641 Fifth Avenue (Olympic Tower)
641 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10022
BBL 1012871000 · BIN 1035481
- Year built
- 1976
- Type
- Condominium
- Floors
- 51
- Landmark status
- Not an individual landmark
- The Roebling Team's building profile
- Pied-à-terre
- Permitted
- Dogs
- Requires confirmation
- Cats
- Requires confirmation
- Washer/dryer
- Permitted
- Flip tax
- 1% of the purchase price, paid by the buyer
- Doorman
- Full-time doorman
- Financing
- No building financing limit stated in the materials reviewed; lender underwriting applies.
- Subletting
- Not stated in the materials reviewed; confirm leasing rules, any rental cap and any right of first refusal in the by-laws and house rules.
- Pied-à-terre
- Permitted.
- Washer / dryer
- Permitted in-unit.
- Pets
- Requires confirmation
Compiled by The Roebling Research Desk from the building’s offering plan, amendments, and related building documents (primary source dated 2026). Board policies can change by amendment — confirm at the offer stage.
Every recorded sale at this building, 2003–2026
Price-per-square-foot over time, the line- and floor-premium curves, and every recorded sale.
- Median $/sf, 2026 to date
- $1,747
- floor-adjusted, 6 sales
- Listing discount
- 6.5%
- Recorded sales
- 247
- On record
- 2003–2026
Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
A Private Pricing Opinion — what your apartment at Olympic Tower 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.
Olympic Tower is the first building erected under the city's Special Fifth Avenue Zoning District (1971) — a structurally consequential urban planning experiment.
Driving the project was the Onassis / Arlen developer pedigree — Aristotle Onassis took a personal hand in the building, and his involvement anchored a foreign-buyer marketing campaign that ran from opening night. The form he commissioned was genuinely new for the avenue: a mixed-use vertical stack that sets a 30-story cast-in-place reinforced-concrete apartment building atop a 21-story steel-framed office block, with ground-floor retail and a through-block public arcade. Wrapping all of it is the bronze-reflective-glass curtain wall, introduced to Fifth Avenue here and since absorbed into the city's late-1970s commercial-residential vocabulary.
Architect SOM (after Morris Lapidus and Kahn & Jacobs preceded them) achieved an FAR of 21.6 — roughly twenty percent greater than otherwise permitted — by deploying every available Special District bonus. The through-block arcade has a 30-foot-high ceiling and a large, skylit, south-facing, multi-tiered waterfall.
Architecture and building operations
Operations: 24-hour doorman; elevator attendants (one of the few remaining buildings to maintain manned elevators); 24-hour concierge; gym/fitness center; in-building barber and hair salon; bicycle room; emergency electric power; ground-floor through-block public arcade with cafe.
Policy framework
- Type: Condominium
- Pets: Not permitted
- Pied-à-terre: Permitted under condominium structure
- Subletting: Permitted under standard condominium procedure
- Financing: Standard condominium LTV
- Flip tax: Verify with management
- Gifting, trust, LLC purchases: All permitted
- Foreign buyers: Long history of substantial international ownership — original sales campaign explicitly targeted foreign buyers
- Right of first refusal: Procedural review only
Application and transaction fees
Fees below are from building management's published schedule, as of September 2026. They are shown as published, item by item; no total is added because the total depends on the transaction. Deposits are listed apart from nonrefundable charges.
- Terms
- Amount equivalent to 1% of the gross sales price
- Rate
- 1% of the purchase price
- Paid by
- Buyer
Source: building management's published schedule, as of September 2026
Purchase
8 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background Report FeeConditional · Per applicant | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $125 per applicant (additional $75 for criminal check if required by the Board) | Refundable Not stated |
| Move In Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Not stated |
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $600 ($650 without a Broker) | Refundable Not stated |
| Lead Based Paint Disclosure Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $75 | Refundable Not stated |
| Move Out Fee | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Not stated |
| Closing Fee | Paid by Buyer | When At closing | Amount $600 in the event the transfer fee is not submitted with the Board Packager | Refundable Not stated |
Deposits
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Post Closing Documents Deposit | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $500 | Refundable Refundable |
| Document Deposit | Paid by Seller | When With the application | Amount $1,000 | Refundable Refundable |
Rental or lease
6 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Landlord | When With the application | Amount $650 | Refundable Not stated |
| Lead Based Paint Disclosure Fee | Paid by Landlord | When With the application | Amount $75 | Refundable Not stated |
| Move Out Fee | Paid by Landlord | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Not stated |
| Background Report FeeConditional · Per applicant | Paid by Tenant | When With the application | Amount $125 per applicant (additional $75 for criminal check if required by the Board) | Refundable Not stated |
| Move In Fee | Paid by Tenant | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Not stated |
Lease renewal
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processing Fee | Paid by Tenant | When With the application | Amount $300 | Refundable Not stated |
Management updates its schedule without a public filing. The date is when management last updated the page, not when a rule changed. Confirm the current schedule with management before you apply.
