🔗 Share this article

The celebrated Stahl house, a quintessential example of mid-century modern architectural design, is up for sale for the initial occasion in its whole history.

This suspended dwelling, perched in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood, was listed on the listings this recent week. The price tag stands at an impressive $25 million.

Family Decision to Part With

The Stahl family, who have owned the property for its full 65-year timeline, shared a announcement regarding their resolution to sell. They noted that the house had become increasingly challenging to maintain.

"This residence has been the core of our lives for a long time, but as we’ve gotten older, it has become increasingly challenging to care for it with the attention and energy it so truly merits," wrote the descendants of the original owners.

They added that the time had arrived to find a new "guardian" for the house – "an individual who not only values its architectural significance but also understands its place in the cultural history of Los Angeles and further afield."

Humble Inception

The inception of the Stahl house date to May 1954, when the original owners acquired a sloped patch of land in the then undeveloped Hollywood Hills neighborhood for $13,500.

Despite the Stahl house evolving into a renowned icon of the city, the residents often emphasized that "no celebrities ever lived here," characterizing themselves as a "working-class family living in a luxury house."

Architectural Undertaking

The initial design for the Stahl house was created during the summer months of 1956. However, many architects were initially hesitant to build it on the difficult hillside.

In November 1957, the Stahls met with architect Pierre Koenig, who decided to accept the challenge. With assistance from the prominent Case Study program, pioneered by a leading magazine editor, the Stahls received support to commission Koenig.

The progressive program "focused on experimentation" and "using new building materials and constructing in places that maybe earlier the technology didn’t really enable," remarked an specialist from a city conservancy. "All these elements are integrated into a place like the Stahl house, which was innovative, progressive and unimaginable in terms of how it was constructed on that plot that everyone else believed, at the time, was not feasible."

Completion and Famous Impact

The Stahl house became Case Study house No. 22, and construction started in May 1959. According to the family, construction totaled "a mere $37,500" and the home was completed by May 1960. The outcome was "an idealized version of what everyone imagines LA is and should be," the expert noted.

Soon after completion, a famous architectural photographer took what is arguably the most famous picture of the home. Taken through the full-length glass windows, the photograph shows two women positioned in the home’s living room but appearing to float over the Los Angeles skyline.

"I think the lasting impact of that photograph is due to the way it expresses an idea about residing in Los Angeles, an duality about being both metropolitan and detached from it," said a head of an architectural company and adjunct professor at a major university.

Historic Designation

The home has made notable cameos in movies, TV and videos, including several famous titles from the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In 1999, the city recognized the Stahl house a heritage site, and in 2013, the house was added as a conserved building on the National Register of Historic Places.

Coming Custodianship

The home is still open for tours, as it has been for the past 17 years, although all slots are currently fully booked through February. In their statement announcing the sale, the family stated they would give "ample notice" before discontinuing the tours.

The sales details for the home highlights finding a purchaser who will conserve the character of the space.

"For connoisseurs of design, advocates of building, or organizations seeking to preserve an national treasure, there is simply nothing comparable," the listing say. "This goes beyond a transaction; it is a transfer of stewardship – a search for the next steward who will respect the house’s history, value its design integrity, and guarantee its conservation for posterity."

The authority agreed that the choice of new owner would be a vital one, given the home’s past.

"In my view any time a long-term steward, and a stewardship like this, is being sold of a home like this, it always creates a little bit of a pause – because you never know what the next owner, what their aims will be. And will they comprehend and appreciate the house, as in this particular case the Stahl family has?"