Both the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Business Journal are reporting that a residence in the recently renovated Two Liberty Place has just been purchased for nearly $7.7 million.

You read that right. $7.7 million is the record for any residential condominium property ever sold in Philadelphia. Joanne Davidow, known by most of us as the woman whose name is on all those “For Sale” signs, calls it “more like a New York number.”

Considering that you’re probably not going to find too many $7.7 million condos in Queens, the Bronx or Staten Island, maybe we should petition to be known as the third borough.

There had been some speculation that the buyer of the condo in question was former mayoral and possible gubernatorial candidate Tom Knox but the most recent update by the Daily News gives the honor to H. Chase Lenfest, son of H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest. However, not to be outdone, a Knox spokesman confirmed that Mr. Knox is in the process of buying a condo in Two Liberty Place that is a “few hundred thousand” more.  So if Knox does decide to run for governor, it shouldn’t be too hard to sell him as a “regular guy” and non-elitist in the “T” section of Pennsylvania, because after all, most of the gun and religion clinging crowd lives like this:

The property that recently closed includes four bedrooms, including a master bedroom with steam shower and Jacuzzi, two powder rooms, billiard room with wet bar, an ample entertainment space complete with fireplace and wet bar, custom gourmet kitchen and hand-finished walnut flooring. In addition, the home also includes 2,040 square feet of balcony space, which, in breaking another record, is the highest residential outdoor space in Pennsylvania.

(And that’s a description of the reported Lenfest condo.  If Knox is paying a few hundred thousand more I imagine it comes with its own space shuttle.)

Two THOUSAND square feet of balcony space!  I’m not embarrassed to admit that that is more square footage than my entire house.

I’ll be looking for my housewarming invitation in the mail… or perhaps to be delivered by hovercraft.