969 Fifth Avenue
969 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10075
Lenox Hill, Upper East Side
BBL 1013920069 · BIN 1041848
- Year built
- 1925
- Type
- Cooperative
- Landmark
- No
Every recorded sale at this building, 2007–2026
Bedroom-by-bedroom medians, the full transfer record, and how units trade against ask.
- 3BR median
- $8M
- Recent range
- $3M – $13M
- Listing discount
- 3.7%
- Recorded transfers
- 12
969 Fifth Avenue is one of the most close-held addresses on the avenue — a 16-story pre-war cooperative with only 12 apartments, standing directly across from Central Park at the corner of East 78th Street. Built in 1925 to the design of Joseph L. Raimist, it rose on the site of the William Lawrence mansion, a Gilded Age house that had stood since the 1880s before the parcel was sold to developers in 1925. The building converted to cooperative ownership in 1946, an early-wave conversion that established the intimate shareholder house it remains today.
The case for the building is exclusivity and the park. Twelve apartments across sixteen stories means most homes occupy a full or near-full floor, with the direct Central Park frontage that defines the most coveted Fifth Avenue addresses. The residences are substantial — roughly 1,300 to 4,000 square feet, many with wood-burning fireplaces — and the building is run as a white-glove cooperative with a full attended-lobby staff. It is the kind of small, discreet park-facing house that rarely comes to market and trades on its scarcity when it does.
Architecture and unit composition
969 Fifth is a dark-brick tower over a limestone base — the quiet, dignified Fifth Avenue idiom of the 1920s, in which the architecture defers to the setting and the park rather than competing with them. At sixteen stories on a corner site, the building commands open views over Central Park to the west and up and down the avenue, a positioning that Joseph L. Raimist's design was built to exploit.
The 12 cooperative residences are the building's defining feature. With so few apartments in a sixteen-story building, most homes are full-floor or near-full-floor, sized from roughly 1,300 to 4,000 square feet, and many retain wood-burning fireplaces along with the high ceilings, gracious entertaining proportions, and direct park exposures that mark the best of the avenue. Each apartment is effectively unique, and renovated homes here pair the pre-war framework with modern systems and finishes. The penthouse and upper-floor homes carry the building's widest views.
Building operations
969 Fifth runs as a full-service, white-glove cooperative scaled to its dozen households. The building is staffed with a full-time doorman, concierge, and elevator-operator service alongside a resident manager — a level of attended service usually reserved for far larger buildings, here concentrated on twelve homes. On-site amenities are the discreet practicalities of a small luxury co-op: private storage and a central laundry room. The value proposition is service and privacy, not a sprawling amenity floor.
On policy, the cooperative is conservative, in keeping with its tier. The building permits financing of up to 30% of the purchase price — a low cap that signals a financially substantial, owner-occupant buyer base — and a 3% flip tax is paid by the purchaser at closing. The building is pet-friendly. As with any top-of-avenue cooperative, the board conducts a thorough review of each purchase, with a full financial package and an interview; buyers should expect a rigorous, traditional admissions process.
Local Law 97
- 2024–2029 annual penalty
- $3,056/yr
- 2030–2034 annual penalty
- $30,426/yr
- Per unit / month range
- $21 – $211
Facade safety — Local Law 11
The latest available filing classified the facade as SWARMP — Safe With A Repair and Maintenance Program: the engineer identified conditions requiring monitoring or repair before the next inspection cycle. The scope, timeline, and how the building funds the work are building-specific — we review the filings and board materials 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
Recent transfers 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 2026 | 14 | 2 BR · 2.5 BA | $4,150,000 | +0.0% | |
| May 1, 2026 | 5 | 3 BR · 4.5 BA · 4,600 sf | $13,000,000 | $2,826/sf | -3.7% |
| Feb 15, 2024 | 1 | 3 BR · 3 BA · 2,800 sf | $3,050,000 | $1,089/sf | -12.7% |
| Dec 15, 2021 | 4 | 2 BR · 2 BA · 1,900 sf | $2,650,000 | $1,395/sf | +0.0% |
| Jun 24, 2020 | PH | 1 BR · 1.5 BA | $2,150,000 | +0.0% | |
| May 21, 2020 | 15 | 3 BR · 2.5 BA | $4,000,000 | -19.2% | |
| Jun 1, 2017 | 4 | 2 BR | $3,871,000 | -8.9% | |
| Jul 6, 2012 | 13 | 2 BR | $3,675,000 | -12.5% |
Market read. Most recent trades (2026) cleared a median $2,826/sf across 1 sale. Median listing discount 5.9% 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 1-01392-0069) 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 on co-ops is not officially recorded, figures shown are approximate.
What to know if you’re buying
This is a trophy purchase, and the diligence should match. The draw is unambiguous: a full-floor or near-full-floor home, directly on Central Park, in a twelve-unit white-glove cooperative — with full-time doorman, concierge, and elevator-operator service. Expect a conservative financial profile: the building permits only 30% financing, so plan for a substantial cash position, and budget for a 3% flip tax paid by the purchaser at closing. The board review is rigorous and traditional; assemble a complete, well-documented package and prepare for an in-person interview. The building is pet-friendly, a welcome flexibility at this tier. Evaluate each apartment on its specific floor, views, fireplaces, and condition — at twelve homes, no two are alike, and the park exposure is what you are ultimately buying.
What to know if you’re selling
Scarcity is the entire marketing strategy. A park-facing home in a twelve-unit Fifth Avenue cooperative is something buyers wait years for, and the listing should lead with that: full-floor scale, direct Central Park views, wood-burning fireplaces, and white-glove service in one of the avenue's smallest houses. Present the apartment's floor, view breadth, and renovation level precisely, since those drive value at this level. Price against the avenue's small park-facing co-ops and the building's own history rather than larger or interior-facing inventory. The qualified buyer pool is narrow but motivated, and the conservative 30% financing cap means most purchasers arrive with strong cash positions — a point worth surfacing for board readiness. Plan the rigorous board package and interview into the timeline from the outset.
Comparable buildings
If you're considering 969 Fifth Avenue, also evaluate these nearby Fifth Avenue park-facing co-ops:
- 960 Fifth Avenue — landmark park-facing Fifth Avenue cooperative
- 1009 Fifth Avenue — Fifth Avenue cooperative facing the park
- 1016 Fifth Avenue — park-facing Fifth Avenue cooperative
- 1020 Fifth Avenue — Fifth Avenue cooperative opposite the Met
- 1030 Fifth Avenue — pre-war Fifth Avenue park-facing cooperative
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, schools, transit, and pricing across Fifth Avenue — read The Roebling Team Guide to Fifth Avenue.
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.
Considering a move at 969 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 969 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.