123 West 74th Street

Bagge & Sons designed 123 West 74th Street in the restrained Renaissance Revival idiom that suited the Upper West Side's better side-street houses — a masonry elevation with a defined base, a quiet middle, and modest cornice detailing, scaled to read as part of a continuous streetwall rather than as a standalone tower. At nine stories and roughly 54,000 square feet across 42 apartments, the building averages well over 1,200 square feet per unit, a figure that signals the kind of full pre-war layouts — separate dining rooms, foyers, defined bedroom wings — that the era built and that are difficult to reproduce today.

Apartments range from gracious one- and two-bedrooms to larger three-bedroom homes, many retaining hardwood floors, high ceilings, beamed details, and the deep proportions characteristic of the period. Original layouts vary floor to floor; over a century of ownership, individual units have been renovated to differing degrees, so the building offers both turnkey homes and apartments with renovation upside.

123 West 74th Street operates as a traditional self-managed-feel pre-war co-op with a live-in superintendent and porter staff handling day-to-day maintenance, package handling, and the central laundry. The building maintains private storage and a bicycle room, and access is by elevator with video intercom security rather than a 24-hour doorman — a structure that keeps monthly maintenance efficient for a building of this size. Pets are permitted subject to board approval, in keeping with the building's family-and-long-term-resident character.

The cooperative's scale — 42 apartments across nine floors — gives it a manageable budget and a close-knit shareholder base, the kind of building where the board knows its owners and capital decisions are made deliberately. As with any pre-war cooperative, prospective purchasers should review the building's financials, reserve posture, and any planned capital work as part of the board package process.

Recent sales

Recent transfers at this building, curated by The Roebling Team research desk. Apartment-level facts are independently verified before publishing; sale prices reflect the recorded transfer amount at the NYC Department of Finance.

Market read. Most recent trades (2024) cleared a median $1,543/sf across 2 sales. Median listing discount 1.6% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.

Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 1-01146-0018) 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; square footage on co-ops is not officially recorded, figures shown are approximate.

This is a co-op, so a purchase runs through a board application and interview, and buyers should plan for the financial scrutiny that comes with it — a clean financial picture and reasonable post-closing liquidity matter. Pre-war co-ops of this vintage typically limit financing and expect a meaningful down payment; pied-à-terre and investor purchases are generally discouraged in favor of primary-residence owners. Pets are allowed with board approval. Buyers should weigh the value equation carefully: pre-war space and a historic-district block at a price point below the avenue addresses, in exchange for the board process and the self-service (rather than full-doorman) operation.

The right buyer here is someone who values square footage, architectural character, and a stable long-term community over amenities and lobby theater — and who appreciates that the historic-district protection around the building is a durable asset.

The selling case is built on the pre-war fundamentals: real layouts, high ceilings, a protected historic-district block, and a walk-everything Upper West Side location. Renovated apartments with strong light show best and justify the building's top pricing; sellers of original-condition units should price to renovation reality and target buyers looking for value and upside. Because the building trades infrequently, positioning against the right comparable set — nearby pre-war side-street co-ops rather than amenity-rich towers — is essential to setting expectations and timing. A board-ready buyer is as important as the price; we screen for financial qualification early to protect the deal through the application.

If you're evaluating 123 West 74th Street, these nearby Upper West Side pre-war cooperatives make a useful comparison set:

• 245 West 74th Street — pre-war co-op on the same block corridor
• 105 West 70th Street — pre-war Upper West Side cooperative
• 170 West 76th Street — side-street pre-war co-op near the park
• 120 West 70th Street — comparable pre-war side-street building

The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in pre-war cooperatives across the Upper West Side, Central Park West, and the broader Park-facing Manhattan market. We publish this profile because buyers and sellers on the side streets off Central Park West deserve building-specific intelligence — architecture, board posture, and where pricing sits against the right comparable set. If you're weighing a purchase or sale at 123 West 74th Street, a 30-minute consultation is the right place to start.