Manhattan’s Bubble House Is on the Market for the First Time in Over 50 Years
Originally built in the 19th century, the famed dwelling was redesigned in 1969 by architect Maurice Medcalfe
Listed for the first time in 51 years, New York City’s famed “Bubble House” is available for $5.75 million. Located at 251 East 71st Street, the Lenox Hill townhouse boasts four bedrooms and five baths across 4,736 square feet. The single-family dwelling is listed with real estate agency Leslie Garfield.
Built in the 1800s as a traditional brownstone, the Bubble House was later redesigned in 1969 by architect Maurice Medcalfe of Hills & Medcalfe, who also lived here at the time. Since then, the modernist facade has become widely recognized for it’s stucco exterior and convex oval windows, some of which can rotate open.
“251 East 71st is one of those renowned properties that helps define a New York City block,” Richard Pretsfelder, a Senior Partner and Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker at Leslie Garfield, tells Galerie. “When New Yorkers think of East 71st between 2nd and 3rd Avenue, the iconic facade of the Bubble House immediately comes to mind. Its oval windows and pink color evoke the era of the late ’60s and early ’70s in a way that few other properties in Manhattan do. It causes the casual pedestrian to stop, stare, and want to learn more about the house.”
The four-story home also features a private garden, an office, a basement, and is located on a quiet tree-lined block, just minutes from Central Park and dozens of acclaimed restaurants and boutiques.
The current owner of the 18.5-foot-wide townhouse is Arthur Schneier, the Senior Rabbi of Manhattan’s Park East Synagogue, who purchased the home in 1974. Surprisingly, the Bubble House is not landmarked, meaning it can be subjected to significant changes by its next owner.