Katharine Hepburn's Historic Manhattan Townhouse Relisted for $6.2 Million
An exceptionally versatile leading lady famed for her Oscar-winning performances in Morning Glory, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, The Lion in Winter, and On Golden Pond, Katharine Hepburn acquired a five-story townhouse in Manhattan's Turtle Bay neighborhood in 1931 and lived there until she passed away in 2003.
Her estate sold the place around a year later for almost $4 million to the Astoria Property Group, which is linked to a family from Mexico. Now, a little more than two decades after her death at age 96, and after initially going up for sale in 2024 for $7.2 million, the residence has returned to the market for just under $6.2 million.
Originally built in the late 1890s but since restored and renovated, the 19-foot-wide structure has four bedrooms, three full bathrooms, and a powder room in roughly 4,500 square feet. Touted in marketing materials as the "epitome of New York glamour," the first floor showcases a stone-tiled entry foyer that flows to a kitchen with custom cabinetry, premium appliances, and a built-in breakfast table and banquette. A wine cooler-equipped butler's pantry connects to the fireside dining room, which opens to a 1,000-square-foot, bi-level flagstone patio and an irrigated garden with access to a private park shared by residents of the 20 surrounding townhouses.
Holding court on the second floor is a formal living room sporting a marble fireplace and a trio of French doors leading out to a Juliet balcony, plus a wet bar and a cozy library/media room. Occupying the third level is a primary suite with a fireplace, a walk-in closet/dressing room, and an updated bath as well as a mirrored vanity Hepburn herself had installed.
Another bedroom on the third floor currently serves as a sitting area and an office, while a restored carved-wood staircase ascends to a top floor that has two more bedrooms, each with its own bath and walk-in closet. Per the listing, held by Lisa Larson of Sotheby's International Realty, East Side Manhattan Brokerage, there's also a basement with a wine cellar.
Frequently revered for her "often-imitated voice filled with the vowels of a well-bred New Englander," Hepburn's big break came in 1932 with a starring role opposite John Barrymore in A Bill of Divorcement. The Connecticut-born actress, who went on to appear in 40-plus films throughout her lengthy career, also owned a home on Long Island Sound at the time of her death.
