955 Fifth Avenue

The typical floor pairs two identical residences, each entered through a 15-foot gallery opening to a 26-foot living room with a wood-burning fireplace and a 21-foot dining room with a semicircular end — a Candela plan-making flourish — backed by pantry, kitchen, and what were originally two staff rooms (now generally laundries, offices, or fourth bedrooms). Larger units exist where lines have been combined into full floors, and the setback floors above the 14th carry the building's trophy inventory: terraced simplexes and duplexes, including penthouse units with wraparound planted terraces. Park views run west across the avenue from the upper floors; mid-rise lines take the avenue and the side-street townhouse rooflines. The Upper East Side Historic District designation means window and terrace work routes through Landmarks — factor the timeline into renovation plans.

This is a boutique, full-service pre-war: 24-hour doorman, resident manager, a fitness center (funded in part by a documented $5,000 capital contribution from each incoming shareholder), and a roof deck. With only two units per typical floor and roughly 30 apartments total, the building is small, and the policy framework is strict (no pieds-à-terre, no subletting, no guarantors, no corporate purchasers per management-sourced records). The by-laws and certificate of incorporation are on file in The Roebling Research Library; current financials and house rules should be reviewed with counsel at offer stage.

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.

Market read. Most recent trades (2026 to date) cleared a median $2,128/sf (recorded) across 1 sale. Median listing discount 4.0% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.

Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 1-01391-0072). 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.

• Robert Redford — the actor's two-bedroom duplex penthouse in the building was listed for sale in 1997

This is the strict end of the policy spectrum — plan for it. 50 percent maximum financing, no pieds-à-terre, no subletting, no guarantors, and no corporate or parent-purchase structures per management-sourced records. The building is for primary-residence buyers with conservative balance sheets; run the Co-op Board Qualification Calculator honestly before offering.

The Candela attribution is verified and the late-vintage plan is the point. City records date the building to 1938 and architectural records are unanimous on the Candela attribution. The layouts deliver the pre-war program — gallery entrances, fireplaces, formal dining — at a scale that runs without staff. For buyers priced out of 960 or 834 Fifth, this is the same architect's hand at a more rational footprint.

Inspect privacy and amenities directly. Two units per typical floor describes the layout, not noise levels or shareholder familiarity. Check the actual landing, lobby, acoustics, gym and roof access against the alternatives under consideration.

Budget the full fee stack. The 3 percent flip tax (confirm allocation), the $5,000 capital contribution, and historic-district renovation mechanics all belong in your numbers. Run the Buyer Closing Cost Calculator and, for estate-condition units, the Renovation Cost Calculator.

Verify policies at offer stage. The policy framework above reflects management-sourced records current to this writing, and terms can change. Confirm everything against the managing agent's current questionnaire.

Use dated comparable sales. Establish the frequency and relevance of in-building trades over a defined period, and compare line-equivalent sales in neighboring late-prewar park-front cooperatives; the apartment count does not assure scarcity or pricing power. We maintain that comp set in the Research Library.

Market the architecture with specificity. Candela, 1938, the fluted limestone, the semicircular dining rooms, the curved setback crown — this building's buyers respond to precise provenance, not adjectives. The late-Candela "simplified living" story is a differentiator against the 1920s giants, not a concession.

Condition drives the spread. A two-per-floor building shows every renovation generation plainly. Renovated units clear at premiums; estate units should be priced to the renovation-plus-Landmarks math, not to hope.

Know your buyer pool's constraints. The 50 percent financing cap and stated occupancy restrictions affect eligibility and funding requirements; they do not establish buyer wealth, motivations or transaction speed. Confirm the current rules and actual application timeline.

If you're considering 955 Fifth Avenue, also evaluate:

• 960 Fifth Avenue — Candela with Warren & Wetmore, 1928; the trophy-tier Candela alternative nearby to the north
• 1040 Fifth Avenue — Candela's celebrated park-front co-op at 85th; the Jacqueline Onassis building
• 19 East 72nd Street — Candela with Mott Schmidt, 1937; the closest sibling in vintage and stripped-classical style
• 950 Fifth Avenue — boutique Carpenter co-op immediately south; similar scale and discretion
• 965 Fifth Avenue — the immediate neighbor north at 77th Street
• 944 Fifth Avenue — boutique pre-war co-op nearby to the south
• 930 Fifth Avenue — Emery Roth pre-war co-op at 74th; the larger-building alternative
• 907 Fifth Avenue — Carpenter's grand co-op at 72nd; the step-up in scale
• 2 East 70th Street — Candela just off the avenue; the side-street alternative