CSC Real Estate Contracts to Buy Episcopal Center

The New York investment firm is in contract for the 12-story building at 815 Second Avenue, with terms undisclosed.

Updated on Nov. 12, 2026 in Commercial

Flat vector editorial illustration of a tall mid-century office tower with repeating window bands and a bare flagpole against a pale sky. — The New York investment firm CSC Real Estate is in contract to buy the 12-story Episcopal Church Center at 815 Second Avenue, with terms undisclosed. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

CSC Real Estate, a New York-based investment firm that specializes in residential conversions, is in contract to buy the Episcopal Church Center at 815 Second Avenue. A CSC spokesperson confirmed the pending transaction, but the financial terms and the developer's plans for the site were not disclosed.

Why it matters

The Episcopal Church has occupied the building since its completion in the 1960s, and church leadership began weighing a sale in 2012 while planning to relocate its headquarters. Post-pandemic remote work policies have left the building largely vacant, and the sale would change how the property is used in Midtown East.

CSC's recent Lower Manhattan acquisition at 75 Maiden Lane and 13 Gold Street was priced at $45.2 million in October 2025, a figure the firm has not linked to this deal. The price and conversion plans for 815 Second Avenue remain undisclosed.

The players

CSC Real Estate

A New York-based investment firm specializing in residential conversions of commercial buildings, which is now in contract to acquire the Episcopal Church Center.

Episcopal Church

The Protestant denomination whose New York headquarters has occupied 815 Second Avenue since the 1960s and which is planning to relocate.

Denham Wolf Real Estate Services

A real estate brokerage engaged by the landlord to market the 12-story building for sale.

The details

Church leaders began testing the market for a sale in June, and the landlord engaged Denham Wolf Real Estate Services to market the building. The Real Deal first reported the in-contract deal, and the church plans to keep operating on one floor until it finds a new headquarters.

2012: Church leadership began contemplating a sale, citing plans to relocate its headquarters.
1960s: The building was completed and the Episcopal Church began occupying it.
June 2026: Church leaders began testing the market for a sale.
October 2025: CSC acquired the 75 Maiden Lane and 13 Gold Street assemblage for $45.2 million.
November 12, 2026: CSC's contract to buy 815 Second Avenue was reported.

Industry Dynamics

The sale follows a wave of office-to-residential conversions in Manhattan after remote work reduced demand for office space, and CSC's Midtown East and Murray Hill projects show the firm is part of that trend. Whether this building follows the same path will depend on the developer's plans, which have not been disclosed.

For New Yorkers, the sale could change the use of a largely vacant Midtown East tower into housing, which would affect the neighborhood's residential supply. Residents near Second Avenue and East 43rd Street should watch for any filings or announcements about the developer's plans.

The takeaway

Vacant office buildings in New York are increasingly being sold for residential conversion, and this deal is a useful signal of how that market is moving. Readers tracking the city's housing supply should follow the developer's plans once they are announced.