This quaint Upper West Side one bedroom comes from the Central Park Studios, an apartment cooperative built in 1905 by artists and writers for the purpose of creating living and studio space for their creative endeavors. Unsurprisingly, this apartment has its own creative history: it served as the writing studio to Elizabeth Hardwick, acclaimed author and co-founder of the New York Review of Books. She lived here with her husband, the poet Robert Lowell, until her death in 2007. The present owner, according to the listing, then wrote his first published book here. So who will be the next writer to continue the apartment’s creative energy, for the asking amount of $1.42 million?

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It’s rare to see a habitable—much less chic and renovated—apartment in most of Williamsburg for anything even close to the $360,000 this cozy co-op is going for. There’s a reason, of course; this “junior-one” at 648 Grand Street is an HDFC co-op, though the income cap isn’t mentioned in the listing yet. For a qualified buyer the bright, cozy space offers a home that’s easy on the eyes as well as the wallet.

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“Master builder” Robert Moses–he of the 13 expressways that crisscross New York City–spent the 1970s living with his wife, Mary Grady Moses, in a three-bedroom co-op at 1 Gracie Terrace in Yorkville on Manhattan’s Upper East Side (h/t NYPost). We can see how the home’s sweeping river views would inspire the subject of Robert Caro’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, “The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York,” when pondering the conflicting issues of a complicated and changing city. The apartment is now for sale asking $1.95 million.

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One of a pair of Federal-style row houses on the longest unbroken stretch of Federal/Greek Revival homes in New York City, 39 Charlton Street was built in 1827 to exacting standards by a builder-carpenter at a time when the area, now a tony enclave where the West Village meets Soho, was known as Richmond Hill. This 25-foot-wide home has been called one of the city’s finest examples of Greek Revival/Federal houses. The house and its neighbor are regarded by the Landmarks Preservation Commission as “the two best (and best preserved) examples…whose exquisitely detailed entrances with original doors and leaded glass sidelights convey many of the style’s most distinctive qualities.” Both the interior and exterior of this unique home, now on the market for $13.85 million, have retained an extraordinary level of original detail.

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This unusual East Village one-bedroom duplex condo in the Village Mews at 407 East 12th Street checks all the boxes without shouting–that is, it lets a rare and fabulous garden paradise do the talking, which in this case means asking for $1.695 million. The 750-square-foot home was recently renovated from tip to toe, and the design is tasteful without being generically “luxe.” And while this not-huge condo wouldn’t work for a growing family or a communal crew, it looks heavenly for anyone seeking, an “oasis away from city living” while situated on a lovely street in the heart of what could be called an oasis of city living, with its 24-hour energy and unending list of destinations of every kind.

Here comes the sun

With two exposures, 11-foot ceilings and walls of windows, this 1,100-square-foot two-bedroom loft condo in the Toy Factory Lofts at 176 Johnson Street has its heart in the right place–even if its bathroom isn’t. The historic 1926 building–once the home of Tudor Metal Products and birthplace of many mid-20th-century toys–lends itself to authentic loft living in ever-changing Downtown Brooklyn. A modern renovation makes loft living easy–with a possible exception or two–and the $1.25 million ask comes with low carrying costs.

About that bathroom

This expansive Williamsburg triplex was once a part of the flagship retail space for a children’s clothing manufacturer–when the cast iron building was constructed in the 1880s, the first floor held retail while the sewing machines, shears and bosses occupied the upper floors. Now the building, located at 138 Broadway, is known as the Smith Gray condominium, and this apartment is asking $2.3 million. Over 2,300 square feet, you’ll spot tin ceilings, Corinthian columns and exposed structural brick. While those are pretty typical loft details, this apartment boasts one of the more unique lofts in Brooklyn. It’s clad with reclaimed cedar from New York’s iconic wooden water towers, which results in a cozy loft enclosure that can be opened via specially-designed casement windows.

