Palms Place penthouse gets $1M remodel; rents for up to $25,000 a night

The 59th-floor party pad penthouse adjacent to the Palms casino was owned by Phil Maloof, whose family built the casino. The unit with its own private elevator was listed for $15 million prior to the sale closing in November. It sold for $2,002 per square foot, which was also the highest in 2019.

Luxury vacation rental company Turnkey Pads bought the Palms unit that has more than 6,200 square feet on the inside and about 13,000 square feet of outdoor space with a perimeter terrace that provides 360-degree views of Las Vegas and can accommodate hundreds of guests.

“We completely gutted the whole place with brand new floors, paint and refurbished the interior,” said Turnkey Pads founder Bryan Ercolano. “An interior designer put in a lot of professional art, and we added a water feature. We got rid of the gym and made a fourth bedroom. We cut holes in the walls to add more light and upgraded the sound system. We retiled the hot tub and made the area more functional by adding fire pits and communal seating to hold corporate events and book weddings.”

The company started booking out the condo in mid-December for fees that start at $5,000 on weekdays and have been as high as $25,000 on the weekends, Ercolano said. A corporate party held on New Year’s Eve cost $40,000.

Ercolano said his company is generating about $100,000 a month and that’s expected to grow as they advertise on billboards and work with wedding planners. The unit was rented sporadically in the past because Maloof lived there, he said.

So far, it’s attracted Las Vegas companies holding parties, a few members of the Las Vegas Raiders and singers who come to town to perform and want a place for them and their entourage to stay, he said.

“We’re just getting started, and it’s by word of mouth, but gaining momentum,” Ercolano said. “There’s nothing like it in Vegas with the best views that can’t be beat.”

The 3-year-old company that owns and manages properties in Las Vegas and other vacation destinations, such as Costa Rica, has about 100 units at Palms Place, 50 at MGM Signature, and others at such properties as Allure and Panorama, he said.

Ercolano said as a condo-hotel tower he’s allowed to rent the unit and pay Clark County a transient tax.

Ivan Sher with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Nevada Properties was the listing agent while Hali Gillin of Keller Williams Southern Nevada was the buyer’s agent.

“They got a product and business model,” Sher said of the new owners. “It sometimes takes some creative thinking, and it looks like they did it. Las Vegas is evolving and growing into the city that we knew that we could be.”

The Turnkey Pads’ acquisition set the record after a new record was set in late September when an 18th-floor penthouse at One Queensridge Place in the west valley was sold for $5,000 more than $8 million. The $8 million was the previous record for a penthouse at Park Towers in 2013 in which Sher was the buyer’s and seller’s agent. Cary Katz, a billionaire business owner and professional poker player, was listed as the buyer from Marc and Jane Schorr.

The Queensridge penthouse measures 14,719 square feet on two floors. It has six bedrooms, a theater and a master bath in which someone can look through the glass in the shower and see the Strip. It has more than 2,000 square feet of outdoor deck space, a swimming pool, built-in barbecue and six-car garage.

The seller was listed as Tarry Faries of Virginia. Tarry and Durward Faries, an inventor and entrepreneur who died in 2011, bought the unit from the developer for just over $11 million in 2008.

The buyer is listed in Clark County records as Alta Drive LLC, which has a Carson City address. Gadi Hahamy, a Realtor with Realty One Group, said the buyers are part of an investment group, which includes himself, that buy commercial retail centers and high-end luxury as part of an investment property.

“What really sold it was the incredible views around the city and palatial feeling with a phenomenal two-story great room that’s unbelievable,” said Randy Char, the broker owner of Char Luxury Real Estate, the listing agent. “This sale says volumes about the city and a win for the Las Vegas Valley because it speaks to the consumer confidence and positive outlook on the future of what’s to come.”

Nine of the top 10 sales in 2019 were completed with cash. One was completed through a conventional loan.

Other condo sales in top 10

■ No. 3 on the 2019 list was the penthouse at the Waldorf Astoria that when it closed in August fetched the highest price in 2½ years at the time. The 46th floor unit sold for $5.75 million or $1,466 a square foot for the 3,922 square-foot unit.

The buyer was listed as the Rick Thompson Trust and Thompson Family Trust in Southern California, according to the Multiple Listing Service and Clark County property records. Michelle Manley of Award Realty was the buyer’s agent.

The unit was listed by Las Vegas Realtor Kamran Zand of Luxury Estates International. In 2015, the same penthouse sold for $3.87 million to 4606 M O L L C. That’s a gain of about $1.9 million, or 48 percent, over four years.

“It’s on the second-to-highest floor and a corner unit with a great view of the Raiders stadium and Bellagio fountains,” Zand said. “It was fully furnished and professionally designed.”

Zand said the previous owner put about $500,000 of improvements into the unit, which helped increase its value.

■ No. 4 on the list was a two-level penthouse at Turnberry Place that sold for $4.15 million. Dennis and Mireille Gillings are listed as the owners, according to Clark County property records. Dennis Gillings is a British-born American billionaire statistician and entrepreneur who founded the clinical research company Quintiles. His wife, Mireille, is a Canadian neurobiologist and entrepreneur who founded HUYA Bioscience International.

The penthouse measures 6,421 square feet with four large bedrooms and six baths. It has 270-degree views of the Strip and mountains, a private pool, upper deck with fireplaces, wet bar, game lounge, living room that opens to a gourmet kitchen and formal dining room, according to Cristine Jensen, a Realtor with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, which represented the seller, Jazz Trust. Keri Lade of Luxe Estates represented the buyer.

■ No. 5 on the list is a condo on the top floor of the Waldorf that sold for $3.99 million and was listed by Michelle Manley. Shari Sanderson, a Realtor with Award Realty, was listed as the buyer’s agent. It’s $1,841 per square foot price was the second highest of the year.

The two-bedroom unit on the floor is known as the Presidential Penthouse with two master-spa-inspired suites, three baths, and a translucent onyx bar overlooking the city, Manley said. She said the penthouse level is the only floor that features 11-foot ceilings. Burebista LLC is listed as the new owner.

■ No. 6 on the list is a 36th-floor high-rise at the Waldorf Astoria that sold for $3.91 million. It has two bedrooms.

Natalie Cornejo of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services was the listing agent and Alison Shain of BH Real Estate was the buyer’s agent. BTB Skyview LLC is listed as the new owner.

■ No. 7 on the list was a high-rise at Turnberry Place that sold for $3.6 million and has five bedrooms. MJ Blunk of Wardley Real Estate was the listing agent and Cristine Jensen was the buyer’s agent.

■ No. 8 on the list is a two-bedroom unit at the Waldorf that sold for $3.6 million with Essie Taylor of Keller Williams as the listing agent. The condo is a corner unit that was remodeled with high-end finishes. It has floor-to-ceiling windows and surround sound throughout. Center Crest LLC is listed as the new owner. Michelle Manley was the buyer’s agent.

■ No. 9 on list is the 28th-floor at the Waldorf Astoria with two bedrooms sold for $3.5 million. Matthew Brimhall of MDB Realty was the listing and buyer’s agent. Isis De La Torre and Christopher Terry of Mount Kisco, New York, are the new owners.

■ No. 10, a two-bedroom unit on the 33rd floor of the Waldorf Astoria, sold for $3.4 million. Ellie Shefler, broker with Luxury Estates International, was the listing and buyer’s agent. Bethpage 70 LLC is listed as a co-owner also with 57 St Apartments and Thomas Hua.