- Year built
- 1928
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- 64
- Landmark
- Designated
826 Lexington Avenue — addressed 136 East 64th Street — is a 1928 pre-war cooperative designed by George F. Pelham, one of the most prolific apartment-house architects of pre-Depression New York. It occupies a desirable Lenox Hill position on a tree-lined block between Lexington and Park Avenues, set within the Upper East Side Historic District, which protects the surrounding pre-war streetscape. At 11 stories and 64 large apartments, it is an intimate, well-run building that trades on classic pre-war proportions and a notably accommodating board.
The building's case is the combination of pre-war character, a white-glove operation, and rules friendlier than the strictest avenue co-ops. Pets are welcome; pied-à-terre ownership is permitted on a case-by-case basis — uncommon flexibility at this caliber of building — and subletting is allowed under a clear, defined fee. For buyers who want a fully staffed pre-war address with room to use it as a second home, that policy package is rare and valuable.
The location sits at the center of the Upper East Side's everyday life: Lexington's retail and dining at the door, the Lexington Avenue subway a block east with the 63rd Street station and its crosstown F service, Park and Madison's quieter blocks immediately west, and Central Park a short walk away. It is among the more convenient white-glove pockets on the East Side.
Architecture and unit composition
Pelham designed 826 Lexington in the restrained masonry idiom of late-1920s apartment construction, on a block whose historic-district protection preserves the coordinated pre-war fabric. The building's grand lobby and common areas carry the formal vocabulary of the period.
The 64 apartments are large by Lexington-corridor standards, with the high ceilings, hardwood floors, and gracious room flow characteristic of 1928 construction. Apartments have been individually renovated across the building's cooperative life since the 1984 conversion, so the specific home's floor, exposure, and condition drive value. Higher floors gain open light above the avenue's low- and mid-rise fabric; corner and Lexington-facing lines and the quieter 64th Street exposures each have their own character.
Building operations
826 Lexington runs as a white-glove pre-war cooperative. A 24-hour doorman staffs the lobby, supported by a live-in superintendent and a resident manager, with mail and packages delivered directly to apartment doors. Each unit has private storage, and the building maintains a central laundry facility and a grand lobby — a complete service package for a building of this scale.
The board's rules are a genuine differentiator. Pets are welcome. Pied-à-terre ownership is permitted on a case-by-case basis, opening the building to second-home and out-of-town buyers who are shut out of stricter co-ops. Subletting is allowed under a defined structure — a fee of 10% of annual maintenance, paid in 12 monthly installments — giving owners real flexibility. Financing and residency expectations otherwise follow Upper East Side cooperative norms; a clean, well-documented package carries an application here.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $62,056/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $80
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
Sales context at 826 Lexington Avenue:
- Turnover is measured given the 64-unit scale — a small number of closings in a typical year.
- Pricing tracks Lenox Hill pre-war values, with the building's larger layouts, floor, and renovation level the principal swing factors; the pied-à-terre and sublet flexibility supports a broader buyer pool than many peer buildings.
- The building's automatically updated sales page tracks recorded transfers at the apartment level; the figures here describe cadence and range only.
What to know if you’re buying
The rules are the standout. Pets welcome, pied-à-terre ownership case-by-case, and a defined sublet policy make this far more flexible than the strictest UES co-ops — a real advantage for second-home and flexible buyers.
You're buying large pre-war space in Lenox Hill. The 64 apartments run large, with the proportions and detail of 1928 construction, on a protected historic-district block.
The service is white-glove. A 24-hour doorman, live-in super, resident manager, door-to-door delivery, and per-unit storage put this building's operation at the top of its tier.
Underwrite the specific apartment. Floor, exposure, and renovation level drive value; the Lexington and 64th Street exposures each carry their own light and character.
What to know if you’re selling
Lead with the flexibility. The pet, pied-à-terre, and sublet policies widen your buyer pool well beyond what a typical pre-war co-op reaches — make them central to the pitch.
The service and the architecture support the price. A Pelham pre-war within the Upper East Side Historic District, white-glove staffing, and large layouts are durable selling points.
Price to the apartment. Floor, exposure, and renovation history drive value across a varied unit mix; comparable analysis should be line-specific.
Closing timelines are co-op standard. Plan for roughly 6–10 weeks from contract to closing, subject to board scheduling.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 826 Lexington Avenue, also evaluate:
- 127 East 64th Street — pre-war cooperative on the same block
- 160 East 65th Street — nearby Lenox Hill full-service building
- 30 East 65th Street — comparable pre-war co-op nearby
- 773 Lexington Avenue — Lexington Avenue cooperative to the south
- 889 Lexington Avenue — nearby Lexington Avenue building
- 1004 Lexington Avenue — comparable Lexington Avenue co-op
The Roebling Team at 826 Lexington Avenue
The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in the Upper East Side, Lenox Hill, Central Park West, and the broader Park-facing Manhattan market. We publish this profile because Lenox Hill buyers and sellers deserve building-specific intelligence — architecture, board rules, amenities, and apartment-level pricing — not generic market commentary.
If you're considering a purchase or sale at 826 Lexington Avenue, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.
Get the full picture on this building.
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