Architect-Designed Homes Attract Sophisticated Buyers
Market for ‘Unique’ Residences Continues to Rise
BY JAN ERIC HORN
Special to the Business Journal
The architect-designed housing market has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry in Southern California, and the numbers are climbing each and every year.
Areas such as Solana Beach, Del Mar, La Jolla, Coronado, as well as Orange County, Pasadena and Montecito are attracting more and more buyers of architect-designed houses.
Buyers of architectural houses seem to be as unique as the houses they seek. Often, they are trying to find a specific style of house or a house designed by a specific architect. They usually want a house with a special architectural pedigree, or perhaps a modern house as a work of art, or a house of special historical significance.
They may be pursuing a “period” architectural style such as a Spanish Colonial Revival or Italianate or French Regency. Period houses designed by William Templeton Johnson, Tom Shepard, Edgar Ullrich, Richard Requa are treasured as masterworks in the architectural community.
This month, a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, the Storer House in Hollywood, sold for more than $3 million. The house is approximately 3,000 square feet, which makes the selling price over $1,000 per square foot. Compare this with the average sales price in the area of approximately $412 per square foot. Locally, a vintage Mediterranean home in La Jolla designed by William Templeton Johnson is available for $4.95 million as is Kenneth Bangs Kellogg’s “Yen” house for $3.20 million.
In Del Mar, a classic contemporary known as the “Blue Wall” house, designed by Ted Smith, is on the market for $1.59 million. A rambling ranch house in La Jolla, designed by Cliff May, is available for $2.59 million and a period Mediterranean by Richard Requa is available in Coronado for under $3 million. These houses are priced well above similar houses in their respective areas because of their architectural pedigrees.
– Homes Attract
Connoisseurs
Typically, those who seek modern architect-designed houses are people who seek architecture as art, and they are often seeking a house that can accommodate their art collections. These buyers usually require high ceilings and wall massing that can display their collections.
Buyers who pursue these houses are known as architectural buyers. They are a result of an educated populace with an increasing awareness of architecture, architects, and architectural styles.
San Diego architectural designer Wallace Cunningham, who draws upon an international clientele, says, “I try to tap into the psyche with unexpected manipulations of form and light, which are intended to be as sculptural as they are architectural.”
Cunningham’s most recent residential project is being showcased and exhibited at the Global Architecture Gallery in Tokyo.
Two separate events may account for the emergence of interest in these houses. One is the growing area of preservation of historic and architecturally significant houses by cities throughout the nation. This has put architecture, especially architectural styles, in the public limelight.
For example, the San Diego Historical Society has designated hundreds of structures as having landmark status. From Old Town’s Greek Revival buildings to stately Italianate homes in Mission Hills, architectural styles are contributing to the character and uniqueness of San Diego.
Look at the attention local museums are getting , the Museum of Art and related buildings in Balboa Park represent a period architecture (Spanish Colonial Revival and Mexican Churrigueresque) which has yet to be equaled anywhere in the nation.
In addition, architects themselves have become “starchitects,” attracting the attention of a public hungry for new and exciting designs and technological innovations. Architects such as Ken Ronchetti of San Diego are not only creating designs of consequence, they are spearheading an effort to enable their clients to live in houses which have new and advanced energy efficiencies and utilize state-of-the-art long-lasting materials.
For example, Ronchetti has designed houses that utilize zinc-covered roofing panels that have four times the life expectancy of a normal roof.
– San Diego Home To
Well-Known Architects
San Diego architects are emerging as some of the best the nation has to offer. After you see a house designed by Ken Ronchetti, Rob Wellington Quigley, Wallace Cunningham, Kendrick Bangs Kellogg, Don Edson, Island Architecture (Tony Crisafi, Drex Patterson), Ted Smith, James Brown, Studio E, Bocal & Sneed, Marc Tarasuck, Trip Bennett, Alex Freehauf, Laura DuCharme, and Allard Jantzen, it’s no wonder that buyers wait in line.
Of course, the functional requirements of our house are as important as ever, but as Frank Lloyd Wright said, “Give me the luxuries in life and I will gladly do without the necessities.”
One of Studio E Architects’ most recent projects is the Wedge House in Mission Hills, a superb example of a house as a work of art that seems to grow out of the very narrow hillside site it rests upon. As John Sheehan, one of the principals of the firm notes: “A beautiful home shouldn’t be the goal , it should be the product of a problem well solved.”
Many experts believe this firm is going to be leading the pack in creating a modern heritage of architecture and design in San Diego.
Buyers expect to pay more for an architectural house than a typical house of the same size and lot in the same neighborhood. For example, a Cunningham-designed house recently fetched the owner more than $1 million in profit from when they built the house a year earlier.
Generally, these houses are worth anywhere from 10 to 50 percent more because of their uniqueness and architectural distinction.
San Diego’s new crop of architects are creating a legacy of talent and design that is achieving worldwide attention.
– Residence Seen
As Work Of Art
What about sellers? Virtually all sellers have regarded their architectural houses in the same way that art collectors embrace their rare works of art. They are very aware of the uniqueness and stature of their house and the fact that it can never be built again.
It is truly one of a kind. As such, they expect to get a price for their house that reflects the stature of the architect as well as the style and distinction of the house itself.
These houses may take longer to sell than the average house (because they are more expensive and often quite unique architecturally) but sellers are typically prepared for this.
It’s also important to note that architects are not creating houses in a vacuum. Rather, they are engaging their clients in the full experience of having their dreams realized in a house, albeit as a work of art.
Architects and their clients unite to achieve the very best result possible under the guidelines of the client’s budget and functional parameters. The end result can be absolutely stunning.
Dale W. Combs, an award-winning San Diego architect has said “a house should provide more than comfort and protection , it should embrace the values, lifestyle and history of those who come to call it home.”
Architectural houses do that and more!
Horn is founder and executive director of the Architectural Properties division of Coldwell Banker.
