Horror Author Peter Straub Sells His Historic UWS Townhouse for $7M
When he put his Upper West Side townhouse on the market for $8.2 million in April, 6sqft wrote: “With accolades like the Bram Stoker Award, the World Fantasy Award, and the International Horror Guild Award to his name, one might proceed with caution when entering the home of American author and poet Peter Straub.” But as we discovered, the Queen Anne-style home is anything but scary. Rather, it’s a historically preserved masterpiece with rich colors, tasteful furnishings, and plenty of character. And now, according to city records, it’s sold for $7,050,000, after Peter and his wife Susan called the residence at 53 West 85th Street home for 30 years.
The five-story home is one of a row of three brick townhouses built in the 1880s between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue. The asymmetrical facade has a pitched gable roof, bay windows, and decorative wrought iron railings. Inside, the historic details continue with a stained glass skylight above the carved wooden staircase, original wood shutters, six unique decorative fireplaces, an original butler’s pantry with china cabinet and marble basin and moldings galore.
The eat-in kitchen has floor-to-ceiling windows and access to the beautiful landscaped garden.
Technically the house has six bedrooms, but some are currently configured as additional living spaces and offices, making this 4,800-square-foot home quite versatile.
It seems selling townhouses has become quite the family affair: Peter and Susan’s daughter Emma Straub, also a novelist, recently listed her whimsical Prospect Lefferts Gardens townhouse for $1.85 million.
[Listing: 53 West 85th Street by JoAnne Kennedy and Nell Winslow of the Corcoran Group]
RELATED:
- Famed Author Peter Straub’s UWS Townhouse on the Market for First Time in Thirty Years
- Brooklyn Author Lists Whimsical Prospect Lefferts Gardens Townhouse for $1.85M
- Wine-Making Artists Called This $6.8M UWS Townhouse Home for Over 50 Years
Photos courtesy of the Corcoran Group
