There is no shortage of parties, exhibits, costume contests, and other Halloween events in New York City, but the Village Halloween Parade is one of the liveliest and most well-known celebrations. This year's theme is Potluck, nodding to Halloween's roots as a harvest festival, and the grand marshal is City Harvest. The parade route runs north on Sixth Avenue from Canal Street to West 15th Street, but the cheers and music can be heard as far east as lower Fifth Avenue.
This is all the more striking because as one moves south past 14th Street (which, admittedly, is calmer than it used to be since it closed to car traffic), Fifth Avenue gets quieter. Residential development in this section took shape in the early 19th century, amidst Washington Square Park's evolution from a potters field to a military parade ground, well before it became a public park; the 1837 opening of New York University was also instrumental in the area's evolution (h/t Village Preservation). It started with mansions, but multi-family buildings later rose on their sites.
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Much of lower Fifth Avenue is located within the boundaries of the Greenwich Village Historic District, but its protections on the avenue only extend to East 12th Street. As such, buildings like the forthcoming 5 West 13th Street can rise without Landmarks' approval. While its planned height of 538 feet tall is petite by supertall standards, it is still nearly 200 feet taller than 1 Fifth Avenue, the neighborhood's current tallest building. Village Preservation argues that it threatens to overwhelm its neighbors, and that the project does not conform to the zoning regulations outlined in City of Yes for Housing Preservation, as it does not contain an affordable housing component. They filed a complaint just before the end of a comment period, and the Department of Buildings is reviewing the challenge as of this writing (h/t The New York Times).
Height and setback diagram for 5 West 13th Street (NYC Department of Buildings)
Whatever the outcome for 5 West 13th Street, it is not surprising that people want to live on or near lower Fifth Avenue, which has been nicknamed the Gold Coast. In addition to its beautiful prewar residences, this stretch is home to historic buildings like the Salmagundi Art Club (one of the oldest clubs in the city), First Presbyterian Church, and the entrance to the Washington Mews. However, the nearby New School and New York University campuses make for a youthful infusion that keeps the area from devolving into stodginess. It is well situated near popular Greenwich Village restaurants, shops, cinemas, and transportation to every other part of the city. The New York Times observes that residents of this "neighborhood-within-a-neighborhood" tend to cite their address as Fifth Avenue rather than saying they live in the Village.
Earlier this summer, an apartment at 43 Fifth Avenue formerly owned by Julia Roberts (who sold it to fellow Academy Award winner Holly Hunter) ranked among the city's top sales. The sale was recorded less than a year after design power couple Nate Berkus and Jeremiah Brent offloaded their beautifully combined and renovated penthouse at 39 Fifth Avenue. Other famous residents past and present include former New York City mayor Ed Koch, Marlon Brando, Greta Gerwig, Maurice Sendak, Graydon Carter, Isaac Singer, Celeste Holm, Keith Richards, Tim Burton, and Gracie Abrams.
Below, we look at the most beautiful residential buildings on lower Fifth Avenue from Washington Square North to 14th Street. Availabilities in these buildings are few and far between. Some new construction has taken shape around lower Fifth Avenue, but these buildings are going quickly, too – 181 MacDougal Street is 75% sold about a year after sales launched.
New developments
Architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox | Completion estimated for 2028
36 Units | 30 Floors
Diagram for 5 West 13th Street (NYC Department of Buildings)
Early diagrams of 5 West 13th Street show "rocket-like massing" near the top in a modern take on the nearby Art Deco architecture. There is to be ground-floor retail space and residential units from floors 3-30. Some apartments will have private terraces, and all are assured of soaring ceilings, abundant natural light, and beautiful city views. It is also set to offer a port-cochere entrance and seven on-site parking spaces, though it is located in close proximity to a highly convenient transportation hub at Union Square.
Architect: Schwartz & Gross (original); Stonehill Taylor (renovation) | Completed in 1923; conversion estimated for 2026
45 Units | 9 Floors
The Residences at West 9th Street (Reuveni LLC)
Earlier this fall, sales launched on The Residences at West 9th Street just off Fifth Avenue. Its original design by Schwartz & Gross was beautifully preserved amidst the condo conversion, and many units feature historic interior details like beamed ceilings, restored entry doors, and decorative fireplaces. These pair beautifully with modern touches like contemporary kitchens, state-of-the-art climate control, and in-unit laundry. Residents arrive to a beautifully restored lobby with concierge service and a package room with cold storage.
