133 Second Avenue (The Theatre Condominium)
133 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10003
BBL 1004647503 · BIN 1006748
- Year built
- 1912
- Type
- Condominium
- Units
- 11
- Floors
- 5
- Landmark status
- Not an individual landmark; not in a historic district
- NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission and City Planning records, updated February 2026
- Doorman
- No doorman
Every recorded sale at this building, 2008–2026
Price-per-square-foot over time, the line- and floor-premium curves, and every recorded sale.
- Median $/sf, 2026 to date
- $1,667
- 1 sale
- Listing discount
- 2.6%
- Recorded sales
- 26
- On record
- 2008–2026
Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
A Private Pricing Opinion — what your apartment at The Theatre Condominium would likely sell for today, what it costs to sell, and what you’d walk away with — reviewed personally against condition, exposures, renovation quality, and the competition actually on the market.
The condominium's recorded name is not decoration. This corner building was for years the home of St. Mark's Playhouse, the house where Gene Frankel's 1961 production of Jean Genet's The Blacks, its first American staging, ran, and later the base of the Negro Ensemble Company, formally founded there in 1967 — the company that launched Phylicia Rashad, Laurence Fishburne and Angela Bassett, and premiered Leslie Lee's The First Breeze of Summer here on March 2, 1975 before it transferred to Broadway that June. Second Avenue was the spine of the Yiddish Rialto a generation earlier and the spine of Off-Off-Broadway a generation later, and this address held a piece of both. When the sponsor filed the conversion in 2008, it recorded the building as The Theatre Condominium.
The physical building is older than any of that. Neighborhood preservation records describe an 1830s row house, heavily altered, that was built onto between 1912 and 1913 to produce a movie theater with offices and shops above. The offering plan on file says the building was "completed in approximately 1936." PLUTO says 1920 and logs a 1986 alteration. These are differing source accounts, not proof of four separate rebuilding events. Preserve the attributed 1830s and 1912–13 history while seeking original permits and occupancy records to reconcile the approximately 1936, 1920 and 1986 entries.
What that produces for a buyer today is unusual East Village inventory: eleven residences in a five-story corner building with an elevator and a roof garden, sitting directly on St. Marks Place. It is a small, self-managed-scale condominium with no doorman, no amenity program, and no exemption on the assessment roll — check the apartment's tax bill; there is no abatement phase-out to model, but taxes and common charges still change with assessments, rates and budgets.
The one structural feature worth reading carefully before contract is the commercial base. The sponsor retained the ground-floor and cellar commercial unit under the plan, with the right to subdivide it and to put it to any lawful use, and the residential board's ability to control what operates below the apartments is narrow. On this corner — a busy retail intersection with late-night foot traffic — that is not an abstraction.
Architecture and unit composition
The building is a five-story masonry corner at Second Avenue and St. Marks Place, with a full commercial base and residences above. It has 5,748 square feet of land and roughly 20,600 square feet of building area, of which about 9,000 is retail and about 11,600 residential — so the commercial space is nearly as large as the residential space. The commercial unit's percentage interest and voting weight are set by the declaration, not by floor area; read them before contract.
The eleven residences run across the upper floors as full-floor and part-floor homes. A 2006 alteration filing, two years before the conversion, covers mezzanines with additional bathrooms in two third-floor apartments, so some of the inventory may read as double-height or duplexed rather than as a flat plate. Ceiling condition, light and exposure vary sharply by floor and by corner, and the Second Avenue and St. Marks Place elevations are two very different acoustic environments.
The immediate neighbors to the north — the Ottendorfer Library and the Stuyvesant Polyclinic — are individually designated New York City landmarks, so changes to them require Landmarks review. That makes major change to the north-facing light and air less likely, though no view is protected without a recorded instrument, and it is the sort of thing that does not show up in a listing.
Building operations
This is a small self-contained condominium rather than a serviced building. There is an elevator, a common roof garden governed by its own posted rules, and a video intercom per listing records; there is no doorman, no live-in super, and no amenity program. That staffing model does not establish low operating costs. Confirm actual budgets and the declaration’s allocation of roof, façade, elevator and other expenses between the eleven residential and two commercial units; costs need not fall equally or exclusively on the residences.
Prospective buyers should read the current operating budget and reserve position rather than the common charge alone, and should specifically ask how the residential and commercial units share building-wide costs. The financial statements and operating budget on file in The Roebling Research Library provide the baseline; the current versions should come from the managing agent.
Policy framework
Ownership form: Condominium. Resales close through the board's right of first refusal rather than a cooperative-style approval.
Pets, pied-à-terre, subletting, LLC, trust and foreign ownership: All operate under the standard condominium framework. The building's house rules and roof-garden rules are the governing constraints and are on file; the current versions should be obtained from the managing agent, together with any minimum lease term.
Real estate taxes: No exemption or abatement appears on any residential unit lot in DOF's records. Underwrite the full unabated tax on the specific unit from day one. There is no J-51 in this building's record and none is referenced in the offering plan on file.
