St. James Tower

Emery Roth & Sons designed St. James Tower as a clean contemporary shaft, its mass set behind the landscaped plaza that is the building's signature gesture. The 1980s vintage means generous glazing and efficient, light-oriented layouts, with the upper floors capturing long outlook over the low-rise Sutton blocks and toward the river and Midtown skyline.

The 106 residences range from one-bedrooms to penthouses, the smallest starting around 1,000 square feet, and carry the features that define the building's quality tier: floor-to-ceiling windows, hardwood floors, large foyers, pantries, ample closets, high ceilings, and bathrooms finished in white Italian marble with soaking tubs, separate showers, double vanities, and saunas in the larger homes. The penthouse-tier residences, with the building's best light and outlook, are its trophy inventory.

St. James Tower runs as a full-service condominium. A 24-hour doorman and concierge staff the lobby, with a live-in superintendent, a fitness center, a residents' lounge, a conference room, a laundry room, storage, and a landscaped roof deck with panoramic views among the building's facilities — and the landscaped plaza functioning as an amenity in its own right. As a condominium, purchases clear through a right-of-first-refusal rather than a co-op board admissions process; leasing is permitted, and financing, pied-à-terre, trust and investment ownership should be confirmed in the current declaration, bylaws and house rules. The location places residents within a short walk of the 6, E, and M trains, Midtown's commercial core, and the East River.

Recent sales

Recent closings at this building, from The Roebling Research Library. 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 (2026 to date) cleared a median $996/sf (floor-adjusted) across 7 sales. Floor-adjusted means each sale is restated to a constant mix of floors, so the figure can differ from the plain median of the sales listed above. Median listing discount 4.2% 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 1-01366-7501; each condominium apartment is its own tax lot). Apartment-level facts (line, condition, asking-price context) curated and cross-verified in The Roebling Research Library. 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.

St. James Tower offers full-service condominium living with a landscaped plaza in a co-op-dominated neighborhood — its central appeal. There is no co-op board admissions process — purchases clear a right-of-first-refusal — and leasing is permitted; confirm financing limits and pied-à-terre, LLC, trust and investment ownership in the current declaration and bylaws.

Buyers should focus on floor and exposure — the upper floors carry the light and outlook that define value here — and on renovation condition, which varies across a building of this vintage. The marble baths, generous foyers, and pantried layouts are part of the building's quality story. For a buyer who wants a full-service home on a quiet Sutton block with condominium flexibility, St. James Tower is among the strongest options on the corridor.

Condominium flexibility, the landscaped plaza, and the full-service profile are the marketing core. A St. James Tower resale leads with the Emery Roth & Sons pedigree, the plaza and roof deck, and the building's complete amenity and staffing program — features that distinguish it from the co-op stock nearby. Benchmark to Sutton Place's full-service condominium and high-end co-op inventory, and foreground renovation, light, and outlook where the home has them.

Closing mechanics are condominium-standard — a right-of-first-refusal rather than a co-op board, with predictable timelines that appeal to the flexibility-minded buyer this building attracts. With 106 units and steady Sutton Place demand, well-renovated higher-floor inventory benefits from limited comparable condominium supply in the immediate area.

If you're considering St. James Tower, the relevant set is Sutton Place and Beekman's full-service inventory:

• 400 East 51st Street (The Grand Beekman) — Beekman full-service building
• 425 East 51st Street — Beekman full-service co-op
• 411 East 57th Street — Sutton Place cooperative nearby
• 345 East 56th Street — Sutton-area residential building
• 430 East 58th Street — Sutton-area full-service building