Billy Joel Sells Perry Street House to Ex-Wife Katie Lee for $3 M.

Anyone who's listened to Billy Joel's pleasant soft-rock piano ballads knows that life is hard, love dies, divorce is expensive, and material possessions like nice West Village real estate eventually crumble into sand. Earlier this year, Mr. Joel--who is either an evil overlord of sentimental schlock, a spoiled brat behind bulging eyes, or a genius with astonishing self-deprecation considering that he happens to be the sixth best-selling recording artist in history--announced his divorce from third wife Katie Lee Joel.

Afterward, news broke that he'd be selling off side-by-side homes in the Hamptons for $35 million.

According to a deed filed Wednesday, he's also parting with the Perry Street townhouse that he and Ms. Lee Joel bought in 2005 for $5.9 million from the artist and heir Seward Johnson. Earlier this month, the deed says, Mr. Joel sold his share in the house to his ex-wife for $3 million.

"This deed is pursuant to the separation," a spokesperson for Mr. Joel said. "That's it."

mabelson@observer.com