170 West End Avenue (Lincoln Towers)
170 West End Avenue, New York, NY 10023
- Year built
- 1961
- Type
- Condop
- Units
- 475
- Floors
- 30
- Landmark
- No
- Pets
- Pet-friendly with board approval; some restrictions — verify current house rules
- Financing
- Up to roughly 70% (30% minimum down) — confirm current policy with the managing agent
Every recorded sale at this building, 2000–2026
Bedroom-by-bedroom medians, the full transfer record, and how units trade against ask.
- Studio median
- $530K
- Recent range
- $430K – $1.9M
- Listing discount
- 1.9%
- Recorded transfers
- 428
170 West End Avenue is one of the eastern Lincoln Towers buildings, fronting both West End and Amsterdam Avenues near West 68th Street. Lincoln Towers is the Upper West Side's great post-war value engine, built in the early 1960s by William Zeckendorf's Webb & Knapp as the residential component of Robert Moses' Lincoln Square Urban Renewal Project — the same vast clearance that produced Lincoln Center. The site was the San Juan Hill neighborhood (the blocks that stood in for the film version of West Side Story before demolition); I.M. Pei's early concept for the parcel gave way, on economics, to S.J. Kessler & Sons' standardized slabs.
What buyers have figured out is what the critics dismissed: the complex's private, professionally maintained open space cannot be reproduced anywhere in the Lincoln Center orbit, and the apartments behind the plain facades are large, light, and efficiently planned, many with cantilevered balconies and flexible, combinable layouts. As Lincoln Square gentrified and the Riverside South towers rose across Freedom Place, the complex's position shifted from urban-renewal artifact to structurally underpriced full-service housing a few blocks from Lincoln Center.
The ownership history is its own New York story. The MacArthur Foundation put the complex up for sale in 1984; on May 1, 1987 all eight buildings converted to cooperative ownership, insiders bought at a deep discount to market, and the profitable insider flips that followed drew press attention. The correction that matters for buyers and their attorneys: despite the "170 West End Condominium" label in the tax record, apartments here trade as co-op shares — the condominium is only the legal wrapper around the cooperative corporation.
Architecture and unit composition
The building rises 30 floors in brick with aluminum-sash windows and cantilevered balconies on many lines, set on the complex's landscaped superblock and carrying a second address on Amsterdam Avenue. The roughly 475 apartments run from studios through large combinations, prized for flexible, combinable layouts, with dining alcoves, big windows, and generous closets. Upper-floor and western lines carry Hudson River and skyline outlooks. Climate systems vary by line across the complex; buyers weighing HVAC should confirm the specific apartment, as central air is not universal across the eight addresses.
Building operations
Full-service: 24-hour doorman, concierge, a live-in resident manager, a fitness center/health club, an on-site parking garage with driveway, a children's playroom, a bike room, private storage, a central laundry, and a residents' lounge/community room, plus access to the Lincoln Towers Community Association's shared private grounds. There is no pool and no roof deck. Financing runs to roughly 70% and subletting is permitted after the first year with board approval — more flexible than classic pre-war West End Avenue co-ops. Maintenance inclusions cover core utilities per management-sourced records; confirm current inclusions, sublet terms, and any fees with the managing agent during diligence.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $66,932/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $12
Facade safety — Local Law 11
The facade passed its last inspection with no required repairs — nothing to budget for here, and no facade assessment on the horizon for roughly five years.
QEWI = Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector — the licensed engineer the city requires to sign the report (the independent expert, not the managing agent). Source: NYC DOB facade filings (FISP) · The Roebling Research Library.
See the full facade history →Management & transfer contacts
- Flip tax
- No Flip Tax
- Sublet policy
- Allowed after 1st year, then up to 2 years with Board approval, then case-by-case; sublet fee $8/share (yr1) rising to $12/share (yr5); security deposit 2 months maintenance
- Notable fees
- Buyer Processing Fee $700, Building Admin $350, Credit Report $125/applicant; Seller Closing Fee $850. 75% financing allowed.
