1049 Fifth Avenue
1049 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10028
- Year built
- 1928
- Type
- Condominium
- Units
- 54
- Floors
- 23
- Landmark
- No
- Pets
- Cats and dogs permitted
Every recorded sale at this building, 2023–2026
Price-per-square-foot over time, the line- and floor-premium curves, and every recorded sale.
- Recorded sales
- 21
- On record
- 2023–2026
1049 Fifth Avenue is one of the more interesting ownership stories on Museum Mile: a 1928 apartment hotel that has lived three lives — hotel, cooperative, and finally one of the few large-scale luxury condominiums in a corridor otherwise dominated by pre-war cooperatives with demanding boards. For buyers who want Central Park views from a pre-war envelope without a cooperative board interview, the building occupies a genuinely scarce position. Within a few blocks, nearly every comparable pre-war building of this scale is a co-op; 1049 Fifth is the structural exception.
The conversion itself is a piece of New York real estate history. The building began as the Adams Hotel; the French Art Nouveau architect Hector Guimard — designer of the Paris Métro entrances — lived his final years there and died in the building in 1942. The hotel became a cooperative in 1964. A mid-1980s condominium conversion attempt collapsed in the wake of the 1986 Tax Reform Act and the 1987 crash, and the building passed through receivership before Heller Macaulay Equities acquired it in January 1990 for $38 million. What followed was one of the most expensive per-unit renovations of the era: approximately $47 million across 54 residences — roughly $1 million per apartment — executed by Costas Kondylis with Cullman & Kravis interiors. When sales launched in October 1991 at $1,200–$1,500 per square foot, the asking prices were then the highest ever sought for New York residential apartments, a bet aggressive enough that New York Magazine questioned it on the cover. By 1993–94 the building had produced the city's top condo sales of the year, and the bet had broadly paid off.
The apartment product reflects that renovation budget. Twelve-inch concrete floors between residences, per-room heating and cooling, butler's pantries in most units, herringbone floors, picture windows on the western exposures, and wood-burning fireplaces in select residences. Attended elevators — rare in a condominium — carry the building's service tone, supported by a 24-hour doorman, concierge, and a live-in superintendent who has been with the building since the conversion era.
Architecture and unit composition
The building is a 23-story beige-brick pre-war tower whose architecture has always read as quieter than its address — the conversion rebuilt the entrance and lower facade, kept the gargoyle ornament higher up, and cut large picture windows and balconies into the western elevation to capture the park. The original 1928 architect is not reliably documented in public records, and we decline to guess; the architectural identity that matters to the market today is the Kondylis conversion.
The residences distribute at roughly three per floor: predominantly large two- to four-bedroom simplexes around 2,000–3,500 square feet, four penthouses up to approximately 4,600 square feet, plus the professional suites at the base and a floor of maids' and staff rooms that traded separately at conversion. West-facing apartments above approximately the seventh floor look over the low-rise Neue Galerie mansion to unobstructed Central Park and Reservoir views — a view corridor that is structurally protected by the landmarked mansion below it, one of the stronger view-permanence setups on the avenue short of true park frontage.
Building operations
Full-service condominium: 24-hour doorman, concierge, attended elevators, live-in resident manager, private storage, cold storage for deliveries, and bike room. In-unit washer/dryers run throughout the residences. There is no swimming pool, no roof deck, and no on-site garage; a fitness room appears in recent listing records but is inconsistently documented — verify current amenities directly. The offering plan, eleven amendments, by-laws, and recent audited financial statements are on file in The Roebling Research Library and available to clients during diligence.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $93,727/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $118
Recent sales
The retrade record
Lines that have traded more than once in the public record — the building’s appreciation arc, apartment by apartment.
Recent closings at this building, sourced from NYC Department of Finance records. Apartment-level detail (line, condition, asking-price context) verified upon consultation request.
| Date | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 2026 | MR1 | $9,000,000 |
| Jan 29, 2026 | 6FL | $9,100,000 |
| Sep 23, 2025 | 10B | $3,850,000 |
| Sep 15, 2025 | 3N | $10,300,000 |
| Jun 16, 2025 | STRG1 | $3,500,000 |
| May 19, 2025 | 6A | $1,800,000 |
Full closing history with price-per-square-foot over time, the complete retrade record, and every line that has traded.
Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 1-01497-7501) and verified listing data. Apartment-level facts (line, condition, asking-price context) curated and cross-verified by The Roebling Team research desk. Not all transactions cross-verify with ACRIS records — sponsor and LLC purchases sometimes record at stipulated values rather than market price.
What to know if you’re buying
The condo structure is the headline. Museum Mile pre-war scale with condominium transfer mechanics — no co-op board interview, no co-op-style financial disclosure to a shareholder board. For foreign buyers, trust and LLC structures, and pied-à-terre intent, this materially widens what is possible at this address relative to the surrounding cooperative inventory. Confirm specific structures with the managing agent and your attorney.
Park views are real but indirect. The building reads "Fifth Avenue" in name and view, not in frontage. Above roughly the seventh floor, west exposures clear the Neue Galerie to open park and Reservoir views; lower floors do not. Price the line accordingly.
Carrying costs are substantial. Large units carry common charges and taxes consistent with the trophy condo tier; recent penthouse listings have shown combined monthly carry north of $20,000. Run the True Monthly Carrying Cost Calculator on the specific unit.
Verify the fee stack. The 2 percent purchaser-paid transfer fee documented in recent listings, the 20 percent minimum down convention, and current building requirements should all be confirmed against the by-laws and managing agent at offer stage.
Amenity expectations should be calibrated. This is a service building, not an amenity building — no pool, no roof deck, no garage. Buyers comparing against newer UES condos should weigh attended-elevator service and apartment scale against amenity-program breadth.
What to know if you’re selling
Market the scarcity. Large pre-war-envelope condominium residences with protected park views, steps from the Met and the Neue Galerie, are a thin market. The marketing should name the structural facts: condo mechanics, view permanence over a landmarked mansion, three-units-per-floor privacy, and the conversion's build quality.
Anchor pricing to line-specific comparables. The spread between park-view west inventory and mid-floor east/side exposures is wide. Building-average $/sf is not a useful anchor here; same-line history is.
Mansion tax cliffs apply at nearly every price point in the building. Run the Mansion Tax Calculator at the intended ask and understand how the thresholds shape buyer offers.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 1049 Fifth Avenue, also evaluate:
- 995 Fifth Avenue (the former Stanhope) — the most direct conceptual peer: another Fifth Avenue hotel conversion facing the Met, a few blocks south
- 1001 Fifth Avenue — Philip Johnson-fronted condominium directly on the avenue
- 1009 Fifth Avenue — landmarked pre-war directly opposite the Met
- 1040 Fifth Avenue — Rosario Candela trophy cooperative two blocks north; the co-op alternative with the deeper pedigree and the stricter board
- 1045 Fifth Avenue — immediate neighbor on the avenue
- Philip House (141 East 88th Street) — Carnegie Hill pre-war-to-condo conversion; similar proposition at a different price point
- 30 East 85th Street — post-war condominium one block east; the lower-cost condo alternative
The Roebling Team at 1049 Fifth Avenue
The Roebling Team at Compass works the Fifth Avenue and Upper East Side corridor as part of our broader Park-facing Manhattan practice. We publish this building profile because 1049 Fifth Avenue buyers and sellers deserve building-specific intelligence — conversion history, policy framework, view-permanence analysis, and apartment-line comparables — not generic neighborhood commentary.
If you're considering a transaction at 1049 Fifth Avenue, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.