- Year built
- 1910
- Type
- Cooperative — a nine-unit walk-up assembled from the combined townhouses
- Units
- 9
- Floors
- 4
- Landmark
- No
- Amenities
- Basement laundry, private storage
- Pets
- Permitted per brokerage records — verify current house rules
- Financing
- 80 percent maximum (20 percent minimum down) per brokerage records
228 West 21st Street is the townhouse-co-op proposition in its cleanest form: three adjoining brownstone-fronted houses combined into a single nine-unit cooperative, on a tree-lined Chelsea block between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. The product is what Manhattan townhouses do best — floor-through proportions, wood-burning fireplaces, real ceiling heights, private outdoor space on select units — without the eight-figure entry price or sole-ownership maintenance burden of the houses themselves. For buyers priced between Chelsea's condo towers and its intact single-family rows, this is the structural middle path, and there is very little of it.
The conversion record is unusually well documented for a building this size. The offering plan on file in The Roebling Research Library — sponsor Joma Associates, plan dated August 6, 1981 — offered the nine apartments for a total of $1,920,000 against 1,920 shares; the first amendment declared the plan effective on October 7, 1982, and title closed on January 11, 1983. That documentation settles a date that listing records get wrong: the conversion closed in early 1983, not 1987 — the later date circulating in public records appears to trace to alteration filings. Four decades on, the West 21st Street Apartment Corporation remains what the plan created: a small, self-governing corporation whose audited financial statements (also on file) show the lean, conventionally financed profile typical of well-run nine-unit houses.
The block matters too. West 21st between Seventh and Eighth sits one avenue east of the Chelsea Historic District's landmark rows, with the same tree canopy and rowhouse rhythm but without the district's regulatory overlay — and with better transit, two blocks from three subway corridors. The buyer who wants Chelsea's townhouse streetscape, fireplace-and-floor-through living, and a monthly carry far below doorman-building levels is this building's natural market.
Architecture and unit composition
The three houses read as a unified composition: brownstone-faced fronts behind a gated entry, rising four stories over a basement that holds the laundry and storage. The nine apartments are predominantly floor-through in feel — one- to three-bedroom layouts with high ceilings, hardwood floors, and wood-burning fireplaces in many units; select units carry private terraces or garden access. As in most combined-townhouse co-ops, no two units are identical, and the spread between preserved-original and renovated interiors is the principal pricing variable. The 1910 date in city records describes the buildings' recorded vintage; the rowhouse fabric of the block reads older, and unit-level diligence should rely on the offering plan's building-condition statement on file rather than assumptions.
Building operations
This is self-service ownership at its smallest workable scale: no doorman, no staff, a gated keyed entry, and a board of neighbors working with an outside managing agent. Common charges are correspondingly low, and the trade-offs are the standard ones — package logistics, walk-up access, and a renovation-approval process that runs through a small board. The corporation's financial statements on file show a modest underlying mortgage and tight reserves, which is normal for the type; buyers should expect assessments rather than large reserve draws to fund periodic capital work, and should have their attorney review the current statements and minutes during diligence.
Local Law 97
This building is below the 25,000 sq ft threshold at which LL97 emissions caps apply. No regulatory capital pressure from this law specifically, current or 2030.
See full Local Law 97 analysis →Recent sales
The retrade record
Lines that have traded more than once in the public record — the building’s appreciation arc, apartment by apartment.
Recent transfers at this building, sourced from NYC Department of Finance records. Apartment-level detail (line, condition, asking-price context) verified upon consultation request.
| Date | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 7, 2021 | 5 | $2,200,000 |
| Feb 18, 2021 | 5 | $1,787,500 |
| May 15, 2017 | 5 | $1,625,000 |
| Feb 2, 2017 | 8 | $2,495,000 |
| Jul 7, 2016 | 7 | $1,625,000 |
| Oct 4, 2012 | 5 | $1,460,000 |
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 1-00770-0056) 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.
What to know if you’re buying
Underwrite the small-co-op mechanics first. Nine shareholders means concentrated governance: one major capital project, one difficult arrears situation, or one contested renovation matters more here than in a 200-unit building. Review the financials and recent minutes — the statements are on file with us — and price the lean reserves into your offer.
The conversion documents are the policy source. Sublet, pet, and alteration specifics are thinly documented publicly for a building this size. We verify against the offering plan, by-laws, and current board policies during diligence rather than relying on listing shorthand.
Fireplaces and outdoor space are the premium features. Wood-burning fireplaces are increasingly rare and effectively irreplaceable in new construction; units with terraces or garden rights carry a durable premium. Confirm that any fireplace is operational and board-permitted.
Expect walk-up reality and budget for character. Four stories, no elevator, and 1910-vintage systems. Run the Renovation Cost Calculator on any original-condition unit, and have your inspection cover the house systems, not just the apartment.
The financing convention is 20 percent down. Brokerage records document 80 percent financing permitted — generous for a co-op — but a small building will read the rest of your financial picture closely. Run the Co-op Board Qualification Calculator before offering.
What to know if you’re selling
Sell the scarcity, precisely. Townhouse floor-throughs with wood-burning fireplaces in a financially documented co-op, on a tree-lined Chelsea block two blocks from three subway lines — name the structural facts. The buyer pool for this product is specific and deep relative to the inventory.
Get ahead of the small-co-op diligence. Buyers' attorneys will ask about reserves, the underlying mortgage, and capital plans. We provide the financial statements and conversion documents from the Research Library to serious buyers' counsel early, which keeps deals on track.
Anchor pricing to townhouse-co-op comps, not building averages. With nine units, same-building history is thin and often stale. Adjacent-block townhouse co-op sales — which we track — are the right comparables, adjusted for outdoor space and fireplace count.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 228 West 21st Street, also evaluate:
- Townhouse co-ops of the Chelsea Historic District rows (West 20th–22nd Streets west of Eighth Avenue) — the landmarked version of the same product, with LPC oversight attached
- 252 Seventh Avenue (Chelsea Mercantile) — the full-service loft-condo alternative two blocks east
- 212 West 18th Street (Walker Tower) — the neighborhood's trophy condo conversion; the top of the local market
- London Terrace Towers (West 23rd–24th Streets) — the full-block 1930 complex; the full-service co-op alternative at scale
- The Westminster (180 West 20th Street) — the nearby condominium for buyers who want out of co-op mechanics entirely
- 2 Horatio Street — full-service pre-war co-op at Jackson Square; the doorman alternative just south
- 14 Horatio Street — boutique Village co-op; the closest like-for-like small-building comparison below 14th Street
The Roebling Team at 228 West 21st Street
The Roebling Team at Compass works Chelsea and the adjoining Village markets as a core practice area, with particular depth in townhouse-scale co-ops where documentation, not marketing, decides outcomes. We publish this building profile because buyers and sellers at 228 West 21st Street deserve building-specific intelligence — conversion documents, financial posture, and true comparables — not generic neighborhood commentary.
If you're considering a transaction at 228 West 21st Street, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.