235 East 49th Street (Midtown East)

The building is a masonry house of the mid-1920s, roughly eleven to twelve stories, built as the New York Theological Seminary and designed by Henry Ives Cobb — the Chicago-based architect behind the Newberry Library and Lower Manhattan's Liberty Tower, and a rare name on a New York residential building. Its façade still reads its origins: a former double-height chapel expressed as a large stone-outlined window above the canopied entrance, and top floors that cant inward beneath an exposed rooftop water tank. Its appeal is the combination of institutional solidity and a distinctive architectural story rather than conventional pre-war ornament.

The building holds seventy-five apartments, one of which is owned by the cooperative and occupied by the superintendent. As with any building of this vintage, floor and exposure drive the experience: higher floors and the better-exposed lines take more light, while lower and rear units trade at a discount. The block itself — quiet, residential, and directly opposite the Turtle Bay Gardens — is a meaningful part of what the better lines offer.

235 East 49th Street runs as a full-service, high-touch cooperative — a part-time doorman staffed across the day, a live-in resident superintendent, two elevators, central laundry, resident storage, and central air, anchored by a common roof deck and roof garden with skyline outlooks. An unusual feature sits in the basement: an athletic space that extends under the sidewalk, with its own street entrance, leased to a children's athletic-training program. The building does not have an in-building gym or bike room; the amenity set is the practical, well-staffed package of a good pre-war-era house rather than a modern amenity tower. As a cooperative, purchases are subject to board review, and the building maintains standard co-op financing, subletting, and residency policies, with a minimum down payment on the higher side and a modest flip tax typical of the category.

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.

Market read. $/sf is measured on the latest sales with reliable square footage (2025): a median $400/sf across 1 sale. The building has traded as recently as 2026. Median listing discount 3.1% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.

Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 1-01323-0015) 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.

This is a cooperative, so plan for a board process. A purchase runs through a board package and interview, and the building maintains financing and residency policies typical of a full-service Turtle Bay co-op — including a minimum down payment on the higher side, a limited but permitted sublet policy, and a modest flip tax. Plan for a primary-residence purchase and a standard board review.

The architecture and history are part of the value. A Henry Ives Cobb building, converted from a seminary, with a chapel window still expressed on the façade, is a genuinely distinctive story — and a durable one. Benchmark against Turtle Bay's full-service cooperatives, but recognize what sets this building apart.

Floor, light, and exposure are the on-site distinctions. The higher and better-exposed lines are the homes that hold value best. The block itself — quiet and across from the Turtle Bay Gardens — is a meaningful part of the appeal.

The location is deep Turtle Bay. Mid-block between Second and Third Avenues, steps from Smith & Wollensky and Amster Yard, close to Grand Central and the E/M subway at Lexington–53rd. Quiet, residential, historic.

Lead with the architecture, the history, and the block. A Cobb-designed former seminary on a townhouse-lined street opposite the Turtle Bay Gardens is an easy and distinctive story to tell; the building's character does real work in a sale.

Benchmark within the building and against Turtle Bay co-ops. With ample in-building turnover, recent comparable sales here are the first reference point; floor, light, exposure, and renovation status determine where a unit lands, on a price-per-room basis.

Position to the primary-residence buyer. As a full-service co-op with a limited sublet policy, the building rewards a well-qualified, primary-residence buyer — foreground the full-service operation and the character.

Prepare the board package early. A clean, complete package and a well-qualified, primary-residence buyer move a co-op sale through the board efficiently — we manage that process end to end.

If you're considering 235 East 49th Street, also evaluate nearby Turtle Bay and Midtown East cooperatives:

• 240 East 55th Street — a full-service postwar cooperative
• 245 East 49th Street — Turtle Bay cooperative
• 219 East 49th Street — Turtle Bay cooperative
• 220 East 54th Street — a full-service 1960 postwar cooperative
• 301 East 48th Street — Turtle Bay full-service building