Icon of California Modernism Listed For $25 Million

After 65 years in the hands of the same family, the Stahl House - also known as Case Study House #22 - has popped up on the market.

Credit: Tim Street-Porter | LA Conservancy

‘This is not merely a sale; it is a passing of responsibility - a search for the next custodian who will honour the house's history, respect its architectural purity and ensure its preservation for generations to come,’ the listing by The Agency real estate, says.

While the house is modest in scale - it contains just two bedrooms and comprises 2,200 sq ft - it is, in every sense of the word, an icon. It was built as part of the ‘Case Study’ house program, a challenge put forth by Arts & Architecture magazine in 1945 that tasked architects with devising elegant, low-cost homes to address postwar housing shortages. The Stahl residence, though, became the most famous.

Back in 1954, C.H. 'Buck' Stahl and his wife, Carlotta, doled out $13,500 for a small plot of land (0.29 acres) in Los Angeles replete with spectacular views from its lofty perch high above the Sunset Strip. In late 1957, after making a 3-D model of their dream home, the couple enlisted the ambitious and ingenious young architect Pierre Koenig to take on their project - the result being a daringly cantilevered glass-and-steel structure that reflects the geometry and symmetry of the gridded streets that stretch out below and what is probably one of the most recognizable homes in the world.

Considered one of the California-born designer’s most extraordinary works, the place has remained in the same family for over six decades. Now the pristine time capsule has popped up on the market for the first time at $25 million, with William Baker of The Agency Beverly Hills holding the listing (and where you can view lots more photos).

Here's a short video of the property...