What is the difference in the average price of a penthouse occupying
the whole top floor of a building versus one which must share the top
floor with other units? Please provide references and page numbers.

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Clarification of Question by jacobadavis-ga on 04 Jan 2006 08:25 PST

I would prefer to gain information on the Dallas (up or down town
area) specifically, but I believe that there might not be enough data.
Thus, we may need to expand geographic parameters. High-luxury ($1M
and up) condo data ought to be used if possible.

I currently have half of a top floor and want to increase the
probability of selling my portion to the other prospective owner for
top price.

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Clarification of Question by jacobadavis-ga on 08 Jan 2006 13:43 PST

Cindy, this site helps a lot. Thank you!!!

Is this for a test?  Prices can vary from market to market.  It would
help me if you would expand on the question.

If it is for a test, track down last year's course graduates for
insight into the examiner's question.

"What is the difference in the average price ..."

Jacob,
You are asking for one number, plus supporting references.  For the
attractive price, I suppose this can be answered, but only
significantly by limiting the region.  Penthouses in NYC or London are
going to skew the averages of a "nationwide" base and the difference
between them so that the number doesn't mean much.
Presumably you want to compare prices of penthouses that are similar
in size, since obviously larger ones can be expected to be more
expensive  - and the full floor ones will very likely be larger that
those that share a floor.
Since full floor penthouses are unique to the building they are in, 
and each building is unique (location, common facilities, views), it
will be very unlikely that any ANY other penthouse is truly
comparable.

If this is of no importance to your question, then I would venture to
state that full floor penthouses (which will also probably be larger)
will be be more expensive, but  - again -  how much more on average is
dependent on too many variables, just as the averages can vary so
greatly that they are meaningless for any practical purpose.

I expect that you didn't find the above very helpful.  Sorry.

The web doesn't seem to be loaded with sites about or advertising
penthouses, especially ones in USA.  Most sites are advertising ones
in Marbella, Malta, Singapore, Morocco, UK, ... , i.e., new
construction.  Here are a couple from the States.  The first one
underlines the problem of averages:

http://www.forbes.com/realestate/2004/01/23/cx_bs_0123home.html
http://www.92101residential.com/san-diego-penthouse.cfm
http://www.craigslist.org/sfc/rfs/120942746.html
http://www.sddt.com/reports/2003/08/soaringcentral/t06.cfm
http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2004/09/13/focus2.html

These are sites on which one can search on the term penthouse:
http://www.ired.com/usa/
http://www.xdeadline.com/index.cfm?action=searchAdvancedResults&keywordsearch=yes

And since these turned up:  just for entertainment  - ships and planes

http://residentialvessels.com/estates_1.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/oct2005/id20051019_189821.htm 

Jacob, don't be put off by this free comment.  If we can help, we
certainly want to, but I think we need clarification of the question
to do so.
Regards, Myoarin

Go to http://www.dallascad.org/SearchOwner.aspx and use the addresses
of comparable sites to get the appraisal information, then you can
check actual sales prices for comparables divided and for the full
floor based on the most recent sales in your area and the comparable
one.

I'd do the full answer for you, but I'm not a Google answerer so we
can't make arrangements for you to pay me and rate my services.

Best,

Cindy

if I'm reading your question right, it sounds like you want to know if
controlling the entire floor of a Penthouse condo versus just having
one of the units on the Penthouse floor would increase the value of
the per square foot cost  of the entire space, exponentially. My
opinion is that it depends on the building, and bigger is not always
better. (How many people even want more than 5000-6000 square feet of
space in a condo)  I think the more important factor in a highrise
condominium apartment is the view. Many buildings have one side or
another that is clearly superior as far as the view goes... even if it
is only a perceived superiority.

It also depends on the floor plan of the units and the number of
bedrooms and bathrooms.  What is the most desired size of condos in
your market? In NYC or Philadelphia, if you get more than about 3 - 4
bedrooms, it becomes less desirable, and the per square foot cost
could actually decrease. Also, supply and demand is an important
factor--for example, there are limited spots for highrise condos with
unobstructed views of Central Park in NYC.  In my market of
Philadelphia, where except for one or two conventionally sought after
locations, developers are now putting up highrise condos in all parts
of the city-- and Penthouses are becoming less and less "rare"... they
just put up another newer, shinier building.  Anyway, if I had to come
up with a number-- I would say that even under the best of
circumstances (gain the best view, make a better floor plan)
controlling the entire floor wouldn't add more than 10 - 15 percent to
the overall square foot value (if that).