Katharine Hepburn‘s beloved Turtle Bay townhouse has finally found a buyer.
The 19-foot-wide home at 244 East 49th Street, where the four-time Oscar winner lived from 1931 until her death in 2003, went into contract on Oct. 20 with an asking price of $6,195,000, according to StreetEasy.
That’s about $2.3 million more than her estate got when it sold the house for $3.9 million in 2004, and about $1 million less than the $7.2 million it first asked when it hit the market in May 2024.
After a 2025 price cut, a few months off the market and a relaunch in March, the house is finally on its way to a new owner.
Six fireplaces and Hepburn’s original vanity
Built in 1899, the four-story townhouse spans about 4,560 square feet, with 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms and six fireplaces.
Here’s what’s inside:
- A primary suite with a wood-burning fireplace, three floor-to-ceiling windows and Hepburn’s original mirrored vanity, still in place
- A spa-style bathroom with a claw-foot soaking tub and double sinks
- A living room with 11-foot ceilings and a Juliet balcony
- A formal dining room with an original marble hearth
- An eat-in kitchen with a Thermador six-burner range, a butler’s pantry and a wine cooler
- A sunlit library, plus a wine cellar
- A 1,000-square-foot south-facing garden with a fountain, a rarity in Midtown
A private garden once shared with Bob Dylan
The townhouse is part of Turtle Bay Gardens, a private enclave of 20 homes whose backyards open onto a shared communal garden.
Its past residents read like a culture syllabus: Bob Dylan, Stephen Sondheim, E.B. White and Mary Tyler Moore all called it home at one point.
Hepburn bought the house in 1931 with her then-husband and stayed for more than 70 years.
The neighborhood never forgot her. A nearby garden at Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza was renamed the Katharine Hepburn Garden in 1997, and her block of East 49th Street was co-named Katharine Hepburn Place in 2003.
Can you see it?
You can walk past the townhouse’s facade on East 49th Street between Second and Third avenues, but the communal garden behind it is private.
For a Hepburn-themed stroll, pair it with the Katharine Hepburn Garden at Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza, just a short walk east.
The final sale price will become public once the deal closes, and we’ll be keeping an eye on whether Hepburn’s old home goes for its full asking price.
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