- Year built
- 1928
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- 96
- Financing
- Up to 75% of purchase price permitted
The Wellesley at 440 West End Avenue is a 1928 Schwartz & Gross cooperative at the corner of West End Avenue and West 81st Street — a prime position on the West End Avenue Gold Coast, the residential boulevard that defines the architectural character of the central Upper West Side. Schwartz & Gross was the single most prolific apartment-house practice on West End Avenue, responsible for a remarkable share of the avenue's pre-war fabric, and 440 is a confident example of their work: a Georgian-inflected composition in red brick over a limestone base, with ornamental window cornices, decorative stonework, and limestone quoins marking the corners.
The corner siting at 81st Street is a genuine advantage. It delivers the dual exposures and cross-light that mid-block buildings cannot match, and it places the building one block from Riverside Park to the west and within easy reach of the Broadway retail spine and Central Park to the east. The 79th Street and 86th Street stations on the 1/2 line sit a few blocks away, and the restaurant, market, and shopping run along Broadway begins essentially at the corner. The 1928 vintage situates The Wellesley at the peak of pre-war luxury construction — the era's mature high point for apartment planning and detail.
Converted to cooperative ownership in 1984, the building today pairs authentic Schwartz & Gross architecture and classic Gold Coast scale with an amenity set richer than most pre-war peers — a real fitness center, a residents' lounge, a children's playroom, and a landscaped roof deck looking out over the Hudson and toward Central Park. For buyers who want a named, architecturally pedigreed pre-war co-op at a true corner address, The Wellesley occupies a strong position in the corridor.
Architecture and unit composition
The building's 15 stories carry Schwartz & Gross's Georgian pre-war vocabulary: a limestone base, a red-brick body above, ornamental cornices over the windows, and the limestone quoins that frame the corners. The lobby reflects the grandeur typical of West End Avenue's Gold Coast houses.
The roughly 96 apartments span a range of configurations across the floor plates, from one- and two-bedroom homes up through expansive five-bedroom layouts in the larger combined lines. Pre-war signatures are characteristic of the vintage and well-preserved in the building's original stock: high beamed ceilings, herringbone hardwood floors, extensive moldings, gracious entry foyers, and separate dining rooms in the larger apartments. Washer/dryers are permitted in-unit — a meaningful convenience in pre-war stock — and corner residences and upper floors command the building's premium for light, openness, and partial river or park exposures.
Building operations
The Wellesley operates as a full-service pre-war cooperative with a full-time doorman and a live-in superintendent. Its amenity package is unusually deep for a 1928 house: a fitness center, a residents' lounge, a children's playroom, bike storage, central laundry, private storage, and a landscaped roof deck with Hudson River and Central Park views. The roughly 96-apartment scale supports that service comfortably while retaining a residential, owner-occupied character.
The building is pet-friendly and permits in-unit washer/dryers, and financing is allowed up to 75% of the purchase price — terms that broaden the buyer pool relative to stricter pre-war co-ops on Fifth and Park. The board follows established West End Avenue co-op norms, with purchases clearing through a standard board-package and interview process.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $5,458/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $5
Facade safety — Local Law 11
An active hazard: the building must keep a sidewalk shed up and make repairs now — expect construction, disruption, and a likely special assessment. We’d get you the repair scope and the building’s funding plan up front, so you go in knowing exactly what’s underway and what it’s likely to cost.
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 The Wellesley:
- Turnover is moderate given the roughly 96-unit scale — typically a handful of closings per year.
- Pricing spans a wide range tied to apartment size, floor, exposure, and renovation condition, with the building's named Schwartz & Gross pedigree, corner address, and amenity set supporting value relative to mid-block peers.
- Corner and upper-floor apartments, and the well-renovated larger lines, occupy the building's upper pricing tier.
For apartment-specific transaction history, the building sales page draws on recorded data tied to the building's tax lot.
What to know if you’re buying
The Schwartz & Gross pedigree is a real asset. A named, architecturally distinguished pre-war co-op carries marketing and resale advantages over anonymous stock.
The amenity set is a differentiator. Fitness center, residents' lounge, children's playroom, and a Hudson-facing roof deck are uncommon in a 1928 house and broaden the building's appeal to families and younger buyers.
The policy posture is flexible for the corridor. Pets are welcome, in-unit washer/dryers are allowed, and financing runs to 75% — a more accommodating package than many pre-war peers.
The corner-of-81st position is structural. Dual exposures, cross-light, and a block from Riverside Park.
What to know if you’re selling
Lead with the architecture and the amenities. Listing copy should foreground Schwartz & Gross, the 1928 Georgian composition, the corner address, the roof deck, and the building's full amenity slate.
The flexible board policy is a selling point. The 75% financing allowance, pet policy, and washer/dryer permission reach a broader buyer pool than stricter pre-war co-ops.
Pricing requires apartment-level comparable analysis. Floor, exposure, configuration, and renovation history all move value materially within a building of this size.
Closing timelines are co-op standard — generally 6–10 weeks from contract signing to closing.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering The Wellesley, also evaluate:
- 400 West End Avenue — pre-war West End co-op nearby
- 470 West End Avenue — pre-war West End co-op nearby
- 277 West End Avenue — 1926 George and Edward Blum pre-war co-op
- 670 West End Avenue — 1927 pre-war West End co-op
- 320 West End Avenue — pre-war West End co-op to the south
The Roebling Team at The Wellesley
The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in the Upper West Side, Central Park West, and the broader Park-facing Manhattan market. We publish this building profile because West End Avenue buyers and sellers deserve building-specific intelligence — architecture, board culture, transactional mechanics, and pricing at the apartment level — not generic market commentary.
If you're considering a purchase or sale at The Wellesley, 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.