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The 7,067 square-foot penthouse at 995 Fifth Avenue owned by Claude Wasserstein, ex wife of the late Bruce Wasserstein, former chair of investment firm Lazard, was just listed for the first time since a brief stint on the market in 2010. Wasserstein, who died in 2009, was the brother of the late playwright Wendy Wasserstein. The 11-room, five-bedroom duplex atop the Rosario Candela-designed former Stanhope hotel was purchased by Ms. Wasserstein for $34.8 million in 2008, The Real Deal reports. In addition to five garden-like wraparound terraces crafted by landscape designer Madison Cox, “epic NYC views” and 72 linear feet of Central Park frontage, the full-service building offers top-drawer amenities like a gym and a spa. But does all of that add up to $65 million–$9,285 per square foot?

Get lost in the terraces and gardens overlooking Central Park

This charming pad comes from the top floor of 786 Washington Avenue, a 16-unit prewar co-op in Prospect Heights. Interior details include 11-foot ceilings, exposed brick, and hardwood flooring throughout. But the real perk is exclusive rights to the portion of the roof directly above the apartment, which is currently outfitted with a deck and custom bench seating. This appealing combo of indoor and outdoor space, plus the nice Brooklyn location, is on the market for $625,000.

This way for a tour

We may not think first of Bay Ridge when we think of barrel-fronted attached limestone row houses lining sun-dappled city blocks. But they do exist, and this one at 456 74th Street asking $1.575 million is a fine example. This turn-of-the-century townhouse is filled with meticulously restored original details like 10-foot ceilings, oak parquet floors with detailed inlaid borders, pocket doors and fluted oak columns while offering a modern kitchen and bath, basement family room and plenty of play space indoors and out.

Tour this Bay Ridge limestone

With the weather heating up and summer around the corner, it’s time to start drooling over private outdoor spaces up for sale. A deck, backyard and roof deck designed by a landscape architect adorn this Boerum Hill townhouse at 459 Pacific Street, now on the market for $2.996 million. The 19th-century townhouse was gut renovated into a modern owner’s triplex, with a separate one-bedroom apartment with its own entrance under the stoop. An open floorplan, built-in shelving, and fancy appliances complete the interior.

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Growing up at the turn of the century on the Lower East Side, which was then home to the Yiddish Rialto (the largest Yiddish theater in the world at the time), is how legendary Hollywood songwriter Irving Berlin was first exposed to music and theater. But later in life, he moved his family uptown, first to Sutton Place and then to 130 East End Avenue, an Emory Roth-designed co-op in Yorkville right across from Carl Schurz Park. He lived in the penthouse duplex, which biographer Laurence Bergreen described as “a formal, stately dwelling with impressive views of the East River,” from 1931 to 1944. Now, the still-stately and “One of a Kind” home has just hit the market for $7.9 million.

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This bright and airy co-op at 308 Mott Street in Noho may not have a 35-foot-long terrace,  but it is, as the listing says, both charming and efficient, with plenty of storage and enough room for a guest or two. The lovely tree-lined blocks that surround the building are home to elegant buildings both historic and new, and quaint shops, theaters and restaurants just far enough from the bustle of Soho. It’s an expensive enclave, home to celebrities galore, so the $550K ask makes this charming apartment seem like quite a find.

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Long Island City isn’t known as a neighborhood of historic townhomes–especially considering all the new development–but it does boast the impressive Hunters Point Historic District, lined with incredible residential architecture. One such building in the historic district is the Italianate townhouse at 21-20 45th Avenue built by developers Root and Rust in 1870. It’s now on the market for $3.5 million. According to the listing, the exterior use of Westchester stone–a durable sandstone resembling marble–“has allowed this and other townhouses along the row to survive almost 150 years looking almost as good as the day they were built.” Inside, there’s tin ceilings, marble mantels and exposed brick, as well as a sunroom that leads out to a truly incredible backyard.

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This cozy and chic one-bedroom co-op at 221 West 21st Street on a quiet and leafy Chelsea block may not boast a lot of square feet, but its well-curated design makes it feel more like a home than a tiny Manhattan apartment. It’s a success story we’ve seen over and over again; in this particular case, the home’s small-space makeover was the inspiration for successful designer-client matchup service Homepolish–the homeowner, a coder for Buzzfeed, went on to partner with the interior design company’s founder to help others find smart design solutions. The fifth-floor apartment is currently asking $750,000.

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