Considering an apartment here? Send Corey the listing to discuss the building's costs and purchase requirements.
Own an apartment here? Request an apartment-specific pricing review.
Financing and purchase requirements
- Purchase or lease by a corporation
- PermittedSource: building management's published schedule, as of September 2026
Sublet and pied-à-terre policy
A condominium owner leasing a unit and a co-op shareholder subletting are different rules, and a building-wide rule is different from a restriction on one apartment. This is the building's rule; confirm it for the specific apartment.
- Leasing by owners
- Not verified
- Pied-à-terre ownership
- PermittedSource: building management's published schedule, as of September 2026
Considering an apartment here? Send Corey the listing to discuss the sublet and pied-à-terre rules for that apartment.
Pets and in-unit washer/dryer
- Dogs
- Requires confirmationSources differ. Confirm with building management.
- Cats
- Requires confirmationSources differ. Confirm with building management.
- In-unit washer/dryer
- PermittedSource: building management's published schedule, as of September 2026
Considering an apartment here? Send Corey the listing to confirm the pet and washer/dryer rules for that apartment.
Monthly carrying charges in recent sales
- Common charges + taxes, per room
- $1,347 per room a monthMedian of 15 recorded sales since October 2023Source: recorded sales, refreshed October 2026
- Common charges + taxes, per square foot
- $3.72 per square foot a monthMedian of 17 recorded sales since October 2023Source: recorded sales, refreshed October 2026
- Common charges alone, per square foot
- $1.84 per square foot a monthMedian of 23 listings since October 2023 that give the annual taxSource: listing records, refreshed October 2026
- Real estate taxes alone, per square foot
- $1.87 per square foot a monthMedian of 23 listings since October 2023 that give the annual taxSource: listing records, refreshed October 2026
Common charges plus real estate taxes, combined into one monthly figure the way New York condominium listings show them. Add a mortgage payment for the monthly outlay. The split into common charges and taxes comes from the listings that also give the annual tax, a different sample, so the two lines need not add up exactly to the combined median; a tax abatement can hold taxes below the full amount until it expires. A summary of recorded sales and listings, not a current bill; charges change.
Building staffing and amenities
- Doorman
- Full-time doormanSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Concierge
- YesSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Elevator
- YesSource: NYC Department of Buildings elevator records
- Amenities noted
- Fitness room, bike storageSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
Staffing and amenities as our building profile and recent listing records describe them. A feature not listed is not confirmed absent. Outdoor space, parking and some facilities can belong to particular apartments or to a separate owner; confirm access for the specific apartment.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $382,760/yr
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $1,235,251/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $142 – $460
- Modeled exposure split equally across 224 units (the residential count on the city's lot record). Not an assessed amount; condominium owners are typically charged by each unit's common-interest percentage.
Source: NYC LL84 benchmarking and PLUTO · The Roebling Research Library. City data last refreshed September 2026.
See full Local Law 97 analysis — emissions history, scenarios, methodology →Facade safety — Local Law 11
The latest available FISP filing classified the facade as Safe — no repairs were required at that inspection. A filed Safe grade is not a guarantee of current condition: owners still maintain the facade and, where required, observe parapets each year. Future inspection timing (Local Law 49 of 2025 changed the cycle framework from October 1, 2026), repair and any assessment decisions remain building-specific.
How to read this, and where it comes from
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. City data last refreshed September 2026.
