15 West 81st Street
15 West 81st Street, New York, NY 10024
BBL 1011950018 · BIN 1031139
- Year built
- 1930
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- 119
- Landmark status
- Not an individual landmark; in the Upper West Side / Central Park West Historic District
- NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission records, updated February 2026
- Subletting by shareholders
- Not permitted
- Pied-à-terre
- Not permitted
- Pets
- Pets permitted; species and limits not stated
- Maximum financing
- 50% of the purchase price
- Flip tax
- 2% of the purchase price, paid by the buyer
- Doorman
- Full-time doorman
Every recorded sale at this building, 2003–2026
Bedroom-by-bedroom medians, the full transfer record, and how units trade against ask.
- 2BR median, 2023–2026
- $2.8M
- 7 qualifying sales
- Recent range
- $885K – $6.7M
- Listing discount
- 6.4%
- Recorded transfers
- 122
Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
A Private Pricing Opinion — what your apartment at 15 West 81st Street 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.
15 West 81st Street is an Emery Roth pre-war cooperative completed in 1930 — built by the same hand, in the same period, that gave Central Park West its twin-towered landmarks. Roth designed this building two doors west of his Beresford, and 15 West 81st carries the same architectural DNA at a quieter, side-street scale: an Italian Renaissance composition in beige brick and stone, capped by the refined detailing that distinguishes a Roth building from its contemporaries.
The building's defining assets are its setting and its lobby. The site runs through the block between 81st and 82nd Streets near Central Park West, directly across from the American Museum of Natural History, the Rose Center planetarium, and the green of Theodore Roosevelt Park. That museum frontage defines the building's setting — views vary by floor and exposure — and the building's celebrated Italian Renaissance lobby, centered on a marble fountain and running the full block through, is one of the more impressive residential entrance sequences on the West Side.
Within the Central Park West Historic District, 15 West 81st represents a specific tier of Upper West Side inventory: genuine Emery Roth pre-war architecture, a museum-park setting steps from Central Park, and the proportions and detailing of 1930-era luxury apartment design — at a side-street address rather than a marquee avenue corner.
Architecture and unit composition
The 119 apartments reflect Roth's 1930 pre-war program: generous room proportions, high ceilings in the primary rooms, formal entry galleries, and the gracious layouts characteristic of the era's luxury design. Configurations span smaller one- and two-bedroom residences through substantial larger layouts and combined homes, with the prime apartments being the higher-floor and front-facing residences that look north and south over the side streets and toward the museum and park.
Pre-war signatures are present throughout: hardwood floors, period architectural detail in varying states of preservation, and the construction of a 1930 luxury building. The block-through Italian Renaissance lobby with its fountain and marble detailing is itself a defining architectural asset, setting the tone before a resident reaches the elevator.
North- and south-facing apartments take light from the side streets, depending on floor; the museum-and-park frontage anchors the building's setting.
Building operations
15 West 81st Street operates as a full-service pre-war cooperative with a full-time doorman, a children's playroom, a fitness center, a full-service garage, central laundry, a bike room, and basement storage — an amenity package fuller than most pre-war co-ops of its vintage. The 119-apartment scale supports an established, professionally managed operating profile.
The building permits up to 50% financing and is pet-friendly. A 2% flip tax is paid by the purchaser at closing. Subletting and pieds-à-terre are not permitted. Confirm the building's current financing, liquidity, occupancy and alteration requirements from its governing documents and application instructions.
Application and transaction fees
Fees below are from building management's published schedule, as of October 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.
