Pasadena | $1.64 Million
A 1949 midcentury-modern house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms, on a 0.2-acre lot
A midcentury architect named Lawrence Test designed this house for a plywood company executive, using a notable amount of plywood in its construction. The grounds were designed by Garrett Eckbo, a pioneer of modern landscape design. The home, which has been owned by the same family for five decades, is about five minutes from the Rose Bowl and the hiking trails of Upper Arroyo Park.
Occidental College is 15 minutes away. Driving to downtown Los Angeles takes half an hour.
Size: 1,737 square feet
Price per square foot: $944
Indoors: Wide concrete stairs lead from the street to the main entry. The front door opens into a living room with oak parquet floors, mahogany-lined walls, large windows, a built-in desk and a fireplace with a brick hearth.
Up two steps is a dining room with more mahogany walls. A swinging door and a pass-through window link this space to a kitchen with original linoleum floors, stainless steel counters, bright orange accents and access to a covered porch.
A ramp connects the dining room to a long hallway leading to the bedrooms. The primary bedroom has a built-in vanity and an en suite bathroom with an original bathtub. Next door is a guest bathroom with a shower. One of the guest rooms has a built-in desk; both have access to a playroom with cork floors, large windows and a door to a patio.
Outdoor space: In addition to the porch off the kitchen and the patio off the playroom, the property has an in-ground swimming pool behind the house. There are four parking spots: one in an attached garage, another in a carport and two more in the driveway.
Taxes: $20,496 (estimated, but the home is eligible for reduced property taxes under the Mills Act)
Contact: Brian Linder, The Value of Architecture, Compass, 310-592-5417; thevalueofarchitecture.com
Albany | $1.695 Million
A renovated 1922 Mediterranean-style house with four bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms, on a 0.1-acre lot
This house is half a mile from Solano Avenue, the city’s main thoroughfare, and Jewel’s Terrace Park, which has a playground, tennis courts and a lawn for picnicking. It is a 10-minute walk from a Safeway supermarket and 15 minutes from Monterey Market, which sells locally grown fruits and vegetables.
The North Berkeley BART station and several well-ranked public schools are five minutes away by car. Driving to downtown Oakland or the University of California, Berkeley campus takes about 20 minutes. San Francisco is 45 minutes away. San Jose is a little more than an hour’s drive.
Size: 1,966 square feet
Price per square foot: $862
Indoors: A brick path leads to the covered entry, which has Spanish-style tile floors.
The living-and-dining area is downstairs, reached from a staircase in the foyer. It has beamed ceilings, a fireplace with a green tile surround and two sets of French doors that open to a patio.
The dining space has a wrought-iron chandelier and is partially open to a kitchen with white cabinetry, travertine counters and access to a powder room.
All four bedrooms are upstairs, reached from the stairs in the foyer. The primary bedroom has a walk-in closet, French doors that open to a long balcony overlooking the patio, and an en suite bathroom with a walk-in shower and a separate soaking tub.
The bedroom next door and one at the opposite end of the hall are large enough to hold a king-size bed. The smallest guest room currently holds a desk and a daybed. All three guest rooms share a bathroom with a combined tub and shower.
Outdoor space: The patio is surrounded by bougainvillea, rose and dahlia bushes, and has a fountain at the far end that anchors the seating area. The attached garage holds one car; there is room to park another in the driveway.
Taxes: $21,192 (estimated)
Contact: Mykah Larkins and Tracy Sichterman, Berkeley Hills Realty, 510-520-6692 or 510-520-0076; berkhills.com
Monterey | $1.699 Million
A renovated 1973 house with three bedrooms and three bathrooms, on a 0.3-acre lot
This house is on a quiet, tree-lined street within a 10-minute drive of public elementary, middle and high schools. It is also about 10 minutes from the center of the city, Old Fisherman’s Wharf and the Monterey Bay beaches, popular for spotting seals, sea lions and sea otters. The Pebble Beach golf courses and Palo Corona Regional Park, where hiking trails offer sweeping ocean views, are less than 15 minutes away.
Carmel Valley, a winemaking hub, is half an hour away. Driving to San Francisco or Oakland takes about two hours. Sacramento is three hours away.
Size: 2,210 square feet
Price per square foot: $769
Indoors: Exterior stairs ascend from the driveway to the front door.
To the right of the foyer is a living room with a fireplace, built-in cabinetry, a wet bar and a picture window overlooking the front yard and the street below. To the left is a dining room with another street-facing window. This space is open to a kitchen with a double oven, a wine refrigerator, a center island with an integrated gas cooktop, a stacked washer and dryer hidden behind cabinet doors, and glass doors that open to a deck.
Two bedrooms are on this level, off a hallway extending from the foyer. The primary suite has carpeted floors, a bathroom with a double vanity and combined tub and shower, and sliding-glass doors that open to a patio. The bedroom across the hall has a wood-paneled accent wall and an en suite bathroom with a windowed tub and shower.
The third bedroom and bathroom are on the lower level, reached from stairs in the foyer. A carpeted den is also on this level.
Outdoor space: The deck off the kitchen, used by the sellers for grilling and dining, steps down to one of several patios. Another, currently holding a fire pit and chairs, is at the back of the wide, grassy yard, which has mature landscaping. The attached garage holds two cars.
Taxes: $21,240 (estimated)
Contact: J.R. Rouse II, Sotheby’s International Realty, Pacific Grove Brokerage, 831-277-3464; sothebysrealty.com
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