- Year built
- 1958
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- 219
315 East 72nd Street is a late-1950s postwar cooperative in the heart of Lenox Hill, on the 72nd Street block between First and Second Avenues. It belongs to the substantial, well-run tier of postwar UES housing, but with two unusual strengths: a more architecturally considered base than the era's plainest towers — a two-story rusticated limestone surround leading to a handsome step-down lobby — and, for buyers, a notably owner-friendly governance posture.
The location places residents in the dense, amenity-rich center of the Upper East Side, with the restaurants and neighborhood retail of the 70s blocks at the door, the 6 train at 68th and 77th Streets, the Q at 72nd and Second, and the cultural anchors of Fifth Avenue and the park a short distance west. The building converted to cooperative ownership in 1985, leaving it with the deep unit count and operating scale of a purpose-built rental.
What sets 315 East 72nd apart from much of the postwar field is its rules. The cooperative carries no flip tax, permits washer/dryers in-unit, allows pied-à-terre and co-purchase arrangements, and permits subletting on a live-three, sublet-two basis — a combination of flexibility that is genuinely rare among UES co-ops and a real selling point for buyers and investors weighing long-term ownership.
Architecture and unit composition
The roughly 219 apartments span 20 stories in a postwar floor-plan vocabulary — efficient room divisions, practical kitchens and baths, and the larger windows of late-1950s construction. A subset of apartments carries balconies or terraces, an above-average feature for the era, and the building permits in-unit washer/dryers. The two-story limestone base and step-down lobby give the building a more finished street presence than many of its postwar contemporaries.
Higher floors capture longer cross-street and open views; layouts run from one-bedrooms through larger family configurations, with outdoor space and renovation status varying line to line.
Building operations
315 East 72nd Street operates as a full-service cooperative with a full-time doorman and concierge, a live-in superintendent, laundry on every floor, a common garden, a common roof deck, an on-site garage, rentable storage, and a bike room. Pets are welcome subject to board approval (the house rules permit up to three cats and two dogs for shareholders), and the building permits in-unit washer/dryers, pied-à-terre and co-purchase arrangements, and subletting after three years of residency.
The roughly 219-unit scale produces the operating stability characteristic of well-run postwar UES cooperatives, and the building's no-flip-tax, no-underlying-mortgage posture has historically supported a stable maintenance picture. Many shareholders here also qualify for the NYC Cooperative & Condominium Property Tax Abatement as primary residents.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- Per unit / month range
- —
Facade safety — Local Law 11
Safe to live in today — but the last inspection flagged repairs that are due on a deadline, so facade work and its cost are coming. Whether that’s a real concern depends on the scope, the timing, and how the building plans to pay for it — reserves or an assessment — which is exactly what we’d dig into for you.
QEWI = Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector — the licensed engineer the city requires to sign the report (the independent expert, not the managing agent). Source: NYC DOB facade filings (FISP) · The Roebling Research Library.
See the full facade history →Recent sales
Sales context at 315 East 72nd Street:
- Turnover is steady given the ~219-unit scale — a building of this size typically supports a consistent annual volume of trades across its unit mix.
- Pricing reflects the central-Lenox Hill postwar band: one-bedrooms occupy accessible price points, with larger, higher-floor, and terraced configurations commanding premiums.
- Floor altitude, exposure, outdoor space, and renovation condition are the primary drivers of apartment-level value.
For the live, address-specific transaction record tied to this building's tax lot, see the auto-generated sales feed for 315 East 72nd Street.
What to know if you’re buying
The governance is the differentiator. No flip tax, in-unit washer/dryers, pied-à-terre and co-purchase allowances, and a live-three/sublet-two policy make this one of the more flexible postwar co-ops in the neighborhood.
Outdoor space is a real feature. Balconies and terraces on a subset of lines, plus the common garden and roof deck, set this building apart from plainer postwar peers; confirm what a given apartment includes.
The location is central and convenient. Full-service operation in the heart of Lenox Hill, with the 6 and Q lines close by, at accessible pricing.
Pets are welcome. The house rules permit up to three cats and two dogs for shareholders.
What to know if you’re selling
Lead with the flexibility and the amenities. The no-flip-tax structure, sublet and pied-à-terre allowances, the finished limestone base and step-down lobby, the garden, roof deck, and garage are the marketing anchors.
Price against central-Lenox Hill postwar inventory. Comparable analysis should draw from the neighborhood's postwar cooperatives, with adjustments for floor, exposure, and outdoor space.
Closing timelines are co-op standard. Plan on roughly 6–8 weeks from contract signing to closing, with board approval the gating step.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 315 East 72nd Street, also evaluate:
- 360 East 72nd Street — large postwar UES cooperative nearby
- 420 East 72nd Street — central-UES full-service peer
- 220 East 73rd Street — postwar UES cooperative nearby
- 200 East 74th Street — full-service postwar peer
- 315 East 70th Street — nearby postwar UES building
- 175 East 77th Street — central-UES postwar cooperative
The Roebling Team at 315 East 72nd Street
The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in Central Park West, the Upper East Side, and the broader Park-facing Manhattan market. We publish this building profile because Upper East Side buyers and sellers deserve building-specific intelligence — architecture, board rules, transactional mechanics, and pricing at the apartment level — not generic market commentary.
If you're considering a purchase or sale at 315 East 72nd Street, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.
Get the full picture on this building.
Current availability including off-market, the full comp set, and the board & financials read most listings don't show.