to be filed with the Department of Buildings and are made public.
FROM AMERICA'S ‘WORST MARKET’ TO WEALTH HAVEN: FLORIDA REAL ESTATE SPLIT SHOWS SIGNS OF LIFE
The most recent facade inspection filed on April 15, 2025, showed that 432 Park Ave.'s exterior walls are "safe with a repair and maintenance program" (SWARMP). This means the 432 Park Ave.'s wall or parts of the wall were safe at the time of the inspection but need repairs or maintenance within the next five years to keep them from becoming unsafe.
The 432 Park Ave. residential skyscraper in the Midtown neighborhood of New York, on Nov. 14, 2021. (Amir Hamja/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
In 2022, an inspection found unsafe conditions during a facade inspection at the building, according to records obtained by FOX Business. But, as required by law, the inspector notified the department, filing an unsafe notification with it in October 2022.
The department said the owners of the building made subsequent repairs to remediate these unsafe conditions. A new report was filed in February 2023 indicating that the facade of the building was in SWARMP condition.
REAL ESTATE VETERAN WARNS ‘HOPELESSNESS’ IN HOUSING MARKET THREATENS THE AMERICAN DREAM
The department told FOX Business that none of the parties associated with the building approached it with new information indicating structural stability or life safety concerns with the building. The department is also not aware of any current unsafe conditions on the building’s facade that require pedestrian protection measures.
Still, 432 Park Ave.'s condo board filed two separate suits in which it accused the building’s developers of selling them defective units as well as fraudulently covering up the issues, the Times reported.
The 432 Park Ave. residential skyscraper, center, in the Midtown neighborhood of New York. ( Amir Hamja/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
A spokesperson for 432 Park told FOX Business that the claims that the facade is deteriorating are contradicted by the board’s own engineers, who have certified the facade as SWARMP.
The spokesperson also noted that the design team, sponsor, the contractors "and each of their respective experts disagree with the board’s meritless allegations and reaffirm that this should be resolved in court and not in the press."
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
The building further claimed that the board "neglected to follow the recommended facade maintenance program" that requires reapplying a protective sealer solution to extend the related warranty.
"In contrast to its hyperbolic allegations, the Board has spent less than $300,000 on facade repairs in five years, while also spending more than $20 million on legal fees and consultants," the spokesperson said, adding that "assertions that the Sponsor ignored risks are categorically untrue, defamatory, and yet another misstep by the Board that will drive down property values and harm unit owners."