- Terms
- 2% of the Gross Selling Price
- Rate
- 2% of the purchase price
- Paid by
- Buyer
Source: building management's published schedule, as of October 2026
Purchase
11 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $1,000 | Refundable Not stated |
| Application Processing FeeConditional | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $600 or $1,000 (Trust Purchase - if permitted by Corporation) | Refundable Not stated |
| Application Processing Fee for Co-applicant or GuarantorPer applicant | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $250 per Co-applicant/Guarantor | Refundable Not stated |
| Administrative Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $1,000 | Refundable Not stated |
| Lead Based Paint Disclosure Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $75 | Refundable Not stated |
| Move Out Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $2,500 | Refundable Not stated |
| Move In Fee | Paid by Buyer | When At closing | Amount $2,500 | Refundable Not stated |
| Recognition Agreement FeeConditional | Paid by Buyer | When At closing | Amount $300 (if financing) | Refundable Not stated |
| Closing FeePer share | Paid by Seller | When At closing | Amount $800 ($850 without a Broker) plus $0.05 per share | Refundable Not stated |
| Sale by an Estate or Trust - Closing FeePer share | Paid by Seller | When At closing | Amount $1,000 plus $0.05 per share | Refundable Not stated |
| Background Report FeePer applicant | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount Requires confirmation: the published schedule's figure is incomplete or inconsistent | Refundable Not stated |
Refinance
2 items
Management's “less refinance” schedule
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Shareholder | When With the application | Amount $400 | Refundable Not stated |
Management's “more refinance” schedule
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Shareholder | When With the application | Amount $400 | Refundable Not stated |
Ownership transfer
1 item
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transfer Fee | Paid by Shareholder | When With the application | Amount Contact Transfer Agent for fee schedule | Refundable Not stated |
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.
Own an apartment here? Request an apartment-specific pricing review.
Financing and purchase requirements
- Maximum financing
- 50% of the purchase priceSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
Sublet and pied-à-terre policy
A condominium owner leasing a unit and a co-op shareholder subletting are different rules, and a building-wide rule is different from a restriction on one apartment. This is the building's rule; confirm it for the specific apartment.
- Subletting by shareholders
- Not permittedSource: building management's published schedule, as of October 2026
- Pied-à-terre ownership
- Not permittedSource: building management's published schedule, as of October 2026
Considering an apartment here? Send Corey the listing to discuss the sublet and pied-à-terre rules for that apartment.
Pets and in-unit washer/dryer
- Pets
- Pets permitted; species and limits not statedSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- In-unit washer/dryer
- Not verified
Considering an apartment here? Send Corey the listing to confirm the pet and washer/dryer rules for that apartment.
Monthly carrying charges in recent sales
- Maintenance, per room
- $979 per room a monthMedian of 13 recorded sales since October 2023Source: recorded sales, refreshed October 2026
- Maintenance, per square foot
- $2.38 per square foot a monthMedian of 4 recorded sales since October 2023Source: recorded sales, refreshed October 2026
Maintenance as recorded with each sale. A co-op's maintenance already covers the building's real estate taxes and the building's own mortgage, if it has one; add your own loan payment for the monthly outlay. A summary of recorded sales, not a current bill; charges change.
Building staffing and amenities
- Doorman
- Full-time doormanSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Elevator
- YesSource: NYC Department of City Planning records (PLUTO)
- Amenities noted
- Fitness room, playroom, garage, bike storage, storage, laundry roomSource: 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
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $38,950/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $26
- Modeled exposure split equally across 123 units (the residential count on the city's lot record). Not an assessed amount; co-op shareholders are typically charged by share allocation.
Source: NYC LL84 benchmarking and PLUTO · The Roebling Research Library. City data last refreshed October 2026.
See full Local Law 97 analysis — emissions history, scenarios, methodology →Facade safety — Local Law 11
The latest available filing classified the facade as Unsafe — conditions requiring prompt corrective action. The owner must install any public protection the inspector specifies (a sidewalk shed, construction fence or structural netting, depending on the condition) and make the repairs. Review the subsequent filings, the repair status, and the building’s board and financial materials — we pull the repair scope and funding picture for you.
How to read this, and where it comes from
QEWI = Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector — a licensed professional engineer or registered architect who meets DOB’s FISP qualifications and signs the report (the independent expert, not the managing agent).
Source: NYC DOB facade filings (FISP) · The Roebling Research Library. City data last refreshed October 2026.
