The Studio Building (889 Lexington Avenue)
889 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10065
BBL 1014010020 · BIN 1042461
- Year built
- 1905
- Type
- Cooperative
- Units
- About 44
- Landmark status
- Individual landmark; not in a historic district
- NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission records, updated February 2026
- Pied-à-terre
- Permitted
- Dogs
- Permitted
- Cats
- Not stated
- Maximum financing
- 50% of the purchase price
- Flip tax
- 3% of the purchase price, paid by the buyer
Every recorded sale at this building, 2003–2026
Bedroom-by-bedroom medians, the full transfer record, and how units trade against ask.
- 4BR+ median, 2024–2025
- $3.8M
- 3 qualifying sales
- Recent range
- $545K – $5.8M
- Listing discount
- 8.6%
- Recorded transfers
- 42
Own an apartment here? See what it would sell for.
A Private Pricing Opinion — what your apartment at The Studio Building 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.
The Studio Building at 889 Lexington Avenue — addressed on the side street as 131–135 East 66th Street — is one of the most architecturally significant early cooperatives on the Upper East Side. Constructed in 1905–1906 as a cooperative artists' studio building and designed by Charles A. Platt, it is a landmark of the form: an Italian Renaissance palazzo conceived to give artists double-height studios, generous north light, and gracious living quarters in a single building. Platt himself lived here from its opening until his death in 1933, and the building's history is woven into the cultural life of early-twentieth-century New York.
Two facts give the building its standing. First, it is among the genuinely early cooperatives in Manhattan — built as a co-op decades before the great conversion waves, when the cooperative idea was still novel. Second, its studio-building program produced apartments unlike anything in the surrounding pre-war inventory: dramatic double-height living rooms, distinctive light, and floor plans engineered around the needs of working artists rather than conventional family layouts. The result is a building of unusual character and a designated New York City landmark, marked in 2006 with a Landmarks Preservation plaque.
For buyers, The Studio Building offers a combination almost impossible to replicate: a Platt-designed landmark, the corner of Lexington and 66th in the heart of Lenox Hill, the rare double-height studio format, and the prestige of one of the city's pioneering cooperatives — three blocks from Central Park and Fifth Avenue's Museum Mile, with the Lexington Avenue 6 train and the Q at 63rd Street both within easy reach.
Architecture and unit composition
Platt's limestone palazzo is a study in restraint and proportion — the elevations organized by a rhythmic grouping of windows, the two entrances marked by massive columns and broken pediments, the whole crowned by an elaborate projecting cornice. The composition reads as a unified classical block, befitting an architect equally celebrated for his landscape and country-house work; Christopher Gray once observed that the building, three blocks from Fifth Avenue, looks every bit as fine as anything on it.
The roughly 44 apartments reflect the building's studio heritage. The defining feature is the double-height living space found in many of the lines — soaring rooms with tall windows engineered for artists' light — paired with quieter sleeping and service quarters. These are among the most distinctive interiors on the Upper East Side, prized by buyers who want volume and character rather than a conventional pre-war layout. Configurations vary considerably across the building, and many apartments have been combined or reconfigured over more than a century.
Building operations
The Studio Building operates as a full-service pre-war cooperative, with a full-time attended entrance, elevator service, a live-in resident manager, private storage, bike storage, and a central laundry room.
The co-op's rules reward the long-term, owner-occupant buyer who is the building's traditional constituency: dogs are permitted, pied-à-terre ownership is allowed, and financing is permitted up to 50% of the purchase price. A 3% flip tax is paid by the purchaser at closing. As an individually designated landmark, exterior alterations are subject to Landmarks Preservation Commission review, and the board reviews interior renovation scope with attention to the building's protected character and its distinctive double-height volumes.
Application and transaction fees
Fees below are from building management's published schedule, as of October 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
- Equal to 3% of the purchase price
- Rate
- 3% of the purchase price
- Paid by
- Buyer
Source: building management's published schedule, as of October 2026
Purchase
7 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $600 | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Messenger Fees | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $65 | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Recognition Agreement FeeConditionalConditions: If Financing | Paid by Buyer | When At closing | Amount $300, if applicable | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Managing Agent Fee | Paid by Shareholder | When At closing | Amount $900 (Shareholder is an Individual) or $1000 (Shareholder is an Estate) | Refundable Non-refundable |
| New York State Stamp TaxPer share | Paid by Shareholder | When At closing | Amount $0.05 per share | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Corp. Accountant's Review of Application Fee - MUST BE PHYSICAL CHECK | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $750 | Refundable Not stated |
| Fidelifacts Credit ReportConditional · Per applicant | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $871.00 per Applicant/Occupant, $1,633.13 if there are two (2) Applicants/Occupants | Refundable Non-refundable |
Sublet
2 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Subtenant | When With the application | Amount $550 | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Sublease FeeRecurring | Paid by Shareholder | When Upon approval | Amount Equal to 25% of the difference between the annual sublease rent and the annual maintenance. (Will be billed and paid in equal monthly installments) | Refundable Non-refundable |
Refinance
2 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Shareholder | When With the application | Amount $500 | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Messenger Fees | Paid by Shareholder | When With the application | Amount $35 | Refundable Non-refundable |
Ownership transfer
4 items
Fees and charges
| Item | Paid by | When | Amount | Refundable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Processing Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $600 | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Background Check FeePer applicant | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $100 per applicant/occupant | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Credit Report FeePer applicantRequired | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $75 per applicant/occupant | Refundable Non-refundable |
| Messenger Fee | Paid by Buyer | When With the application | Amount $65 | Refundable Non-refundable |
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
- Maximum financing
- 50% of the purchase priceSource: building management's published schedule, as of October 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.
