Joan Didion's UES Apartment Hits The Market: Report

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — For many, California native Joan Didion was a symbol of the Golden State.

But since 1988— and until her death in December 2021 — the late author had called the Upper East Side home.

That home can now be yours, reports Curbed, but at a premium that goes along with the unit's heritage.

The four-bedroom, four-and-a-half bathroom apartment at 30 East 71st St. was listed late last week by Sothebys International for a cool $7.5 million. Maintenance charges for the unit are a precise $8,002 a month.

For that price, aside from the imbued literary genius, the new owners will have a giant living room containing built-in shelves painted a pale blue and a wood-burning fireplace. In the back of the room lies a raised open library.

The south-facing kitchen features ample wood cabinets, two huge Viking ranges with a professional-looking vented hood, and a slightly dated hexagonal floor tiling.

In addition to a large dining room, the four bedrooms are all generously sized and have either direct or private access to a full bathroom.

The apartment even has central air.

Writers will also have their pick of space for a home office, as the unit contains a cozy den — with its own half-bathroom — as well as a staff room with a full bathroom off of the pantry.

With over 10 closets, there's plenty of space for outfits befitting the next great American author.

According to Curbed, Didion penned many books in Apartment 5A, including "The Year of Magical Thinking," whose opening scene of her late-husband's death occurred at the apartment's wet bar, and hosted many interviews from inside the apartment, which one New York Magazine writer described as "cavernous."

Oh, and the apartment only allows 50 percent financing, which means a minimum down payment of $3.75 million. For a bit more, you could nearly buy a three-bedroom unit two floors below in the same building (with a slightly different address), which is currently listed for $4.5 million.

That unit has been on the market for 134 days and had a nine percent price drop recently, but considering the amounts people paid at a Didion estate sale this past November, including $27,000 for her iconic sunglasses and $7,000 for a pile of seashell and pebbles, it's doubtful that apartment 5A will have trouble finding an interested buyer.

See the listing here and read Curbed's coverage of the listing here.