- Year built
- 1925
- Type
- Cooperative
- Landmark
- No
Every recorded sale at this building, 2004–2023
Bedroom-by-bedroom medians, the full transfer record, and how units trade against ask.
- Recent range
- $1.8M – $1.8M
- Listing discount
- 5.3%
- Recorded transfers
- 24
617 West End Avenue is a corner pre-war cooperative on one of the Upper West Side's most desirable residential avenues, designed by the celebrated firm of George and Edward Blum and built in 1925. Its defining feature is its layout: with just two apartments per floor across 14 stories, it offers the privacy, light, and proportions that buyers seek in a pre-war home, in a full-service building staffed around the clock.
West End Avenue is the Upper West Side's quintessential residential corridor — a wide, tree-lined avenue of grand pre-war co-ops, one block from Riverside Park and the Hudson, two from Broadway's retail and transit. 617 sits at the West 90th Street corner, a position that gives its apartments cross-light and quiet. Converted to a cooperative in 1979, it remains the kind of well-run, character-rich building that defines ownership on this stretch.
Architecture and unit composition
George and Edward Blum were among the most inventive apartment-house architects of pre-war New York, known for distinctive ornamental brickwork and facade detailing. At 617 West End Avenue, the result is an attractive red-brick elevation rising over a two-story limestone base, capped by the firm's characteristic detailing — a building that reads as a confident piece of 1920s Upper West Side design rather than a standard masonry box. Residents enter through a step-down paneled lobby that preserves the building's pre-war character.
The two-apartments-per-floor configuration yields generous, light-filled homes with multiple exposures. The 33 residences carry the era's hallmarks — high ceilings, hardwood floors, separate kitchens, and gracious entry foyers — across a mix averaging roughly 1,570 square feet of building area per unit. Corner apartments enjoy the dual frontage on West End and 90th.
Building operations
617 West End is run as a full-service cooperative. A full-time doorman/elevator operator staffs the entrance around the clock and a live-in resident manager handles building operations, with a central laundry room, a bike room, and storage assigned to each unit among the amenities. The 24-hour elevator-operator service is a traditional touch that distinguishes the building's level of attention.
The board permits pets, and washer/dryers are allowed with board approval — both meaningful policy points for buyers. As at most West End Avenue co-ops, purchases require board approval and a financing limit applies, and subletting is permitted under board policy after an initial owner-occupancy period. We review the precise sublet terms and any flip tax with buyers before they bid so underwriting reflects the building's actual rules.
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
Recent transfers at this building, curated by The Roebling Team research desk. Apartment-level facts are independently verified before publishing; sale prices reflect the recorded transfer amount at the NYC Department of Finance.
| Date | Unit | Apartment | Price | PPSF | vs. Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 29, 2023 | 13A | 2 BR · 2 BA | $1,800,000 | -2.7% | |
| Apr 21, 2022 | 2A | 2 BR · 1 BA | $1,495,000 | -0.3% | |
| Jun 30, 2021 | 15A | 2 BR · 1,200 sf | $1,625,000 | $1,354/sf | -4.1% |
| Mar 8, 2021 | 6A | 2 BR · 1 BA | $1,220,000 | -15.9% | |
| Feb 26, 2021 | 15B | 2 BR · 2 BA | $1,700,000 | -5.3% | |
| Jun 16, 2018 | 3B | 3 BR | $1,633,500 | -5.3% | |
| Nov 30, 2017 | 2A | 2 BR | $1,450,000 | -6.5% | |
| Oct 13, 2017 | 12 | 4 BR | $4,080,000 | -21.5% |
Market read. Most recent trades (2021) cleared a median $1,354/sf across 1 sale. Median listing discount 5.3% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.
The retrade record
Lines that have traded more than once in the public record — the building’s appreciation arc, apartment by apartment.
Other recent transfers
| Date | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 18, 2021 | 5B | $1,750,000 |
| Jun 21, 2021 | 3B | $1,975,000 |
| Dec 13, 2012 | 4A | $1,150,000 |
| Mar 10, 2011 | 4A | $1,150,000 |
| Feb 5, 2008 | 12B | $1,700,000 |
| Aug 17, 2007 | 14A | $3,990,000 |
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 1-01250-0100) 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; square footage on co-ops is not officially recorded, figures shown are approximate.
What to know if you’re buying
Plan for a co-op board application — financial disclosure, references, and an interview — and underwrite to the building's financing limit. The two-per-floor layout is the appeal: privacy, multi-exposure light, and pre-war proportions in a full-service building. The pet-friendly policy and the allowance for in-unit washer/dryers (with board approval) widen the building's fit for many buyers. Corner apartments and higher floors command a premium for their light and quiet. Confirm sublet terms with us so your plans align with the building's posture.
What to know if you’re selling
The selling story is architecture, layout, and location: a Blum-designed pre-war co-op with two apartments per floor, a paneled lobby, and full-service staffing, one block from Riverside Park. Buyers on West End Avenue are underwriting pre-war character and the privacy of a low-density floor plate — present and price to that. Benchmark against comparable full-service West End Avenue pre-war co-ops, and lead with the named architect, the corner light, the period detail, and the proximity to the park and Broadway. A renovated apartment that keeps its pre-war bones competes strongly in this market.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 617 West End Avenue, also evaluate these nearby West End Avenue and Upper West Side cooperatives:
- 600 West End Avenue — pre-war co-op a block south
- 607 West End Avenue — full-service pre-war co-op nearby
- 645 West End Avenue — West End Avenue cooperative
- 670 West End Avenue — pre-war co-op to the north
- 680 West End Avenue — full-service West End Avenue co-op
The Roebling Team at 617 West End Avenue
The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in West End Avenue, Riverside Drive, and the broader Upper West Side pre-war market. We publish this profile because buyers and sellers at full-service pre-war co-ops deserve building-specific intelligence — the architecture, the board's posture on pets and washer/dryers, and where pricing sits against the rest of the avenue.
If you're considering a purchase or sale at 617 West End Avenue, 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.