- Year built
- 1940
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- 70
- Floors
- 6
- Pets
- Permitted (pet-friendly)
- Subletting
- Permitted (unlimited subletting reported)
- Pied-à-terre
- Allowed
Every recorded sale at this building, 2005–2025
Price-per-square-foot over time, the line- and floor-premium curves, and every recorded sale.
- Median $/sf
- $818
- Listing discount
- 2.8%
- Recorded sales
- 21
- On record
- 2005–2025
208 East 28th Street is a prewar Kips Bay cooperative with a policy set unusually generous for a co-op. The 1940 elevator building — six stories, roughly 70 apartments, wrapped around a renovated Art Deco lobby — allows pied-à-terre purchases, co-purchasing, parents buying for children, guarantors, and investor buyers, with reportedly unlimited subletting. For a cooperative, that combination is rare, and it makes 208 East 28th one of the more accessible entry points into prewar Manhattan ownership.
For buyers, the appeal is straightforward: prewar apartments with real detail and generous layouts, in a well-located Kips Bay building marketed variously as Rose Hill, at a price point that undercuts the neighborhood's condominium stock. The flexible board rules mean this is a co-op that behaves, in practice, much closer to a condo.
Architecture and unit composition
The building rises six stories in prewar low-rise form, with a renovated Art Deco lobby setting the tone. Apartments carry prewar detail and larger-than-average layouts for the price point.
The unit mix runs studios through two-bedrooms — studios roughly 500 to 700 square feet, one-bedrooms roughly 500 to 800 square feet (asking around $600K), and two-bedrooms roughly 700 to 800 square feet (asking around $599K). Pricing is consistent with mid-market Kips Bay prewar co-ops. As a cooperative, values are best understood on a per-room and monthly-carry basis rather than strictly per square foot.
Building operations
208 East 28th Street operates as a self-service prewar co-op with an elevator, a renovated Art Deco lobby, a common outdoor courtyard/garden, and basement laundry and storage. There is no doorman, no garage, no gym, and no roof deck. The building's appeal is in its prewar space and its flexible board rather than in staffing or amenities. Standard co-op financing applies.
Recent sales
The building trades as a value-oriented prewar Kips Bay co-op, with the flexible policy set — pied-à-terre, co-purchasing, guarantors, investors, unlimited subletting — supporting demand from a broad buyer pool that a stricter co-op would exclude. Pricing tracks the mid-market Kips Bay prewar segment.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 8, 2024 | 2J | 1 BR · 1 BA · 720 sf | $595,000 | $826/sf | -0.8% |
| Jul 30, 2024 | 2A | 1 BR · 1 BA · 750 sf | $599,000 | $799/sf | off-mkt |
| Jul 13, 2021 | 5A | 1 BR · 1 BA | $592,500 | -1.1% | |
| Oct 25, 2017 | 4A | 1 BR | $595,000 | -4.8% | |
| Mar 11, 2016 | 5DE | 3 BR · 1,350 sf | $1,300,000 | $963/sf | -8.8% |
| Oct 23, 2015 | 1K | 1 BR · 1,050 sf | $770,000 | $733/sf | off-mkt |
| Feb 3, 2015 | 4J | 1 BR · 800 sf | $570,000 | $713/sf | +5.6% |
| Jun 30, 2014 | 2A | 1 BR · 1 BA · 750 sf | $539,000 | $719/sf | off-mkt |
Market read. $/sf is measured on the latest sales with reliable square footage (2024): a median $818/sf across 2 sales. The building has traded as recently as 2025. Median listing discount 2.8% 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.
Other recent transfers
| Date | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 4, 2025 | 5M | $550,000 |
| Oct 28, 2022 | 6L | $599,000 |
| Dec 4, 2015 | 1J | $691,009 |
| Apr 15, 2015 | 2D | $618,000 |
| Jul 12, 2005 | 5DE | $1,061,250 |
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 1-00908-0047) 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
The board is unusually flexible for a co-op. Pied-à-terre, co-purchasing, parents buying for children, guarantors, and investor purchases are all permitted, with reportedly unlimited subletting — verify the current specifics at offer stage.
This is a self-service building. No doorman, gym, or garage — factor that into your comparison with full-service alternatives.
Prewar layouts are the value. Larger-than-average apartments with prewar detail at a Kips Bay price point.
Confirm the financials. Review the co-op's reserves, monthly maintenance, and any planned capital work.
What to know if you’re selling
Market the flexibility. The open board rules genuinely widen the buyer pool for a co-op — lead with them.
Space sells. Emphasize the larger prewar layouts relative to the price point.
Set expectations on process. A co-op board package and interview still apply even with flexible rules.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 208 East 28th Street, also evaluate:
- 150 East 27th Street (Gotham House) — 1960 co-op with parking, low carry
- 335 East 51st Street — 1963 Midtown East condo with garage
- 157 East 32nd Street (L'Isola) — full-service Murray Hill condo
- 685 Second Avenue (The Hendrik House) — 1942 Murray Hill prewar co-op
The Roebling Team at 208 East 28th Street
The Roebling Team at Compass publishes building-specific profiles because buyers and sellers deserve architecture, operational reality, and transactional mechanics — not generic market commentary. If you're considering a purchase or sale at 208 East 28th Street, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, schools, transit, and pricing across Gramercy — read The Roebling Team Guide to Gramercy.
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