Any opinions on which are the best UWS pre-war condo buildings?

Personally, I like 25 CPW (the Century), Ansonia, Apthorp (we'll see what they close at). No others really come close.

Good calls there from nyc10023. On a less prestigious level, the Admaston on 89th and Broadway has done nicely over time.

Thank you...I was planning on looking at a condo in 817 WEA but know nothing about the building. It seems that the pickings are pretty slim for this category!

The Ansonia is actually the least pricey of the 3 - no great views, and it doesn't feel like a "luxury" building. I was close to pulling the trigger on a very high floor corner apt in the summer for 3m (views down West 72nd of Dakota & the park) but I wanted to reassemble the original rooms (this was a 9 minus 2 rooms) and it was impossible (young rent-stabilized tenant in the apt next door).

Apple Bank went for high prices / sqft but has odd layouts.

I'm not a fan of the Admaston. Other solid prewar condos are 530 West End and 650(?) West End Avenue.
There are some on sidestreets, 104W70, Danielle (on 70th), Olcott, 41W72. 255 W 95(? - not sure of
exact address but it's on West Side of Broadway close to 96th street stop).

The newer conversions are 817WE, Avonova, 905WE, 610W110, 235W71, Apple Bank, 315W106, 220W93,
240W98.

Okay, that's all I can think of for now.

On CPW, 327CPW, there are a couple in the 400s (410? I forget the #), 255 (? - low 90s) CPW.

and mentioned here before 203 W 81.

420 CPW is a so-so condo.

I personally love the Ansonia. Such a huge lobby, spacious hallways, thick ways and a great location.

Ah, one more on CPW, Braender (418CPW) and Hopkins (172W79). There's an odd one that's half prewar, half postwar (Chester House/Chesterfield?) on Amsterdam and 80th.

Wonderful information! Thank you so much. Maybe listings in those buildings (2-3 bedrooms) will enter the market. I'll let you know what I think of 817 WEA if I see it.

Among the recent prewar conversions, I've seen 817 WEA, 905 WEA, 240 W98 (Sabrina), 219 W81(Avonova) and 220 W93. Judged against its peers, 817 WEA isn't bad, though the common areas are still a mess. Eventually, it's supposed to look like its co-op twin, 801 WEA. We shall see. Personally, I didn't like the sponsor-renovated units; I found them tacky, generic and rather poorly laid out - in fact some features wee going to be ripped out and redone because buyer reaction had been so negative.

The best thing about 817, as I see it, is a relatively high owner-occ percentage. The sponsor really courted the insiders. If I were looking to buy here, I'd probably look for a resale. I suspect some of the tenants might have overextended to buy, thinking they were getting the deal of a lifetime.

There may also be some resale opportunities at Sabrina, as a lot of insiders bought there too. 905 WEA has cheap sponsor financing and extremely negotiable prices as Samson tries to make enough sales to get the plan effective. Of this group, I think the renovations at 905 are the nicest, but that's rather faint praise. Avonova is still a construction site. Great location, though, and probably negotiable at this point.

Interesting, West81st. I'd walked by 817 WEA and been underwhelmed, but from what you said it sounds like the common areas are still (theoretically) in transition. I read the passionate debate surrounding 905 WEA and now want to see the building just out of curiosity!

215 West 90th (Haroldon Court) is another recent and decent conversion of a solid prewar building. Sponsor units come on the market now and then, and the sponsor does a good job renovating the units. On the downside, some of the layouts are awkward (in an effort to maximize the number of BRs in a sales listing) and you won't find many "classic" apartments there. But if a more open layout is what you want, you'll find that the sponsor has already taken down some of the walls for you. 3 of the 4 buildings on the block are quite stately, so the building is in good company.

I must be the only one who likes the Pythian, lots of duplexes. The Level club could also be interesting but open houses are not allowed.

Don't love the layouts at Pythian or Level Club. Both were Masonic temples, layouts awkward.

I like high ceiling duplexes which are otherwise uncommon on the UWS.

I went to see the three bedroom condo at 817 WEA today. New elevators are supposed to be in by January; the lobby needs work as does the apartment. The owner has apparently received a number of lowball offers and is planning on taking it off of the market.