Staten Island home sells for a record $8.5M

Staten Island just hit a brand new high that could even make Brooklyn blush.

A gated estate in affluent Todt Hill has sold for $8.5 million, the highest price ever paid for a home in the borough — and nearly double the previous record of $4.6 million, The Post has learned. 

The property at 176 Benedict Road was first listed for $8.95 million last fall and closed just days ago.

The sellers, Richard and Vania Cardinale — founders of the popular Farm to Bagel chain — bought the lot in 2017 for $1.7 million and spent another $6 million creating what became their dream home. 

Built in 2021, the house combines reclaimed brick, Bucks County stone and Indiana limestone under a slate roof, giving it more of a Greenwich or Main Line look than Staten Island’s famously ornate mansions.

That said, this just-sold residence stands directly across the street from Gambino family crime boss Paul Castellano’s former mansion, which listed last year for $18 million. That remains the priciest residence for sale in the borough, according to StreetEasy — and should it sell for that price, it would set a new record that this other $8.5 million dwelling just broke.

Inside, this just-sold 11,000-square-foot house is packed with features more often found in high-end condo towers: a basketball court that flows from indoors to outdoors, a full gym, a spa with a steam room and a sauna, a hair salon and a wine room. 

The foyer’s showpiece is a 750-pound glass chandelier shipped from England. Outside, koi ponds, waterfalls and fire pits frame the landscaped pool area

“Staten Island has amazing inventory,” Tom Li of Corcoran, who represented the listing, told The Post. 

“It never has the attention it deserves … this is a wonderful opportunity for Staten Island to be on the map.”

The median home price on Staten Island hovers around $750,000, according to Redfin, underscoring just how unusual this sale is. 

For Li, the property’s quality and its setting in Todt Hill — the borough’s most exclusive enclave —  signal that Staten Island deserves a bigger slice of the city’s luxury conversation.

“It’s truly just one-of-a-kind, unique, custom built … elegant, but understated,” he said. “The way it was designed literally afforded the new owner all the privacy that most people living on Staten Island want.”

The Cardinales built the house for the long haul, but their plans shifted. 

With a new farm business underway in New Jersey, commuting from Todt Hill proved untenable. 

“It was just too challenging for a full-time commitment and travel,” Li explained.

The buyers, meanwhile, didn’t come from far. 

A local family with roots in both Brooklyn and Staten Island stepped in, drawn to the rare chance to buy a nearly new custom build. Li noted that replicating the project today would take twice as long and cost far more.

The perk now for the new owners: a true escape.

“When I go to this home to show it, I feel like I’m completely transported into almost like a resort somewhere,” he said. “That’s exactly what the owners wanted during the pandemic — something private and quiet, but with all the amenities of a resort. It’s spectacular.”