- Year built
- 1845
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- 19
- Landmark
- In a historic district
- Pets
- Confirm current house rules at offer stage
- Subletting
- Permitted on the sponsor units
- Pied-à-terre
- Allowed
Every recorded sale at this building, 2005–2026
Bedroom-by-bedroom medians, the full transfer record, and how units trade against ask.
- 1BR median
- $949K
- Recent range
- $389K – $999K
- Listing discount
- -4.3%
- Recorded transfers
- 18
Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
A Private Pricing Opinion — what your apartment at 458 West 20th Street would likely sell for today, what it costs to sell, and what you’d walk away with — reviewed personally against condition, exposures, renovation quality, and the competition actually on the market.
458 West 20th Street is one of Chelsea's oldest buildings, sitting mid-block between Ninth and Tenth Avenues on one of the neighborhood's most historic streetscapes — near Cushman Row and the General Theological Seminary. Built around 1845, it predates almost everything around it, and today it operates as a repositioned sponsor cooperative of roughly 19 units in a low-rise elevator building.
The proposition here is unusual for a co-op. Because the residences are gut-renovated sponsor units, purchases avoid board approval, and both pied-à-terre use and subletting are permitted — a distinctive feature that sets these apartments apart from the typical Chelsea cooperative. That flexibility, paired with a landmarked block and an accessible price point, makes the building a rare entry into one of Manhattan's most walkable historic districts.
Building operations
The cooperative runs at a sensible scale: an elevator, a renovated lobby and hallways, and superintendent service, with no doorman — appropriate for a building of this size and era, and a factor in keeping carrying costs contained. Chelsea Piers fitness is nearby for residents who want a full gym.
The defining feature is the ownership structure. Because these are sponsor units, purchases avoid board approval, and pied-à-terre and subletting are permitted — flexibility rarely available in a traditional cooperative. Confirm the current pet policy, financing maximum, any flip tax, and the exact sublet terms at offer stage.
Architecture and residences
Dating to around 1845, the building is among the oldest structures on its block, part of a historic Chelsea streetscape near Cushman Row and the seminary garden block. It is a low-rise elevator building holding approximately 19 units, now offered as gut-renovated studio and one-bedroom residences within the repositioned sponsor cooperative. The building sits within the Chelsea Historic District, so its exterior character is protected. (The original architect is not documented in the public record.)
Local Law 97
This building is below the 25,000 sq ft threshold at which LL97 emissions caps apply. No regulatory capital pressure from this law specifically, current or 2030.
See full Local Law 97 analysis →Recent sales
Co-op pricing is read on a per-room basis, and 458 West 20th trades as an accessible sponsor cooperative. With only about 19 units and a studio/one-bedroom mix, resale volume is thin. When underwriting a purchase or a list price, capture the room count, the floor, the exposure, and renovation condition rather than relying on a neighborhood average. Genuinely variable financial figures should be confirmed at offer stage.
Recent transfers 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.
| Date | Unit | Apartment | Price | vs. Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 28, 2026 | 5D | 1 BR · 1 BA | $525,000 | -12.4% |
| Nov 18, 2025 | 2A | 1 BA | $389,000 | +0.0% |
| Aug 6, 2025 | 1D | 1 BR · 1 BA | $479,534 | -36.1% |
| Aug 16, 2024 | 4D | 1 BR · 1 BA | $895,267 | -3.2% |
| Oct 13, 2023 | 2B | 1 BR · 1 BA | $981,468 | -10.8% |
| Mar 31, 2023 | 2D | 1 BR · 1 BA | $949,716 | +8.5% |
| Mar 27, 2023 | 5A | 1 BR · 1 BA | $999,013 | +11.6% |
| Jan 6, 2023 | 3A | 1 BR · 1 BA | $948,633 | +15.1% |
Market read. $/sf is measured on the latest sales with reliable square footage (2005): a median $809/sf (recorded) across 1 sale. The building has traded as recently as 2026. Median listing discount 0.0% from the last ask.
The retrade record
Lines that have traded more than once in the public record — the building’s appreciation arc, apartment by apartment.
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 1-00717-0073). 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.
At the recent median sale of $480K (3 transfers since 2024), a buyer putting 25% down would pay about $10,348 to close, or 2.2% of the price.
- Mansion tax: $0
- No mortgage recording tax or title insurance on a co-op purchase
- Attorneys, lender, building fees and filings: $10,348
Assumes a resale (the seller pays transfer taxes), a $4,500 attorney fee and a mortgage on the rest.
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What to know if you’re buying
The headline is flexibility. Because these are sponsor units, you buy without a board package or interview, and you can hold the apartment as a pied-à-terre or sublet it — a rare combination in a Chelsea co-op. Read the current house rules on the points that matter to you — the pet policy and financing terms — and review the co-op's reserve and any planned capital work given the building's age. The reasons to buy are the flexibility, the landmarked block, and an accessible entry price for a gut-renovated home in one of Chelsea's oldest buildings.
What to know if you’re selling
The story is a rare one: one of Chelsea's oldest buildings, on a landmarked block, offered as gut-renovated sponsor co-op units without board approval. The pied-à-terre and subletting flexibility, the historic streetscape near the seminary and the High Line, and the accessible entry point sell to a specific buyer. Pricing is an apartment-specific exercise: room count, floor, light, and condition drive the number more than any block average. We position the sponsor-unit flexibility, prepare the buyer for the streamlined path, and benchmark against the right comparable tier of boutique Chelsea residences.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 458 West 20th Street, also look at these nearby Chelsea buildings:
- 366 West 15th Street — architecturally notable West Chelsea condominium
- 550 West 29th Street — a high-end boutique West Chelsea condominium
- 241 West 19th Street — full-service central Chelsea condominium
More Chelsea buildings
- 452 West 19th Street — 1920 condominium
- 455 West 19th Street (ABI Chelsea) — 1900 condominium
- 456 West 19th Street — 2008 condominium
- 459 West 18th Street — 2007 condominium
- 461 West 22nd Street — 1854 co-op
- 468 West 23rd Street (Chelsea Gardens Condominium) — 1857 condominium
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, transit, and pricing across Chelsea — read The Roebling Team Guide to Chelsea.
The full playbook — what goes in the package, how boards read your financials, the interview, and the timeline — plus sample cover, reference, and personal letters you can adapt.
How to read the facts on this page. Items attributed to an offering plan describe the building as it was offered at that filing — unit mix, square footage, the amenity program as planned. They are not a statement about how the building operates today. Tax and compliance figures are sourced separately to current City records and carry their own dates. House rules, staffing and fee policy can change by board resolution without any public filing: treat every policy line here as a starting point for diligence and confirm it with the managing agent. Where this page compares one building or neighborhood to another, that is our analysis of the recorded record — it names the measure, the period and the sample it rests on, and it is an observation about medians rather than a prediction about any particular apartment.
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