The Residences at West 9th Street, #5-C
$2,100,000
Greenwich Village | Condominium | 1 Bedroom, 1 Bath | 720 ft2
The Residences at West 9th Street, #5-C (Reuveni LLC)
Architect: Robert A.M. Stern Architects | Completed in 2025
14 Units | 18 Floors
Sixteen Fifth Avenue (Corcoran Group)
As very little new construction takes place on lower Fifth Avenue itself, Sixteen Fifth Avenue naturally attracted attention from the moment it was on the drawing board. It took a few trips before Landmarks before it was approved, but the final design by Robert A.M. Stern Architects is a tall but tasteful tower with a warm brick facade, recessed windows, and nods to its prewar neighbors. Interiors comprise 12 full-floor homes, one duplex penthouse, and one triplex penthouse.
Sixteen Fifth Avenue, #6
$13,500,000
Greenwich Village | Condominium | 4 Bedrooms, 4.5 Baths | 3,727 ft2
Sixteen Fifth Avenue, #6 (Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group)
Architect: Morris Adjmi Architects | Completed in 2025
16 Units | 7 Floors
181 MacDougal Street (CityRealty)
Just southwest of the beginning of Fifth Avenue, 181 MacDougal Street's low-rise height and hand-laid brick facade make it a context-sensitive new addition to the Greenwich Village Historic District. Residents arrive to a gracious attended lobby, and amenities include a state-of-the-art fitness center by The Wright Fit, a library lounge, private storage, and bike storage. Closings commenced earlier this fall, and the building is now open for immediate move-ins.
181 MacDougal Street, #PH
$11,750,000
Greenwich Village | Condominium | 3 Bedrooms, 3 Baths | 2,311 ft2
181 MacDougal Street, #PH (Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group)
Architect: Emery Roth & Sons | Completed in 1952
343 Units | 20 Floors
"The gray brick façade of the tower has a subtle modulation from the rounded short brick columns between the windows and the fence around the low-rise building's landscaping has a pleasant rectilinear form rather than traditional spikes" – Carter Horsley
2 Fifth Avenue (Compass)
Before the Greenwich Village Historic District was established, 2 Fifth Avenue rose as a rare example of post-war residential design on lower Fifth Avenue. With its clean lines, gray brick facade, multiple private balconies throughout, and striking driveway entrance, it makes quite the counterpoint to its Art Deco neighbor across the street at 1 Fifth Avenue (see below). In addition to the driveway, amenities include a fitness center, a children's playroom, and bike storage.
2 Fifth Avenue, #18C (Serhant)
Architect: Thomas Lamb | Built in 1929
89 Units | 16 Floors
"A pleasant, dark-brown pre-war apartment building with a sublime location and some unusual layouts" – Carter Horsley
51 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
Architect Thomas Lamb is best known for his theaters and cinemas (notably the third Madison Square Garden and the United Palace Theatre), but 51 Fifth Avenue represents a rare and welcome foray into residential design with its brown brick facade and graceful limestone entrance. Decades after construction was completed, it served as the exteriors on Emmy Award-winning sitcom Mad About You (h/t Scouting NY). A doorman and live-in superintendent are on staff, and amenities include a fitness center, a laundry room, and private storage.
51 Fifth Avenue, #7E (Douglas Elliman Real Estate)
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Architect: Schwartz & Gross | Built in 1923
140 Units | 16 Floors
"Occupying a prime site in the heart of the most elegant section of Greenwich Village and Lower Fifth Avenue" – Carter Horsley
30 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
30 Fifth Avenue is located on the northwest corner of Fifth Avenue and East 10th Street, where it makes a graceful statement with its brown brick facade and limestone trim. It is a few blocks from Washington Square Park but offers an outdoor escape of its own in the form of a landscaped roof terrace.
