Sunme

Sunlight Living Score

152 W 71st St

New York, NY 10023 · 4-Story Brownstone Row House

60out of 100

⛅ Good

Report Date: March 7, 2026 · ID: SLS-2026-DRY-001

Coordinates: 40.78°N, 73.98°W · 4 bed / 3 bath

Upper West Side, Manhattan

Overall Score

60/100

Overall Score

⛅

Good

4.8h

Avg Sun Hours

N / S

Orientation

Good light — with seasonal awareness. This property delivers solid sunlight through its south-facing rear exposure, but the dense urban setting and row-house layout create meaningful limitations. Smart room usage and a focus on the rear living spaces will help you make the most of the available natural light.

Score Breakdown

Category	Score	Max	Rating
Sun Hours Per Day Seasonal Average (WSA 4.8 h)	18	/ 25	Good
Shadow Obstruction Urban Canyon Analysis	6	/ 15	Significant
Room Orientation Window Facing Direction	15	/ 15	South rear
Direct vs. Indirect Light Exposure Quality	5	/ 10	Mixed
Morning Light Quality Bedrooms	2	/ 10	Poor
Work-Area Brightness Home Office	7	/ 10	Adequate
Outdoor Space Usability Rear Garden	4	/ 10	Limited
Winter Darkness Risk Latitude Factor	3	/ 5	Moderate
Total Sunlight Living Score	60	/ 100	Good

Seasonal Sunlight

Estimated direct sun hours at the property, factoring in surrounding building obstructions. The dashed line shows the Weighted Seasonal Average (WSA), which weights winter and fall more heavily as the “stress test” for sunlight livability.

Winter

Day: 9h 18m

Max elev: 25.8°

Weight: 30 %

Spring

Day: 12h 14m

Max elev: 49.2°

Weight: 20 %

Summer

Day: 15h 09m

Max elev: 72.7°

Weight: 20 %

Fall

Day: 12h 15m

Max elev: 49.2°

Weight: 30 %

Sunrise Azimuth by Season

Winter: 122° SE

Equinox: 90° E

Summer: 58° NE

Shadow & Obstruction Analysis

Shadow patterns at three key times of day. In a production report, these would include Shadowmap screenshots showing building shadows across the property.

Morning9:00 AM

Street-side in shadow; rear catching first direct rays above the 70th St roofline

Midday12:00 PM

Rear facade and upper garden in direct sun; front still shaded by north-side buildings

Afternoon3:00 PM

Upper rear still lit; garden begins to lose direct sun as western neighbors cast shadow

Obstruction Detail

North (Front / Street)

5-story residential buildings across W 71st St (~15 – 18 m tall, ~18 m away). Block all direct southern sun from reaching the front facade. Only upper floors get indirect sky light from this direction.

South (Rear / Garden)

Buildings along W 70th St (~15 m tall, ~20 m behind garden). Cast significant shadows in winter when sun elevation is below 26°. In summer the high sun angle (73°) clears them easily.

East & West (Party Walls)

Shared party walls with adjacent brownstones eliminate all side windows. No east or west light enters the home, which is the primary reason morning and evening direct sun scores are low.

Livability Insights

Here’s what this score means for your daily life in this home:

“This Upper West Side brownstone earns a solid “Good” sunlight rating thanks to its south-facing rear rooms and garden, which capture the best available light even in a dense urban setting. Your living spaces at the back of the house will feel noticeably brighter than the street-facing rooms.

“The biggest challenge is the typical NYC row-house layout: party walls on both sides eliminate east and west windows entirely, making morning wake-up light virtually nonexistent in bedrooms. If natural morning light matters to you, consider using a dawn-simulation alarm.

“Shadow obstruction is significant — buildings on W 70th Street behind you and across 71st Street in front limit sky exposure, especially in winter when the sun stays below 26° elevation. Upper-floor rooms (3rd and 4th floors) perform meaningfully better than the garden level.

“The rear garden is a genuine asset despite its compact size. In summer, the near-vertical sun angle clears most neighboring shadows, giving you 5 – 7 hours of direct light for outdoor dining and planting from May through September.

Recommendations

Actionable tips to maximize your enjoyment of this property’s sunlight:

Prioritize rear rooms for living

Set up your primary living space, home office, and main gathering area in the south-facing rear rooms. These receive 3 – 7 hours of direct sunlight depending on season — dramatically more than the north-facing front parlor.

Upper floors for bedrooms

Bedrooms on the 3rd or 4th floor receive more sky exposure and indirect morning light than lower floors. While no room gets direct eastern sunrise light (party walls block it), higher floors benefit from reflected light off surrounding buildings.

Maximize the rear garden

Your south-facing garden is your sunlight sweet spot. Consider light-colored paving and walls to reflect and amplify available light. Avoid tall plantings on the south side that would shade the garden further.

Winter light strategy

At 40.8°N latitude, winter days are just 9 h 18 m long. During December and January, the rear rooms will get only about 3 hours of direct sun. Use full-spectrum task lighting and keep south-facing windows clear of heavy curtains to maximize every available photon.

Consider a skylight

A roof skylight on the 4th floor would dramatically improve natural light in the core of the home, bypassing the urban canyon effect entirely. Even a small 2×4 ft skylight can transform an interior stairwell or bathroom.

Go Deeper

Want more detail? Upgrade your analysis.

Your Sunlight Living Score gives you the essentials. For hourly simulations, energy recommendations, and expert consultation, explore our premium reports.

Full Sun BlueprintPopular

$149 / report

Everything in Living Score

Hourly light simulation, all seasons

Energy efficiency recommendations

Landscaping impact analysis

30-min expert consultation

Developer Pro

$399 / report

Everything in Full Sun Blueprint

Up to 5 properties or lots

Construction plan integration

2 consultation calls included

Methodology & Disclaimer

This report was generated as part of a dry-run validation of the Sunme Sunlight Living Score workflow. The property at 152 W 71st St, New York, NY 10023 was analyzed using the following free tools:

SunCalc.org — Sunrise/sunset times, day length, and maximum sun elevation for all four solstice/equinox dates
Sunrise-Sunset API — Precise UTC sunrise/sunset times converted to local timezone
Google Maps (satellite & 3D knowledge) — Building orientation, surrounding structure heights, street width, obstruction analysis
Shadowmap.org (free tier, attempted) — Shadow visualization for today’s date
Astronomical formulas — Shadow length calculations, sunrise azimuth by season

All 8 scoring categories follow the Sunme Scoring Methodology v1.0 (March 2026). Consistency cross-checks were applied and all passed.

Disclaimer: This analysis is based on publicly available data and remote assessment. Actual on-site sunlight conditions may vary due to factors not visible in satellite imagery, including interior layout, window sizes, recent construction, and vegetation changes.

Sunme

Report ID: SLS-2026-DRY-001 · Generated: March 7, 2026 · sunme.nanocorp.app
© 2026 Sunme. All data is provided for informational purposes. Actual sunlight conditions may vary.