246 West 17th Street

The conversion was designed to read as loft architecture rather than apartment architecture. Ceilings run from roughly 10 to 14 feet, floor-to-ceiling windows bring in light, and several homes retain exposed structural concrete ceilings that announce the building's industrial pedigree. With only 31 units across 10 floors — and typically four per floor — the layouts are generous, and the building's small scale means a tight, well-run condominium rather than an anonymous tower.

The standout feature for many buyers is the drive-in garage: residents can pull directly into the basement and take an elevator up to their floor — a genuine luxury in Chelsea, where street parking is effectively nonexistent and most buildings have no garage at all. Combined with the doorman, fitness room, and residents' lounge, the amenity package punches well above the building's modest unit count.

246 West 17th runs as a full-service condominium. A 24-hour doorman and concierge staff the lobby; residents have a fitness room and a residents' lounge; and the on-site garage offers direct interior access. The building is pet-friendly, and as a condominium it offers the structural advantages owners value most in Chelsea — flexible financing, a light right-of-first-refusal in place of a co-op board package, and customary latitude for pied-à-terre, LLC, trust, and investment ownership. Subletting is materially freer than at the neighborhood's pre-war cooperatives, which makes the building attractive to owners who want flexibility as well as a primary residence.

With 31 residences, 246 West 17th turns over only a few times in a typical year, and inventory is thin by design. Pricing tracks the loft fundamentals — ceiling height, exposure, floor, and whether a home carries the dramatic exposed-concrete character of the lower floors or the cleaner volumes above — rather than a single building-wide figure. Homes with parking, outdoor space, or premium light command the top of the building's range. Buyers should underwrite each unit on its specific attributes; the auto-updating sales record on this building's /sales page reflects recorded transfers as they post.

This is a condominium purchase, which clears through a right-of-first-refusal rather than a co-op board interview — a faster, lighter path that is one of the building's core appeals. Financing is flexible, and pied-à-terre and entity purchases are customary. The most important diligence is the apartment itself: confirm the ceiling height and exposure that matter to you, whether a deeded garage space conveys, and the home's outdoor space if any. As with any conversion, buyers should review the condominium's financials, reserve fund, and any active building projects with their attorney before contract.

The selling story is loft character plus full service plus parking — a combination that is genuinely scarce in boutique Chelsea. Lead with the architecture: the exposed concrete, the ceiling height, the floor-to-ceiling glass, and, where it applies, the drive-in garage and any private outdoor space. Price against other boutique Chelsea loft condominiums with comparable ceiling height and amenities rather than against large glass towers, which carry a different cost and lifestyle profile. Because turnover is low and the building is small, a well-staged listing tends to concentrate motivated buyer demand.

If you're considering 246 West 17th Street, these nearby Chelsea condominiums and loft buildings are a useful comparison set:

• 151 West 17th Street — Chelsea condominium on the same block
• 212 West 18th Street — boutique Chelsea condominium nearby
• 224 West 18th Street — Chelsea loft-scale building
• 130 West 19th Street — Chelsea condominium to the north
• 121 West 19th Street — pre-war loft condominium in Chelsea

The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in Chelsea, the West Village, and the downtown loft market. We publish this profile because boutique conversions like 246 West 17th reward buyers and sellers who understand loft value — ceiling height, light, exposed structure, and the rare luxury of on-site parking. If you're considering a transaction here, a 30-minute consultation is the right place to begin.