Management & transfer contacts
- Flip tax
- 2% of gross selling price (Buyer)
- Sublet policy
- Not allowed
- Pied-à-terre
- Not allowed
- Policies and fees
- Buyer & Seller admin fee $1,000 each; move-in/out $2,500 each; background report $871/applicant (Fidelifacts); closing $800 ($850 w/o broker)
Recent sales
Recent transfers 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 5, 2026 | 4E | 3 BR · 3 BA · 2,400 sf | $4,400,000 | $1,833/sf | +3.5% |
| Apr 22, 2026 | 5D | 3 BR · 3 BA | $3,900,000 | -2.4% | |
| Apr 7, 2026 | 11H | 2 BR · 2 BA · 1,400 sf | $2,195,000 | $1,568/sf | -12.2% |
| Dec 3, 2025 | 10B | 3 BR · 3.5 BA | $5,500,000 | -10.9% | |
| Jul 10, 2025 | PHE | 3 BR · 3.5 BA | $5,250,000 | +0.0% | |
| Jun 30, 2025 | 6 | 3 BR · 3.5 BA | $6,725,000 | -8.5% | |
| May 29, 2025 | 11E | 3 BR · 3 BA · 2,400 sf | $3,150,000 | $1,313/sf | -6.0% |
| Apr 30, 2025 | 13J | 2 BR · 2 BA | $2,095,000 | +0.0% |
Market read. Most recent trades (2026 to date) cleared a median $1,745/sf (floor-adjusted) across 2 sales. Floor-adjusted means each sale is restated to a constant mix of floors, so the figure can differ from the plain median of the sales listed above. Median listing discount 3.9% 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 1-01195-0018). 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 on co-ops is not officially recorded, figures shown are approximate.
What would your apartment rent for?
Enter your apartment and I'll send you what it would rent for, from comparable closed leases at 15 West 81st Street and nearby.
At the recent median sale of $3.9M (9 transfers in the past 24 months, since October 31, 2024), a buyer putting 50% down would pay about $151,050 to close, or 3.9% of the price.
- Mansion tax: $58,500
- No mortgage recording tax or title insurance on a co-op purchase
- Building transfer fee (flip tax), 2% of the purchase price, paid by the buyer per building management's published schedule, as of October 2026: $78,000
- Attorneys, lender, building fees and filings: $14,550
Assumes a resale (the seller pays transfer taxes), a $4,500 attorney fee and a mortgage at the building's 50% financing limit. Confirm the current transfer fee with building management; the linked calculator does not include it.
Keep up with 15 West 81st Street and its market
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What to know if you’re buying
The Emery Roth pedigree is real and rare. This is a genuine Roth pre-war building, contemporaneous with his Central Park West landmarks — a meaningful architectural credential.
The museum-park setting. The building sits directly across from the American Museum of Natural History and Theodore Roosevelt Park. Views depend on floor and exposure, and no view is protected without a recorded instrument.
It is full pre-war, with a fuller amenity package than most. Expect 1930-era proportions and ceiling heights, plus a fitness center, playroom, garage, bike room, and storage.
Know the financial terms. Up to 50% financing is permitted and pets are allowed; budget for the 2% purchaser-paid flip tax.
Renovation is reviewed within the historic district. Work is undertaken with attention to preserving period detail.
What to know if you’re selling
Lead with the Roth authorship and the museum setting. The architectural pedigree and the museum-park frontage are the two strongest, most identifiable marketing points; the fountain lobby reinforces both.
Pricing requires apartment-level comparable analysis. Floor, exposure, layout, and renovation history drive value more than building-wide averages.
The buyer pool values pre-war architecture and the park-block setting. Matching the apartment to that audience is the work.
Closing timelines are co-op standard. Roughly 6–10 weeks from contract signing to closing.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 15 West 81st Street, also evaluate these nearby Central Park West and Upper West Side pre-war buildings:
- The Beresford — Emery Roth's three-tower CPW landmark, two doors east
- The San Remo — Emery Roth twin-tower CPW landmark, nearby
- The Kenilworth — pre-war CPW cooperative near the museum
- 262 Central Park West — nearby Central Park West pre-war co-op
- 15 West 72nd Street — nearby Upper West Side building; compare its construction era and layouts
- 139 West 82nd Street — adjacent-block Upper West Side building
More Upper West Side buildings
- 15 West 63rd Street (The Park Laurel) — 2000 condominium by Beyer Blinder Belle
- 15 West 67th Street — 1904 co-op
- 15 West 72nd Street (Mayfair Towers) — 1964 co-op by Horace Ginsbern & Associates
- 15 West 84th Street, Upper West Side — 1947 co-op
- 15 West 96th Street — 2023 condominium by SLCE Architects
- The Park Loggia (15 West 61st Street) — 2019 condominium by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, transit, and pricing across Upper West Side — read The Roebling Team Guide to Upper West Side.
The full playbook — what goes in the package, how boards read your financials, the interview, and the timeline — plus sample cover, reference, and personal letters you can adapt.
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.
Considering a move at 15 West 81st Street?
Request a private building brief with the relevant comparable sales, current and off-market availability, and an apartment-specific view of value.
646.939.7375 · c.cohen@compass.com