838 Fifth Avenue
838 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10065
Lenox Hill, Upper East Side
BBL 1013797504 · BIN 1041101
- Year built
- 1951
- Type
- Condominium
- Units
- 18
- Floors
- 12
Every recorded sale at this building, 2005–2025
Price-per-square-foot over time, the line- and floor-premium curves, and every recorded sale.
- Median $/sf
- $2,493
- Listing discount
- 5.2%
- Recorded sales
- 12
- On record
- 2005–2025
838 Fifth Avenue is one of the most exclusive condominiums on Central Park — a limestone building with full park frontage at East 65th Street, converted in 1999 into a collection of predominantly full-floor residences. Its distinction is threefold: an unimpeachable Fifth Avenue address opposite the Central Park Zoo, floor-through layouts of roughly 5,400 to 5,500 square feet that live like grand prewar apartments, and a condominium ownership structure — unusual at this rarefied altitude of the avenue, where the cooperative form dominates.
The building's origin story reinforces its prestige. It began life around 1950 as an 11-story limestone office building designed by Harry M. Prince for the Union of American Hebrew Congregations — the "House of Living Judaism," carrying "Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself" on its façade. In the late 1990s a partnership led by The Athena Group, with investor A. Alfred Taubman, acquired and reimagined the structure, engaging Beyer Blinder Belle to convert it to residential use, absorbing the adjoining 2 East 65th Street parcel and adding a floor to bring the building to twelve stories.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $70,733/yr
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $121,650/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $327 – $563
Facade safety — Local Law 11
The latest available FISP filing classified the facade as Safe — no repairs were required at that inspection. Facade inspections run on a fixed five-year cycle; future inspection, repair, and any assessment decisions remain building-specific.
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 →Management & transfer contacts
- Notable fees
- Application Processing Fee $700; Move In/Out $1,500 each; Closing Fee $750; Working Capital Contribution = 6 months common charges
Recent sales
Recent closings 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 2021 | 10 | 3 BR · 3.5 BA · 4,522 sf | $11,273,163 | $2,493/sf | off-mkt |
| Jul 10, 2014 | 8 | 3 BR · 5,416 sf | $31,861,500 | $5,883/sf | off-mkt |
| Jul 10, 2014 | 1C | 300 sf | $1,138,500 | $3,795/sf | off-mkt |
| Nov 24, 2009 | 9 | 3 BR · 4,552 sf | $22,500,000 | $4,943/sf | -8.2% |
| Jan 30, 2007 | 9 | 3 BR · 4,524 sf | $15,800,000 | $3,492/sf | off-mkt |
| Mar 3, 2006 | 10 | 3 BR · 4,522 sf | $13,500,000 | $2,985/sf | +0.0% |
| Apr 21, 2005 | 8 | 3 BR · 5,423 sf | $21,000,000 | $3,872/sf | -2.3% |
| Jan 18, 2005 | 9 | 3 BR · 4,524 sf | $13,600,000 | $3,006/sf | off-mkt |
Market read. $/sf is measured on the latest sales with reliable square footage (2021): a median $2,493/sf across 1 sale. The building has traded as recently as 2025. Median listing discount 5.2% 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.
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 1-01379-7504) 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 from recorded condo declarations and offering plans.
Comparable buildings
- 1045 Fifth Avenue — nearby Fifth Avenue / Central Park peer
- 1115 Fifth Avenue — nearby Fifth Avenue peer
- 1120 Fifth Avenue — nearby Fifth Avenue peer
- 1 East 66th Street — Candela 1947; nearby Fifth-and-66th peer
- 2 East 70th Street — Candela 1927-28; nearby Lenox Hill 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.
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, schools, transit, and pricing across Fifth Avenue — read The Roebling Team Guide to Fifth Avenue.
Considering a move at 838 Fifth Avenue?
Request a private building brief with the relevant comparable sales, current and off-market availability, and an apartment-specific view of value.
Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
A Private Pricing Opinion — what your apartment at 838 Fifth Avenue 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.