A luxury apartment is a type of

apartment An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ma ...

that is intended to provide its occupant with higher-than-average levels of comfort, quality and convenience. While the term is often used to describe high-end regular apartments, or even typical apartments as a form of aspirational marketing, a true luxury apartment is one that is variously defined as being in the top 10% of transactions on the market, or having a total value of more than $4–5 million US dollars, with "ultra-luxury" apartments being valued above US$10 million. However, it can also mean any apartment with extra amenities, such as a doorman,

yoga Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...

studios or

bowling alley A bowling alley (also known as a bowling center, bowling lounge, bowling arena, or historically bowling club) is a facility where the sport of bowling is played. It can be a dedicated facility or part of another, such as a Meetinghouse, clubhous ...

s, among others.

History

The term "luxury apartment" was used since the postwar era, although its definition was less grandiose than in recent times. In the 1980s, for example, having a doorman for the building was sufficient to mark an apartment as "luxury". Competition to make the most luxurious apartment increased due to the growth of the Internet, which allowed potential buyers to cross-check apartment listings.

Current examples

New York

As of 2016, three out of every four new apartment buildings in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

were luxury designs targeted towards high-end buyers. This luxury boom is centered in the fastest-growing American cities, but also includes smaller, less-dense cities. It has been linked to the movement of affluent Americans away from suburbs to cities, also known as The Great Inversion. The 2010s was marked by the construction of many new luxury

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...

towers in New York City, often appealing to wealthy overseas buyers, such as

One57 One57, formerly known as Carnegie 57, is a 75-story, supertall skyscraper at 157 West 57th Street (Manhattan), 57th Street between Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Sixth and Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenues in the Midtown Manhattan, Midtow ...

and

Central Park Tower Central Park Tower is a residential supertall skyscraper at 225 West 57th Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, along Billionaires' Row. Designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, the building rises with 9 ...

. Billionaire's Row became known as the location of many of these towers.

Williamsburg, Brooklyn Williamsburg is a Neighborhoods in Brooklyn, neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn, bordered by Greenpoint, Brooklyn, Greenpoint to the north; Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bedford–Stuyvesant to the s ...

had the highest rent increase, rising by 54% on average from 2010 to 2019. Global economic headwinds and unfavorable changes to property and transfer taxes cooled demand, causing a glut of unsold luxury condos. As of 2019, one in four luxury apartments that were built since 2013 were unsold.

London

Luxury apartments in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

comprise at least around 1,000 sq ft of space and would include high specification fittings such as underfloor heating, air conditioning, marble bathrooms, kitchens with granite or quartz worktops, underground carparks and/or garages, a 24 hour concierge service and an on-site residents-only leisure centre.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

has long been recognised as one of the most expensive property markets in the world, with countless exclusive residential offerings. Though many of the city's famed apartment complexes are found atop the

Victoria Peak Victoria Peak is a hill on the western half of Hong Kong Island. It is also known as Mount Austin, and locally as The Peak only generally. With an elevation of , it is the highest hill on Hong Kong Island, ranked 29 in terms of elevation in H ...

, there are several other luxury apartments in areas such as

Repulse Bay Repulse Bay or Tsin Shui Wan is a bay in the southern part of Hong Kong Island, located in the Southern District, Hong Kong. It is one of the most expensive residential areas in the world. Geography Repulse Bay is located in the southern ...

Mid-Levels Mid-Levels is an affluent residential area on Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is located between Victoria Peak and Central. Residents are predominantly more affluent Hong Kong locals and expatriate professionals. The Mid-Levels is further ...

Union Square Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

Kowloon Tong Kowloon Tong () is an area of Hong Kong located in Kowloon. The majority of the area is in the Kowloon City District. Its exaclocationis south of the Lion Rock, north of Boundary Street, east of the East Rail line and west of Grampian Road. It i ...

and more.

References