298 East 2nd Street

The lot is twenty-five feet wide and about 106 feet deep, roughly 2,649 square feet, zoned R8A. The building rises eight stories to 92 feet at a built floor-area ratio of about 5.07 against a 6.02 residential maximum, which means the developer left buildable area on the table — a common outcome on a narrow lot where the marginal floor costs more than it earns.

The consequence of a twenty-five-foot interior lot is the same here as everywhere: glazing concentrates on the East 2nd Street elevation and on the rear, and the side walls are effectively solid. That is the design constraint rather than a defect, but it means a buyer should establish which openings in a specific residence are lot-line windows and what the adjoining properties could build, because the neighbors on both sides are themselves developable under R8A.

The unit schedule is clean. Per the Department of Finance roll, the base residence runs about 2,411 square feet and is carried as a townhouse unit; the six residences above are each about 1,838 square feet, one per floor, with the top unit designated a penthouse. Every apartment above the base therefore has its own landing and both street and rear exposure. Finishes, ceiling heights and outdoor space are not documented in public records, and no offering plan for the building was located in either document library — those specifics should be confirmed from the plan and from the residence itself rather than from any secondary description.

There is very little in the public record here, and it would be wrong to invent more. A seven-unit condominium does not support full-time staff, and none is documented; no doorman, garage or amenity program appears in city filings. Common charges are spread across seven residences, which cuts both ways — the fixed cost base is minimal, but a single unbudgeted capital item lands on seven owners rather than seventy.

The operating history is short. Final certificate of occupancy issued in March 2022 and the condominium declaration was recorded in August 2021, so the board has been operating independently of the sponsor for only a few years. Ask for the current operating budget, the reserve balance, the most recent financial statement, any remaining sponsor obligations under the offering plan, and whether the sponsor's construction warranties have expired.

Ownership form: Condominium. A purchaser takes fee title to a unit and an undivided interest in the common elements. Transfers close through the board's right of first refusal rather than a cooperative approval process, which produces faster and more predictable timelines — thirty to forty-five days is typical. ACRIS records the seven residential unit lots as ordinary condominium deeds to individual purchasers.

Pets, subletting, pied-à-terre, LLC and trust ownership: Not documented. The standard condominium framework permits all of these, but a seven-unit building's by-laws and house rules can and sometimes do restrict them, particularly around short-term leasing. Read the by-laws and house rules rather than assuming the default.

Minimum down payment: Not documented in public records. Lender requirements in very small condominiums are frequently stricter than the building's own rule, because a seven-unit project can fail agency concentration and owner-occupancy tests. Have your mortgage broker confirm the building is warrantable before you go to contract.

Flip tax: Not documented. Confirm any resale capital contribution with the managing agent before pricing a sale.

Real estate taxes: No exemption of any kind on the billing lot or on any unit lot in the FY2021 through FY2027 rolls. Underwrite full unabated taxes on the specific unit from the current bill, not from a projection.

Recent sales

Recent closings at this building, curated by The Roebling Team research desk. Prices are the transfer amounts recorded with the NYC Department of Finance; apartment-level detail is checked against the building’s own file in The Roebling Research Library before publishing.

Market read. Most recent trades (2025) cleared a median $997/sf across 1 sale. Median listing discount 0.9% 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 1-00372-7502) 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 from recorded condo declarations and offering plans.

Underwrite full taxes from day one. There is no 421-a, no 485-x and no J-51. This is the fact most likely to change your monthly number relative to abated new construction nearby, and it does not improve over time.

Ignore PLUTO's 2017 year-built. The first temporary certificate of occupancy issued in September 2020 and the final in March 2022. Any valuation or insurance analysis built on 2017 is working from the wrong vintage.

Confirm warrantability before you go to contract. Seven-unit condominiums routinely require portfolio rather than agency financing, and a single investor-owned or delinquent unit can move the building outside conventional guidelines. This is the most common way a deal in a building this size falls apart.

Ask for the offering plan and every amendment. None was located in either document library. The plan is the only place the finish schedule, the common-element boundaries, the sponsor's obligations and the original common-charge allocation are set out — and the by-laws are the only place the leasing rules are. In a seven-unit building the board can be a single neighbor with a strong view.

Get the reserve and capital picture, and understand the lot-line exposures. The building is four years past final sign-off, sponsor warranties are likely expiring, and any capital item is divided by seven. The side walls are largely blind and the adjoining lots are developable under R8A — establish which windows in a specific residence are lot-line windows.

Lead with the full floor. One residence per landing at roughly 1,840 square feet, with street and rear exposure, is the thing this building offers that the surrounding stock cannot.

Be direct about the tax posture, and have the financing answer ready. Buyers' counsel will find the unabated taxes; presenting them up front with a True Monthly Carrying Cost analysis beats letting them surface in diligence. Expect lenders to scrutinize a seven-unit condominium — assemble the condominium questionnaire, budget, reserve position and owner-occupancy breakdown before you list.

Price against new construction, not against the tenement stock. The immediate blocks are dominated by small prewar co-ops and HDFCs with entirely different economics. The correct comparable set is the small group of recent condominiums east of Avenue A.

If you're considering 298 East 2nd Street, also evaluate:

• 186 East 2nd Street — condominium on the same street west of Avenue B; the closest like-for-like by street and scale
• 182 East 2nd Street — small East 2nd Street building; the boutique alternative on the same corridor
• 140 East 2nd Street (Hamilton House) — larger East 2nd Street building west of Avenue A; the full-service alternative on the same street
• 189 Avenue C (The Calyx) — new-construction condominium on Avenue C two blocks north; the nearest peer by vintage and market position
• 215 Avenue B (The Copper) — Avenue B condominium; the Alphabet City new-development alternative at larger scale
• 300 East 4th Street — two blocks north between Avenues C and D; the same sub-market, different product
• 50 Avenue A (Hearth House) — Avenue A condominium at the neighborhood's western edge; the higher-priced comparison
• 160 East 3rd Street — one block north; the closest walk-up-scale comparison