- Year built
- 1985
- Type
- Condominium — new-construction offering, not a conversion
- Units
- 88
- Floors
- 28
- Landmark
- No
- Amenities
- 24-hour doorman and concierge, windowed fitness center, roof deck, terraced resident lounge/party room, children's playroom, central laundry, bike and private storage, on-site garage
Every recorded sale at this building, 2021–2024
Price-per-square-foot over time, the line- and floor-premium curves, and every recorded sale.
- Recorded sales
- 10
- On record
- 2021–2024
The Dunhill is a product of the 1980s condominium boom that rebuilt Yorkville's avenue corners — and it is one of the better-documented examples, because the full offering plan, its price-increase amendments, and the by-laws are on file in The Roebling Research Library. The site itself tells the era's story: a supermarket that had sat vacant for roughly seven years, acquired by the developer Arun Bhatia from a Spanish investment group that, per architectural records, lost its nerve on the New York market. Bhatia's Ganbir Construction Corp. pulled its building permit in September 1985, filed the offering plan in September 1986 while the tower was still rising, and amended prices upward at least nine times before completion — the 1986 schedule ran from roughly $198,000 for low-floor D-line apartments to $1.36 million for Penthouse A by the ninth amendment. The market validated the bet quickly, and the building has traded as established Yorkville condo stock ever since.
What the building offers today is structural rather than nostalgic: condominium transfer mechanics in a neighborhood whose comparable full-service inventory skews heavily co-op. For investors, pied-à-terre buyers, and parents purchasing for children, that distinction — no board interview, broader financing and ownership structures — remains the headline. The amenity program (windowed fitness center, roof deck, terraced lounge, children's playroom, garage) is unusually complete for a building of 88 units, and the tower's corner position at First Avenue keeps light and open exposures on three sides above the surrounding tenement-scaled blocks.
The corridor around it has improved faster than the building's pricing suggests. The Second Avenue Q at 86th Street — three blocks away — resolved the transit deficit that dated from the building's construction, and the 86th Street retail spine, Carl Schurz Park, and the East River esplanade frame the immediate neighborhood. The Dunhill sits in the value band of Yorkville condos: full service and full amenities at a meaningful discount per square foot to the neighborhood's new-development towers.
Architecture and unit composition
Liebman Liebman Associates' design is a red-brick post-modern tower with bay windows and balconies, rising from a base that holds the retail unit along First Avenue. The offering plan's unit schedule shows the organization clearly: four lines (A through D) on the lower floors, with the D line ending at the 15th floor where the base gives way to the slimmer tower, and three penthouses (PHA, PHB, PHC) at the top. The plan's pricing jumps sharply in the B and C lines above the 15th floor — the tower floors carry the larger layouts, the bay windows, and the open views. Apartments run from one-bedrooms through convertible and combined two- and three-bedroom units; numerous combinations (recorded city unit count is now 84 against the original 88) have built larger homes over time. Electricity is separately metered by apartment; heat and hot water are central, supplied by Con Edison steam.
Building operations
Full-service condominium: 24-hour doorman and concierge, live-in superintendent, windowed fitness center, roof deck, terraced resident lounge, children's playroom, central laundry, bike and private storage, and an on-site garage. The amenity spaces were structured in the offering plan as tenant recreation areas whose utilities are borne by the residential owners — a clean setup with no commercial entanglement beyond the single retail unit, which was retained by the sponsor side at offering and never sold as part of the residential plan. The offering plan, amendments, and by-laws are on file in The Roebling Research Library and available to clients during diligence.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $37,878/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $38
Recent sales
Recent closings 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2024 | 4B | $850,000 |
| Sep 5, 2023 | 21A | $1,400,000 |
| Jun 12, 2023 | — | $4,600,000 |
| Feb 27, 2023 | — | $4,995,000 |
| Jan 30, 2023 | 3A | $1,150,000 |
| Jul 22, 2022 | 23A | $2,500,000 |
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 1-01564-7502) 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.
What to know if you’re buying
The condo structure is the core value. Yorkville's full-service stock at this price point is overwhelmingly co-op; The Dunhill offers condominium transfer mechanics — no board interview, flexibility on financing, pieds-à-terre, and ownership structures — subject to the condominium's application requirements. Confirm current policies with the managing agent.
Buy the line, not the building average. The D line ends at the 15th floor; the tower floors above carry the premium layouts and open exposures. The spread between low-floor base units and high-floor tower units is structural — price accordingly.
The Q changed the math. The Second Avenue subway at 86th Street put this corner three blocks from a one-seat ride to Midtown — connectivity the building lacked for its first three decades. Older comparable-sales intuition understates the corridor.
Budget the entry fee stack. Listing records document a buyer-paid contribution of three months' common charges to the reserve fund at closing. Run the Buyer Closing Cost Calculator with that line included, and verify current terms against the by-laws.
Amenities without amenity-tower carry. Fitness center, roof deck, lounge, playroom, garage — a complete program for an 88-unit building. Compare monthly carry honestly against newer buildings charging for far larger amenity floors.
What to know if you’re selling
Market against the co-op alternative. Your most motivated buyer is often someone a co-op board would slow down or turn away — international buyers, parents buying for children, pied-à-terre purchasers. The marketing should state the condominium framework plainly.
Documentation is a selling point here. The offering plan, amendments, and by-laws are on file with us; serious buyers' attorneys get answers fast, which keeps deals on schedule. We provide the underlying documents during diligence.
Position on value, not novelty. The Dunhill will not out-amenity 180 East 88th Street or out-style a new tower; it wins on dollars per square foot for a full-service, full-amenity condo three blocks from the Q. Price to that thesis and the building competes well.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 401 East 84th Street, also evaluate:
- 200 East 83rd Street — Robert A.M. Stern new-development condo tower; the corridor's top-tier alternative at a much higher price point
- 180 East 88th Street — boutique new-development condo nearby; the design-forward step-up
- The America (300 East 85th Street) — contemporaneous 1980s Yorkville condo tower one block south; the closest like-for-like
- Channel Club (455 East 86th Street) — 1980s condo tower toward East End with river proximity
- The Wellesley (1641 Third Avenue) — 1980s condo on the Third Avenue spine; similar vintage and tier
- Leighton House (360 East 88th Street) — the condop alternative of similar scale
- 40 East End Avenue — boutique new-development condo near the park; the prestige-corridor alternative
- 200 East End Avenue — full-blockfront post-war co-op opposite Carl Schurz Park; the co-op alternative for view-driven buyers
The Roebling Team at The Dunhill
The Roebling Team at Compass works Yorkville and the broader Upper East Side as a core practice area. We publish this building profile because Dunhill buyers and sellers deserve building-specific intelligence — offering-plan documentation, line-by-line composition, and condo-versus-co-op positioning — not generic neighborhood commentary.
If you're considering a transaction at 401 East 84th Street, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.