30 Fifth Avenue, #12C (Coldwell Banker Warburg)
Architect: Rouse & Goldstone | Built in 1921
87 Units | 14 Floors
"The 14-story building at 25 Fifth Avenue is two blocks north of Washington Square Park and one block south of the Episcopal Church of the Ascension in the most desirable and lovely section of Lower Fifth Avenue" – Carter Horsley
25 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
25 Fifth Avenue stands out at street level for its brown brick facade and graceful entrance with a limestone base and columns at the door. It is also set apart by virtue of its status as the only prewar condominium on lower Fifth Avenue, having been converted in 2000. A full-time doorman and live-in superintendent are on staff, and amenities include a fitness center, a laundry room, a bike room, and a common garden and patio.
25 Fifth Avenue, #14B (Douglas Elliman Real Estate)
Architect:
Van Wart & Wein | Built in 1929
75 Units | 15 Floors
40 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
"The most elegant high-rise apartment building on Lower Fifth Avenue and in Greenwich Village" – Carter Horsley
In the words of New York Times architecture critic Paul Goldberger, "[40 Fifth Avenue] looks like a Park Avenue building blew loose in a storm and dropped anchor Downtown." It would certainly fit in uptown with its brick facade and striking water tower enclosure. A full-time doorman and live-in superintendent are on staff, and the building has a private interior garden and private storage.
40 Fifth Avenue, #7E (Douglas Elliman Real Estate)
Architect: Rosario Candela | Built in 1929
88 Units | 15 Floors
41 Fifth Avenue (PAIP)
"A sedate, pre-war apartment building with a great location" – Carter Horsley
Architect Rosario Candela is famous for his designs on upper Fifth Avenue that were instrumental in New York City's embrace of multi-family living. But much further downtown, 41 Fifth Avenue makes a graceful statement on the corner of East 11th Street with its limestone base with ornate detailing and the brown brick facade above. A part-time doorman, live-in superintendent, and elevator attendant are on staff, and the building is topped with a landscaped roof deck.
41 Fifth Avenue, #1F (PAIP)
Architect: Emery Roth | Built in 1922
56 Units | 14 Floors
"This 17-story cooperative building was one of the first tall buildings on Lower Fifth Avenue" – Carter Horsley
39 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
Developed by Bing & Bing and designed by Emery Roth, 39 Fifth Avenue beautifully set the tone for its future neighbors with a dark brown brick facade and loggia-inspired terra cotta detailing on the third floor. Residents arrive to an attended lobby with barrel-vaulted ceiling, and amenities include bike storage and a central laundry room.
39 Fifth Avenue, #2B (Compass)
Architect: Harvey Wiley Corbett | Built in 1927
184 Units | 27 Floors
"One of the city's premier residential skyscrapers" – Carter Horsley
1 Fifth Avenue (Compass)
While its status as Greenwich Village's tallest building is in doubt, 1 Fifth Avenue will remain one of the city's most beautiful Art Deco designs thanks to its chamfered corners and setbacks that create large private terraces. It is as much an architectural landmark as the Washington Square Arch less than one block away, and Washington Square Park is residents' unofficial backyard.
1 Fifth Avenue, #16A (Ann Weintraub Ltd)
Architect: Henry Andersen | Built in 1905
42 Units | 11 Floors
"Very grand and elegant Parisian-style apartment building" – Carter Horsley
43 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
43 Fifth Avenue stands out for its distinctive Beaux-Arts design, limestone base, wrought iron balconies, bay windows, and mansard roof. The dry moat and limestone lampposts make for a grand entrance, and the ornate lobby with marble floors sets the tone for the apartments above.
Architect: Emery Roth | Built in 1926
419 Units | 15 Floors
24 Fifth Avenue (CityRealty)
When the former Brevoort mansion was demolished to make way for 24 Fifth Avenue, then known as the Fifth Avenue Hotel, The Outlook lamented that "the modernization of that section of the avenue will be practically complete—and wholly depressing to those who love some flavor of the past" (h/t Daytonian in Manhattan). One hundred years after it was written, the Emery Roth-designed building that rose on the site is admired for its bronze canopy, limestone base, buff brick, and terra cotta details. Residents arrive to a majestic marble lobby with full-time doorman, and amenities include concierge service, a package room, a fitness center, a central laundry room, private storage, and a bike room.
24 Fifth Avenue, #909 (Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales LLC)
Would you like to tour any of these properties?
Just complete the info below.
Or call us at (212) 755-5544
Would you like to tour any of these properties?
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