Manhattan Apartment Rents for a Staggering $95,000 a Month—After 2-Hour Bidding Frenzy

Can you imagine renting an apartment for nearly $100,000 a month? This week, that actually happened in Manhattan.

A 3,952-square-foot apartment at 1045 Madison Avenue rented for $95,000 per month.

There was $190,725 required at move-in, which included $95,000 first month's rent, $95,000 refundable security deposit, a $600 application fee, and $125 credit check.

The luxury apartment is in The Benson, a 15-unit doorman building on the Upper East Side. It has community amenities such as a cinema, spa with a steam room and sauna, a fitness center, basketball court, children's playroom, pet spa, library, and private rooftop lounge with unobstructed views of Central Park.

Built in 2021, it was the first ground-up condominium built on Madison Avenue in more than a quarter century.

According to the developer's website, it was designed by the award-winning architect Peter Pennoyer as his tribute to the Upper East Side’s architectural legacy.

It's located at 79th Street and Madison Avenue, just one block from Central Park and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"The Benson is a spectacular building," says Nikki Beauchamp, an associate broker with Sotheby's International Realty in New York City. "As an Upper East Side resident it has been wonderful in recent years to see contextual additions to the landscape."

Douglas Elliman’s Lauren Muss, John Giannone, and Jac Credaroli were the listing agents for the apartment. 

Muss tells Realtor.com®: "I’ve been working in Manhattan since 1994. During that time, I’ve seen multiple market cycles, and the luxury sector in particular has become increasingly competitive and global. The dynamics today are very different from even five or 10 years ago—especially when it comes to new development rentals."

Serhant’s Peter Zaitzeff represented the tenants, who'll pay $288 per square foot—one of the highest amounts ever paid for a 12-month lease in Manhattan.

"The record-setting price-per-square-foot levels we continue to see across both sales and rentals illustrate the extraordinary wealth creation of the past two decades," says Zaitzeff.

"They also reflect a growing cohort of clients with the means to prioritize quality of life, privacy, and family above all else—largely unaffected by price sensitivity at the very top of the market."

Inside the apartment

The stunning unit 14 has five bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms.  

"The residence is a full-floor home on the 14th floor," Muss tells Realtor.com. "The ceilings are 10 feet high, and the apartment features beautifully scaled windows with views over Madison Avenue and glimpses of Central Park. It’s a rare combination of scale, design, and quality construction—which is exactly the type of inventory that performs exceptionally well in today’s rental market."

An elevator opens directly into the unit's private foyer.

The grand great room features three exposures, West, South, and North, from floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Madison Avenue, a high ceiling, and a gas fireplace with a custom-made mantelpiece. 

The kitchen, designed by Christopher Peacock and Peter Pennoyer, showcases a Calcutta Gold island, midnight blue hand-painted cabinetry, a Sub-Zero refrigerator, a Miele 8-burner range, and a custom fluted hood.

Adjacent to the great room, a well-proportioned dining area opens to the kitchen via pocket doors, infusing abundant light and space.

The spa-inspired bathroom features a luxurious soaking tub atop radiant heated stone floors, a spacious rain shower, and a custom-designed vanity. 

The primary bedroom features bay windows and an exceptionally spacious walk-in closet.

Additional bedrooms are generously sized, each with their own bathrooms.

The apartment also features a spacious laundry room.

Crunching the numbers

The anonymous owner of the apartment bought the unit for $14.5 million in 2022. According to StreetEasy, they rented it for $65,000 per month in 2023.  

By comparison, the median rent in Manhattan for the third quarter of 2025 was $4,747 and rose by 6.0% year over year.

"Rent in Manhattan is significantly higher than in the other New York boroughs and nearly three times the national median," says Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com. "Manhattan is one of the most expensive places in the world to rent, requiring an annual income of nearly $200,000 to do so without violating the 30% rule of thumb. It's clear though that demand for rentals there is still strong, even in the ultra-expensive luxury segment."

Muss tells Realtor.com that the unit was originally priced at $85,000, but they had multiple bidders after only being allowed to show it in a single two-hour window.

"Within that two-hour window, we were able to secure a deal," she says. "The level of interest in such a short period underscores just how limited this category of product is."

According to the The Real Deal, the highest bidders were in the middle of renovating their townhouse and needed temporary housing, prompting them to offer above the asking price amid limited inventory.

"Inventory for large, new or newly renovated luxury rentals has been extremely low for several years now," says Muss. "These homes rarely come to market, and when they do, they often attract multiple qualified tenants very quickly. That scarcity was a significant driver in both the competitive bidding and the final price achieved."

Muss says this is certainly one of the highest rental prices she's ever been involved with.

"Based on available data, it appears to be one of the highest prices per square foot ever achieved in New York City," she says. "Because rental data isn’t uniformly public, it’s difficult to declare anything as a definitive record, but it is unquestionably among the top results in the market."

Berner says, "$95,000 per month is a wild amount to pay for a home you don't own, requiring an annual income of $3.8M to satisfy the 30% rule, but it is not totally surprising that the market can bear it given how wealthy some New Yorkers are and how in-demand housing in Manhattan is."

But Muss says sky-high rents in the luxury market are becoming the new normal.

"With exceptionally tight inventory and a strong preference among high-end tenants for brand-new or newly renovated product, we are seeing higher rents become the norm for specific categories of luxury homes," she explains.

"The pool of large, high-quality, turnkey residences is limited, while the pool of ultra-high-net-worth individuals in NYC continues to grow. When a standout property hits the market, demand often outpaces supply, and that imbalance continues to put upward pressure on pricing."