122 East 38th Street
Vacant Townhouse | Single-Family Conversion | Embassy | Medical | User Building
Marketing description
Cushman & Wakefield and Corcoran have been exclusively retained to offer for sale 122 East 38th Street (the "Property"), an extraordinary 6,480± SF live-work commercial townhouse located on one of Murray Hill's premier blocks between Park and Lexington Avenues, just steps from Grand Central Terminal.
This distinguished six-story plus cellar and roof terrace Neo-Federal townhouse combines historic elegance with modern refinement. Built in the early 20th century, the property features a stately brick façade with limestone detailing and balanced architectural proportions. Inside, soaring ceiling heights, intricate moldings, multiple fireplaces, and a dramatic spiral staircase create a sense of timeless sophistication, while updated, eco-conscious systems provide contemporary comfort and efficiency.
Situated on a tree-lined block just off Park Avenue, the Property offers a rare blend of privacy, prestige, and convenience, suitable for live-work users, governments, nonprofits, medical, institutional ownership, office use, or single-family conversion.
122 East 38th Street also boasts a storied history. Notable former residents include Charles Isham, historian and head librarian of the New York Historical Society, and his wife Mary Todd Lincoln Isham, granddaughter of President Abraham Lincoln. In 1913, the couple commissioned the architecture firm Walker & Gillette to add the elegant mansard fourth floor, further enhancing the townhouse's architectural prominence.
Investment highlights
- 6,480± SF Neo-Federal Townhouse: Six stories plus cellar and roof terrace, impeccably maintained and updated.
- Prime Murray Hill Location: East 38th Street between Park & Lexington Avenues; steps to Grand Central Terminal.
- Live-Work Flexibility: Commercial CofO allows a broad range of uses (office, institutional, single-family conversion, embassy, medical).
- Architecturally Significant: Original details include fireplaces, soaring ceilings, custom millwork, and a dramatic spiral staircase.
- Modernized Infrastructure: Eco-conscious systems and updated mechanicals blend historic charm with contemporary performance.
- Prestigious Pedigree: Former residence of Charles Isham and Mary Todd Lincoln Isham, granddaughter of President Abraham Lincoln.
- Boutique Sized Building offers privacy & efficiency with full control of the property with two outdoor roof decks.
- Tremendous existing one-bedroom duplex apartment or pied-á-terre on the top floor.
- Potential for conversion to residential townhouse providing optionality as an exit strategy.
- Proximity to Manhattan's corporate nexus, Bryant Park and Grand Central Terminal with unmatched accessibility to Metro-North, LIRR, and multiple subway lines.
- Nearby Public Schools Mary Lindley Murray School, Simon Baruch, Baruch College Campus High School, High School of Art and Design, and Stuyvesant High School.
- Nearby Private Schools United Nations International School, Epiphany Elementary School, The Browning School, St. Vartan's/Armenian Day School, Lyceum Kennedy, and The British International School.
- Excellent User Branding Opportunity: Delivered vacant for the perfect single-user / owner-occupier seeking brand identity and full building control (family office, boutique investment firm, hedge fund, gallery).
- Live-Work End User: Owner looking for a luxury residence with separate space for office, studio, or staff.
- Institutional / Nonprofit / Foundation: Embassies, schools, medical practices, cultural groups, ideal proximity to the UN and NYU hospitals.
- Luxury Single-Family Conversion: Top-of-market townhouse buyers seeking an elevator and outdoor space
- Located near high-density residential housing in an established neighborhood with affluent demographics.
- Excellent proximity to transit at Grand Central-42nd Street and at 34th Street-Herald Square and subway lines.
- Strategically located in the heart of Murray Hil near NYU Langone Medical Center Campus and the United Nations.
- Transportation Hub: Located one block from Grand Central Terminal connecting to Metro-North, LIRR, and multiple subway lines.
- Corporate + Professional Cluster: Surrounded by financial services, legal, medical, and consulting firms that prefer to own boutique space.
- UN + Diplomatic Sector Proximity: Minutes to the United Nations Headquarters; attracts mission and consulate buyers.
- NYU Langone Medical Campus: Continuous demand from medical, academic, and research users.
- Park Avenue Prestige: Immediate adjacency to one of Manhattan's most exclusive office and residential corridors.
- Trophy Townhouse Demand: Limited supply of turnkey, elevatored, architecturally significant townhomes in Midtown/Murray Hill.
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