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.
| Date | Unit | Apartment | Price | PPSF | vs. Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 7, 2026 | 10P | 2 BR · 2 BA | $1,520,000 | +9.0% | |
| Jun 10, 2026 | 30G | 1 BA | $650,000 | +0.0% | |
| May 19, 2026 | 2N | 2 BR · 2 BA | $1,465,000 | +12.7% | |
| Feb 26, 2026 | 23E | 1 BR · 1 BA · 1,100 sf | $917,500 | $834/sf | -5.9% |
| Jan 13, 2026 | 26T | 1 BA | $653,000 | -4.7% | |
| Oct 29, 2025 | 4C | 1 BA · 550 sf | $530,000 | $964/sf | -1.9% |
| Oct 9, 2025 | 12B | 1 BR · 1 BA · 869 sf | $932,500 | $1,073/sf | -6.3% |
| Sep 30, 2025 | 6L | 1 BA | $575,000 | -9.4% |
Market read. Most recent trades (2026) cleared a median $835/sf across 1 sale. Median listing discount 1.6% 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 1-01158-7505) 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.
What to know if you’re buying
This is a co-op, not a condo — regardless of the tax label. You are buying co-op shares in the cooperative corporation, with board approval and a proprietary lease. Your attorney should review the by-laws and the condop wrapper (on file with us) so the structure is priced and papered correctly.
The combinable layouts are a genuine feature. This building's flexible plans make it a good candidate for combinations and reconfigurations; underwrite the renovation math with the Renovation Cost Calculator.
The campus is the amenity. Private, secured, landscaped grounds shared only with the complex's residents. Weigh acreage against amenity-floor square footage; there is no equivalent nearby at this price tier.
The board framework is moderate by co-op standards. 70% financing and a documented sublet path make this more flexible than classic West End Avenue co-ops. Run the Co-op Board Qualification Calculator before offering, and verify current policy with the managing agent.
Compare carry, not just price. Line up the true monthly against separately metered condos with the True Monthly Carrying Cost Calculator, and confirm the specific line's climate systems.
What to know if you’re selling
Sell the structural discount. Your buyer is cross-shopping Lincoln Square condos at materially higher per-foot pricing and higher taxes. The pitch is arithmetic: full service, private acreage, and Lincoln Center proximity at the lowest carry in the district.
Differentiate within the complex. This building's specifics — dual West End/Amsterdam frontage, flexible combinable layouts, health-club fitness center — are the points that separate 170 from its siblings.
Lead with light, line, and layout. River-outlook and open lines and combination-ready plans command the premium. Same-line history matters more than building averages, and we maintain it in the Research Library.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 170 West End Avenue, also evaluate:
- 165 West End Avenue and 150 West End Avenue — the adjacent Lincoln Towers siblings; the closest like-for-like alternatives
- 180 West End Avenue, 185 West End Avenue, and 205 West End Avenue — the western and northern siblings; same conversion, same campus, differing layouts and HVAC
- 140 West End Avenue and 160 West End Avenue — the southern siblings, the largest buildings with central HVAC
- 165 West 66th Street — full-service Lincoln Square co-op nearby; the non-campus alternative
- 220 Riverside Boulevard and 200 Riverside Boulevard — the condo alternative immediately west, at a higher price point and carry
The Roebling Team at 170 West End Avenue (Lincoln Towers)
The Roebling Team at Compass works Lincoln Square and the broader Upper West Side as a core practice area. We publish this building profile because Lincoln Towers buyers and sellers deserve building-specific intelligence — conversion structure, the co-op-versus-condo correction, board policy, and within-complex comparables — not generic neighborhood commentary.
If you're considering a transaction at 170 West End Avenue, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, schools, transit, and pricing across West End Avenue — read The Roebling Team Guide to West End Avenue.
Get the full picture on this building.
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Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
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