Flip tax: Not documented in public records. Confirm any resale capital contribution before pricing a sale.
Commercial unit rights: The sponsor retained the Commercial Unit under the plan with broad use and subdivision rights, and certain amendments to the declaration, by-laws and rules require the commercial unit owner's consent. Have your attorney read the declaration on this point specifically.
Application and transaction fees
Fees below are from building management's published schedule, as of September 2026. They are shown as published, item by item; no total is added because the total depends on the transaction. Deposits are listed apart from nonrefundable charges.
Purchase
4 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Credit Report FeePer applicantRequired | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $100 per applicant | Refundable Not stated |
| Sales Application Processing Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $1,500 | Refundable Non-refundable |
Deposits
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Refundable Move-In Deposit Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Refundable |
| Refundable Move-Out Deposit Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Refundable |
Rental or lease
5 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Credit Report FeePer applicant | Paid by Tenant | When With the application | Amount $100 per applicant | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Lease Processing Fee | Paid by Tenant | When With the application | Amount $700 | Refundable Non-refundable |
Deposits
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Refundable Move-Out Deposit Fee | Paid by Landlord | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Refundable |
| Refundable Move-In Deposit Fee | Paid by Tenant | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Refundable |
Lease renewal
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lease Renewal Processing Fee | Paid by Landlord | When With the application | Amount $150 | Refundable Not stated |
Alteration
2 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Resident | When With the application | Amount $250 | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Resident | When With the application | Amount Regular (no permit required) - $250, Major (permit required) - $750 | Refundable Non-refundable |
Management updates its schedule without a public filing. The date is when management last updated the page, not when a rule changed. Confirm the current schedule with management before you apply.
Considering an apartment here? Send Corey the listing to discuss the building's costs and purchase requirements.
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Monthly carrying charges in recent sales
- Common charges + taxes, per square foot
- $2.41 per square foot a monthMedian of 3 recorded sales since October 2023Source: recorded sales, refreshed October 2026
Common charges plus real estate taxes, combined into one monthly figure the way New York condominium listings show them. Add a mortgage payment for the monthly outlay. A summary of recorded sales, not a current bill; charges change.
Building staffing and amenities
- Doorman
- No doormanSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Virtual or video entry
- YesSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Elevator
- YesSource: NYC Department of Buildings elevator records
- Amenities noted
- Roof deck, gardenSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
Staffing and amenities as our building profile and recent listing records describe them. A feature not listed is not confirmed absent. Outdoor space, parking and some facilities can belong to particular apartments or to a separate owner; confirm access for the specific apartment.
Local Law 97
This building is below the 25,000 sq ft threshold at which LL97 limits apply to a building on its own. It is still covered if it shares a tax lot or condominium board with buildings totaling over 50,000 sq ft; confirm on DOB’s covered-buildings list.
See full Local Law 97 analysis →Recent sales
Recent closings at this building, from The Roebling Research Library. Prices are the transfer amounts recorded with the NYC Department of Finance; apartment-level detail is checked against the building’s own file in The Roebling Research Library before publishing.
| Date | Unit | Apartment | Price | PPSF | vs. Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 22, 2026 | 10 | 1 BR · 1 BA · 795 sf | $1,325,000 | $1,667/sf | -5.0% |
| Dec 16, 2025 | 9 | 1 BR · 2.5 BA · 990 sf | $1,739,250 | $1,757/sf | -8.5% |
| May 1, 2024 | 7 | 1 BR · 1 BA · 795 sf | $1,400,000 | $1,761/sf | +12.0% |
| Jun 14, 2022 | 11 | 2 BR · 1 BA · 1,045 sf | $1,950,000 | $1,866/sf | +16.1% |
| Dec 9, 2021 | 5 | 1 BR · 1 BA · 882 sf | $1,250,000 | $1,417/sf | -3.5% |
| Jul 29, 2021 | 1 | 2 BR · 2 BA · 1,935 sf | $1,850,000 | $956/sf | -7.3% |
| May 13, 2021 | 3 | 2 BR · 1 BA · 930 sf | $1,250,000 | $1,344/sf | -10.1% |
| Dec 20, 2019 | 2 | 1 BR · 2 BA · 1,416 sf | $1,930,000 | $1,363/sf | -3.3% |
Market read. Most recent trades (2026 to date) cleared a median $1,667/sf (recorded) across 1 sale. Median listing discount 2.6% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.
The retrade record
Lines that have traded more than once in the public record — the building’s appreciation arc, apartment by apartment.
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 1-00464-7503; each condominium apartment is its own tax lot). Apartment-level facts (line, condition, asking-price context) curated and cross-verified in The Roebling Research Library. Not all transactions cross-verify with ACRIS records — sponsor and LLC purchases sometimes record at stipulated values rather than market price; square footage from recorded condo declarations and offering plans.
