21028 LEGO New York City | Build the Big Apple: Get your hands on the LEGO Architecture stunning New York City Skyline Set!
Published: 9 months ago
Last Updated: 3 weeks ago
The tale of 'Around the World in 80 Days,' where Phileas Fogg embarks on a global journey by train and ship, has served as inspiration for countless individuals to embark on their own adventures, exploring diverse countries and creating lasting memories. Launched in 2016, the LEGO® Skyline Collection series has similarly transported builders on exciting journeys worldwide. However, whether one can virtually traverse 'around the world in 80 builds' using this collection remains uncertain! As part of the LEGO Architecture series, these sets allow enthusiasts to construct instantly recognizable skylines from various locations, including Dubai, London, Paris, New York, and Tokyo, capturing the essence of iconic landmarks with meticulous detail.
Set Details
Designed by Adam Reed Tucker, LEGO set 20128 includes five iconic structures in New York City; the Flatiron Building, Chrysler Building™, Empire State Building, One World Trade Centre and the Statue of Liberty. Details of all of which, including the designer, are included in the comprehensive booklet.
Aimed at age 12+, the 598 piece set measures 26cm high, 25cm wide and 4cm deep. Although the scene is eye catching and draws you in to the detail and scale of the structures, you might think that the building of the set is straight forward, but the set includes a great variety of building techniques and clever touches; including the 1x1 modified "tooth" plate to great effect as the Chrysler Building’s terraced crown. Each building is appropriate in scale and also in their depicted colours.
Once complete, the finished build makes a great display model and will appeal to a wide audience, from those who live in New York, have travelled on vacation, or just simply ‘want to be a part of it… New York, New York’.
Set Details
| Model Name | New York City |
| Model Number | 21028 |
| Theme | Architecture |
| Sub Themes | Skylines |
| Pieces | 598 |
| Minifigures | N/A |
| Launch Date | 01/01/2016 |
| Availability | Available |
| Retirement Date | 31/12/2025 |
| RRP | $60 |
Investment Potential
The New York skyline set is the second most owned of the 14 Skyline sets to-date and has proven very popular since it was launched in 2016. The general architecture theme and especially the Skyline Collection sub-theme have seen very positive annual growth in values and are a strong area for LEGO investors to be looking.
| Launch RRP | 60 |
| 5th Year Value | $130 |
| Theme Growth | 14% |
| Sub Theme Growth | 0% |
Theme Analysis
Architecture has been running as a LEGO theme since 2008 and has 57 sets across 4 sub-themes and the retired sets have generally shown very strong performance with values appreciating with annual growth of 12% on average.
Some of the sets within the general Architecture theme include LEGO Architecture Big Ben (21013) which has seen 230% total growth since retiring in 2016 (18% annualised) and LEGO Architecture Sydney Opera House (21012) which has seen 268% growth in just under 10 years (15% annualised growth).
| Set Number | Set Name | Retired Date | RRP | Current Value | Total Growth | Annualised Growth |
| 21006 | The White House | 30/04/2011 | $50 | $108 | 116% | 6% |
| 21008 | Burj Khalifa | 31/12/2013 | $25 | $127 | 408% | 16% |
| 21012 | Sydney Opera House | 31/12/2014 | $40 | $152 | 280% | 15% |
| 21013 | Big Ben | 31/12/2016 | $30 | $96 | 220% | 16% |
Comparable Set Analysis
The Skyline Collection sub-theme has been very popular with 14 sets developed to date based upon cities including London, Paris, Tokyo and San Francisco. This includes Las Vegas (21038) which was recalled before being released (and subsequently one of the rarest ever Lego sets!) before being redesigned and released as set Las Vegas (21047).
We have looked at the 7 comparable retired sets as a sub-group which show Annualised growths between 15% and 40% with an average of 33% underpinning not just this New York set but also the other current Skyline sets future values and marking them down as must buys for your collection.
LEGO Architecture Berlin (21027) has had the most phenomenal performance delivering 710% growth in just 6 years (40% annualised growth) whilst LEGO Architecture Chicago has grown 408% since retiring just 5 years ago (37% annualised growth).
| Set Number | Set Name | Retired Date | RRP | Current Value | Total Growth | Annualised Growth |
| 21027 | Berlin | 31/12/2017 | $30 | $227 | 657% | 35% |
| 21033 | Chicago | 31/12/2018 | $40 | $211 | 428% | 34% |
| 21039 | Shanghai | 31/12/2020 | $60 | $101 | 68% | 15% |
| 21043 | San Francisco | 31/12/2021 | $50 | $84 | 68% | 20% |
Conclusion
This definitely feels like a must own set for collectors, as all of the sub theme of the Skyline Collection probably should be. These sets offer great value for the long term at RRP but there are usually some discounts available especially at Amazon. Currently around 20% off, this can be bought for $46.00 in the US or for £40.49 in the UK.
Start your Skyline Collection now!
