Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie may be looking to buy in Manhattan.
We hear the star couple has been quietly checking out the Apthorp, the century-old upper West Side landmark that's undergoing a condo conversion.
Until now, Pitt and Jolie have rented when they've come to town. Recently, while Angie's been shooting "Salt," the Brangelina brood has divided its time between the Waldorf Towers and Rupert Murdoch's Rosehearty estate on the North Shore (where Rupe reportedly has been charging them $100,000 a month).
But the fortress-like luxury of Apthorp is apparently making the Pitt-Jolies consider settling down here.
"The gated courtyard means they can get in and out of their car without being hassled by paparazzi," says a source. "The building also has several other exits."
The Pitt-Jolies are said to be thinking about putting together three units in the building. "I heard they're ready to spend as much as $25 million," says a source.
That could buy them a lot of space, considering Douglas Elliman has slashed prices from $3,000 per square foot to as low as $1,500. (The most expensive unit - 6,197 square feet - sells for $15.5 million.)
Pitt, who is something of an architectural historian, is bound to be beguiled by the handwrought period details of the residence, built in 1908 by the Astor family. Some apartments are as large as 13 rooms and boast 11-foot ceilings and 44-inch-wide hallways. And restoration-minded buyers can customize the raw space to their liking.
What's more, the Apthorp has long been celebrity-friendly. Nora Ephron and Cyndi Lauper are among those who rented before the condo offering. Among those who've checked out the conversion have been actors Alec Baldwin, Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, and Knick David Lee and his model-girlfriend Sabina Gadecki.
The globetrotting Pitt-Jolies already have grand homes in L.A. and New Orleans but could be attracted, like a lot of Hollywood wanderers, by New York's private schools.
Buying in the Apthorp does come with some uncertainty. Prudential Douglas Elliman must sell 25 of the available 32 units so that the owner's offering plan can continue to operate for another year. A Douglas Elliman rep says that there are currently 12 to 15 units "in negotiation." But - who knows? - maybe Brad and Angie will decide to buy up the rest.