Management & transfer contacts
- Pied-à-terre
- Allowed
- Notable fees
- Condo. Transfer fee 1% of gross sales price. App processing $600 ($650 without broker); background $125/applicant; move-in/out fee $750; closing $600; lease renewal $300. Dogs not allowed
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.
| Date | Unit | Apartment | Price | PPSF | vs. Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 14, 2026 | 34D2 | 1 BR · 1 BA · 1,216 sf | $1,550,000 | $1,275/sf | +0.0% |
| Jul 16, 2026 | 32D | 2 BR · 2.5 BA · 1,800 sf | $3,500,000 | $1,944/sf | -5.1% |
| Jul 14, 2026 | 28F | 1 BR · 1,205 sf | $1,700,000 | $1,411/sf | off-mkt |
| Jun 18, 2026 | 28A | 2 BR · 2.5 BA · 1,792 sf | $2,500,000 | $1,395/sf | -9.1% |
| May 14, 2026 | 30F | 2 BR · 2.5 BA · 1,688 sf | $3,495,000 | $2,070/sf | +9.2% |
| Apr 28, 2026 | 26A | 2 BR · 2.5 BA · 1,791 sf | $3,100,000 | $1,731/sf | -3.1% |
| Apr 16, 2026 | 42H | 2 BR · 2.5 BA · 1,780 sf | $3,000,000 | $1,685/sf | -7.7% |
| Dec 22, 2025 | 42A | 2 BR · 3.5 BA · 2,260 sf | $3,700,000 | $1,637/sf | -1.3% |
Market read. Most recent trades (2026 to date) cleared a median $1,747/sf (floor-adjusted) across 6 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 6.5% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.
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 1-01287-1000; 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.
Closed rents at Olympic Tower, last 36 months
| Size | Leases | Median / month |
|---|---|---|
| 1 bedroom | 4 | $9,150 |
| 2 bedroom | 13 | $12,375 |
18 closed leases, October 2023 to September 2026. Most recent lease May 2026. Sizes with fewer than 2 leases are not shown. Compiled by The Roebling Team at Compass from closed leases.
What would your apartment rent for?
The figures above are the building's closed leases. Enter your apartment and I'll send you what yours would rent for, from comparable leases at Olympic Tower and nearby.
At the recent median sale of $3M (18 sales in the past 24 months, since October 19, 2024), a buyer putting 25% down would pay about $128,163 to close, or 4.3% of the price.
- Mansion tax: $45,000
- Mortgage recording tax: $43,313
- Title insurance: $13,500
- Attorneys, lender, building fees, reserves and filings: $26,350
Assumes a resale (the seller pays transfer taxes), a $4,500 attorney fee and a mortgage on the rest.
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Notable residents
- Arthur Erickson — Canadian architect; raised the floor in his living room on a platform to improve views
- International buyer pool including Greek, Saudi, and Middle Eastern principals — structural feature since opening
What to know if you’re buying
The mixed-use vertical stack with concrete-frame apartments over steel-framed office produces structural acoustic separation.
Condominium policy framework — pied-à-terre permitted; leasing permitted with conditions; confirm LLC, trust and foreign-buyer rules in the declaration and bylaws.
The elevator attendant tradition is structurally distinguishing.
The bronze-reflective-glass curtain wall is a real architectural-history credential.
Comparable buildings
- The Galleria (117 East 57th Street) — Specter 1975; nearby mixed-use peer
- Trump Plaza (167 East 61st Street) — Birnbaum 1984; nearby Birnbaum peer
- 502 Park Avenue (Trump Park Avenue) — Kondylis conversion 2005; nearby condominium peer
- The Sovereign (425 East 58th Street) — Roth & Sons 1973-74; nearby trophy peer
- The Excelsior (303 East 57th Street) — Birnbaum 1967; nearby Midtown East peer
Sources: The Roebling Research Library (offering plans, house rules, financial statements, board minutes, internal transaction records); NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers; publicly recorded NYC building data.
More Midtown East buildings
- 351 East 51st Street — 2000 condominium
- Beekman, 401 East 51st Street — condominium by SLCE Architects
- 425 East 51st Street (Beekman Hill House) — 1930 co-op
- 655 Madison Avenue — condominium by Beyer Blinder Belle
- 656 Lexington Avenue — condominium
- 667 Lexington Avenue (140 East 56th Street) — 1956 condominium
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, transit, and pricing across Midtown East — read The Roebling Team Guide to Midtown East.
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.
Considering a move at Olympic Tower?
Request a private building brief with the relevant comparable sales, current and off-market availability, and an apartment-specific view of value.
646.939.7375 · c.cohen@compass.com