Closed rents at The Theatre Condominium, last 36 months
| Size | Leases | Median / month |
|---|---|---|
| 2 bedroom | 2 | $9,000 |
3 closed leases, October 2023 to September 2026. Most recent lease August 2026. Based on few leases. Sizes with fewer than 2 leases are not shown. Compiled by The Roebling Team at Compass from closed leases.
What would your apartment rent for?
The figures above are the building's closed leases. Enter your apartment and I'll send you what yours would rent for, from comparable leases at The Theatre Condominium and nearby.
Buying here? Condo closing costs with a mortgage typically run 3 to 6% of the price. See NYC co-op and condo closing costs, line by line.
Keep up with The Theatre Condominium and its market
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What to know if you’re buying
The building is not landmarked, and its neighbors are. The Ottendorfer Library and the Stuyvesant Polyclinic next door are individual landmarks; this tax lot carries no designation and sits outside the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District. Their designation does not by itself protect your north light, and it is irrelevant to your own façade obligations.
Read the commercial unit provisions. The sponsor retained a large ground-floor and cellar commercial unit with broad use rights on a busy retail corner. Understand what can open below you and what the residential board can and cannot do about it.
Underwrite the current tax bill. The exemption roll shows no 421-a, no J-51 and no other exemption; check the apartment's tax bill for any bill-level abatement. There is no benefit phase-out ahead, but future bills still change with assessments and rates.
Eleven units is a small denominator. Ask for reserves, façade inspection and repair records, and elevator service history. FISP applies to buildings higher than six stories; this recorded five-story building does not meet that threshold solely because of its age. Confirm the declaration’s expense-specific allocation between the eleven residential and two commercial units rather than divide a capital bill equally among residences.
St. Marks Place is a working corner. Test the specific apartment on a weekend night, not on a Tuesday afternoon. Second Avenue and St. Marks are two different noise profiles and the difference is worth walking.
Verify the year built for yourself. Public records, the offering plan and preservation records give four different dates. If a lender, appraiser or insurer needs a construction year, expect to have to document which one applies and why.
What to know if you’re selling
Lead with the building's history, accurately. The Negro Ensemble Company's years at St. Mark's Playhouse are a documented and genuinely distinguished piece of New York theater history at this address, and they are why the condominium carries the name it does. Present it as history, not as a marketing claim.
Get ahead of the tax question. Buyers comparing against abated new construction will see a higher monthly at first glance. Show the full carrying number alongside the fact that it does not step up — run the True Monthly Carrying Cost Calculator and put the output in front of them.
Check the dates and fit of comparables. Compare relevant same-building sales with the wider small-condominium East Village set, adjusting for line, floor and configuration; the eleven-residence count alone does not justify discarding internal history.
Document the mezzanine, if you have one. Where a residence carries a mezzanine added under the 2006 alteration, the approved plans are the difference between a selling point and a diligence problem.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 133 Second Avenue, also evaluate:
- 14 Second Avenue — small Second Avenue condominium at the southern end of the corridor; the closest peer by scale and ownership form
- 24 Second Avenue — boutique Second Avenue condominium; similar unit count and no-amenity operating model
- 170 Second Avenue — Second Avenue cooperative a few blocks north; the co-op alternative on the same avenue
- 193 Second Avenue — Second Avenue cooperative in the heart of the old Yiddish theater blocks
- 87 St. Marks Place — cooperative on St. Marks Place; another East Village comparison
- 45 East 7th Street — small East Village condominium one block south
- 24 East 7th Street — East Village cooperative on the same block grid
- 253 East 7th Street — boutique East Village condominium; comparable scale, further east
- 111 Third Avenue — larger full-service East Village ownership building; confirm tenure and the service comparison
- 105 Third Avenue (Pear Tree Place) — Third Avenue condominium; the doorman alternative nearby
- 63 Cooper Square — East Village ownership alternative; verify its construction history, tenure, prices and carrying costs
More East Village buildings
- 121 East 10th Street — 1899 co-op
- 123 Third Avenue — 2009 condominium by Perkins Eastman
- 131 Avenue B — 1940 co-op
- 143 Avenue B (The Christodora House) — 1928 condominium
- 160 East 3rd Street — 1940 co-op
- 170 Second Avenue — 1928 co-op
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, transit, and pricing across East Village — read The Roebling Team Guide to East Village.
How to read the facts on this page. Items attributed to an offering plan describe the building as it was offered at that filing — unit mix, square footage, the amenity program as planned. They are not a statement about how the building operates today. Tax and compliance figures are sourced separately to current City records and carry their own dates. House rules, staffing and fee policy can change by board resolution without any public filing: treat every policy line here as a starting point for diligence and confirm it with the managing agent. Where this page compares one building or neighborhood to another, that is our analysis of the recorded record — it names the measure, the period and the sample it rests on, and it is an observation about medians rather than a prediction about any particular apartment.
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646.939.7375 · c.cohen@compass.com