Developers Creating Housing For Those With Money to Burn

When Parking the Car in a Garage Is Just Uncivilized

Parking your $115,000 Maserati in Manhattan will soon be a snap. A luxury tower planned for 11th Avenue features an elevator that lifts cars to the apartment owner's floor, where they can be parked near the entry door. The cost for 4,000 square feet: as much as $16 million.

"It's a crazy idea, but we thought it was a good idea," said Young Woo, a principal of the tower's builder, New York-based Young Woo Developers. "Living in this kind of unit gives a sense of pride."

The wealthy have never dwelt so well. Donald Trump, Miki Naftali and developers worldwide are ratcheting up the amenities, adding the use of BMWs and 24-hour restaurant service to their buildings. That's fueling a surge in luxury apartment prices in New York and London just as the collapse of subprime lenders spurs a housing crisis. A survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association found that a record 0.54 percent of U.S. home loans were entering foreclosure.

"At the high end of the market, you are dealing with wealth and not income," said Gregory J. Heym, chief economist at New York real estate company Terra Holdings. "People buy apartments with cash. Some of the factors that influence the rest of the market don't come into play."

The new frills let developers boost prices of apartments and market their uniqueness, said Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel Inc., an appraiser in New York. "Those amenities are what provide a premium for the project." Buyers in New York have included Wall Street bankers, celebrities and hedge fund managers.

Manhattan in Dubai

In Dubai, the most populous of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates, changing the view from your apartment will require only a push of a button. Developer Omniyat Properties' 24-story high-rise, planned for 2009, boasts apartments that project scenic images, such as the Manhattan skyline, onto its windows. Living and dining rooms in units costing up to $2.5 million will also rotate 360 degrees, providing a variety of panoramas.

London is the world's most expensive city for luxury dwellings, according to CB Richard Ellis Group. Londoners paying up to $23.8 million for an apartment at the Knightsbridge building will spend a lot of time in front of the mirror. The mirrors contain cameras that take and store photos so residents can compare their appearance and outfits over time.

In March, luxury home prices in London soared 32 percent compared with a year earlier, according to real estate company Savills.

Developers say wealthy buyers want entertainment, recreation and fitness facilities without having to leave home. "They are buying a lifestyle," said Allen F. Goldman, president of SJP Residential Properties in Manhattan.

In his Platinum development on Eighth Avenue, where buyers are paying up to $7.5 million, Goldman is adding rooms for billiards, a sauna and an indoor-outdoor yoga studio. There's even a golf simulator.

A DVD player projects views of famous courses, such as St. Andrews in Scotland, on a screen. The player then hits a ball against the screen, and lasers trace its projected flight, showing where the ball would have landed on the actual course.