- Subletting by shareholders
- Not verified
- Pied-à-terre ownership
- PermittedSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
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
- PermittedSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Cats
- Not statedThe source permits pets without naming cats.Source: The Roebling Team's building profile
- In-unit washer/dryer
- Not verified
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
- Maintenance, per room
- $1,236 per room a monthMedian of 5 recorded sales since October 2023Source: recorded sales, refreshed October 2026
Maintenance as recorded with each sale. A co-op's maintenance already covers the building's real estate taxes and the building's own mortgage, if it has one; add your own loan payment for the monthly outlay. A summary of recorded sales, not a current bill; charges change.
Building staffing and amenities
- Live-in superintendent
- YesSource: The Roebling Team's building profile
- Elevator
- YesSource: NYC Department of City Planning records (PLUTO)
- Amenities noted
- Bike storage, storage, laundry roomSource: 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
- $0 (under cap)
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $37,883/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $0 – $72
- Modeled exposure split equally across 44 units (the residential count on the city's lot record). Not an assessed amount; co-op shareholders are typically charged by share allocation.
Source: NYC LL84 benchmarking and PLUTO · The Roebling Research Library. City data last refreshed October 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 — a licensed professional engineer or registered architect who meets DOB’s FISP qualifications and signs the report (the independent expert, not the managing agent).
Source: NYC DOB facade filings (FISP) · The Roebling Research Library. City data last refreshed October 2026.
Recent sales
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 | PPSF | vs. Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 17, 2026 | 1H | 1 BR · 1 BA | $545,000 | -21.0% | |
| Oct 3, 2025 | 2 | 4 BR · 2.5 BA · 3,500 sf | $3,825,000 | $1,093/sf | -6.5% |
| Sep 24, 2025 | 8 | 3 BR · 2.5 BA | $3,375,000 | -17.2% | |
| Jul 28, 2025 | 8 | 4 BR · 2.5 BA · 3,200 sf | $3,800,000 | $1,188/sf | -2.4% |
| Jan 30, 2024 | 10 | 4 BR · 3.5 BA | $4,100,000 | -10.8% | |
| Jun 26, 2023 | 6 | 3 BR · 3.5 BA | $5,800,000 | +0.1% | |
| Jun 28, 2022 | 2 | 4 BR · 2.5 BA · 3,200 sf | $4,300,000 | $1,344/sf | -4.3% |
| Jun 23, 2022 | 2 | 4 BR · 3.5 BA · 3,500 sf | $5,250,000 | $1,500/sf | -8.7% |
Market read. $/sf is measured on the latest sales with reliable square footage (2025): a median $1,141/sf (recorded) across 2 sales. The building has traded as recently as 2026. Median listing discount 4.3% 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.
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 1-01401-0020). 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 on co-ops is not officially recorded, figures shown are approximate.
What would your apartment rent for?
Enter your apartment and I'll send you what it would rent for, from comparable closed leases at The Studio Building and nearby.
At the recent median sale of $3.59M (4 transfers in the past 24 months, since October 31, 2024), a buyer putting 50% down would pay about $175,988 to close, or 4.9% of the price.
- Mansion tax: $53,813
- No mortgage recording tax or title insurance on a co-op purchase
- Building transfer fee (flip tax), 3% of the purchase price, paid by the buyer per building management's published schedule, as of October 2026: $107,625
- Attorneys, lender, building fees and filings: $14,550
Assumes a resale (the seller pays transfer taxes), a $4,500 attorney fee and a mortgage at the building's 50% financing limit. Confirm the current transfer fee with building management; the linked calculator does not include it.
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What to know if you’re buying
The double-height studio format is the building's signature. These volumes are rare and highly sought; they trade on character and light rather than conventional room counts.
The rules favor a serious owner-occupant — with flexibility. Dogs are welcome and a pied-à-terre is permitted, but financing is capped at 50% and a 3% flip tax falls to the buyer at closing, so plan the cash position accordingly.
It is a designated landmark. Designation regulates changes without guaranteeing an unchanged exterior; confirm the scope of LPC and board review — budget time for board and, where applicable, LPC sign-off.
Check current availability. The roughly forty-four-unit count does not establish long holding periods or infrequent sales; review dated transfers and current listings.
What to know if you’re selling
The Platt authorship, landmark status, and studio heritage are exceptional marketing assets. Listing copy should foreground the architectural pedigree and the rarity of the double-height format.
Pricing requires bespoke, apartment-level analysis. Given the variation across the building, conventional per-square-foot averages mislead; comparable selection must weigh apartment type, volume, and light.
Position the rules as a feature. Dog-friendly and pied-à-terre-friendly policies broaden the buyer pool relative to stricter Lenox Hill co-ops — a genuine selling point worth stating plainly.
Closing timelines are co-op standard. Plan for roughly 6–10 weeks from contract signing to closing.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering The Studio Building, also evaluate:
- 976 Lexington Avenue — nearby Upper East Side co-op
- 1004 Lexington Avenue — nearby pre-war Lexington Avenue building
- 773 Lexington Avenue — nearby Lexington Avenue building
- 111 East 67th Street — nearby Lenox Hill pre-war co-op
- 640 Park Avenue — nearby Lenox Hill pre-war peer
- 570 Park Avenue — nearby pre-war co-op at East 63rd
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.
Considering a move at The Studio Building?
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646.939.7375 · c.cohen@compass.com