Palm Springs | $1.399 million
A three-bedroom, two-bath midcentury-modern house from 1958 on a quarter acre
This house, designed by the architects Dan Palmer and William Krisel and built by the Alexander Construction Company, retains many of its original details from 1958, including a stone fireplace and tongue-and-groove wood ceilings. The in-ground saltwater swimming pool is a more recent addition. The home, which has been used as a vacation rental, is available fully furnished.
Palm Springs International Airport is about a mile away. The shops along Palm Canyon Drive, many of which specialize in midcentury furnishings, are within a 10-minute drive. Joshua Tree National Park is 50 minutes east, and Los Angeles is two hours west.
Size: 1,674 square feet
Price per square foot: $836
Indoors: The house sits behind a semicircular driveway, with a paved path leading to the canary-yellow front door. The open-plan living area has polished-concrete floors, a gas fireplace with a stone surround, and glass doors facing the patio and pool outside. Through a wide arched doorway is another sitting area with a street-facing window on one side and pool-facing doors on the other.
A classic midcentury Sputnik light fixture hangs above the dining area. The updated kitchen has quartz counters and stainless steel appliances, including a wine fridge.
Turning left from the front door leads to the bedroom wing, with all three bedrooms off the same hallway. The bedroom closest to the kitchen has a long window overlooking the desert-inspired landscaping in the front yard. Across the hall is the guest bathroom, which has a walk-in shower lined with square tiles.
The primary bedroom has an en suite bath with a combined tub and shower and direct access to the patio and pool via sliding-glass doors. Another guest room is at the farthest end of the hall. A closet holds a stacked washer and dryer.
Outdoor space: The pool is surrounded by a paved deck with ample space for outdoor dining and socializing, a gas fire pit, a gas grill and views of the San Jacinto Mountains. Palm trees stand in one corner of the yard. The driveway can hold three cars.
Costs: $17,484 a year in taxes (estimated)
Contact: Henry Blackham, Maureen Erbe and Bonnie Matthews, Compass, 626-825-2919, 626-622-1112 or 323-697-0687; Erbeblackham.com
Los Angeles | $1.399 million
A three-bedroom, two-bath ranch-style house from 1947 on 0.2 acres
This house, built in 1947 and renovated in 2022, sits on a quiet, tree-lined street in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles. The house is about 10 minutes from the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area, which offers an 18-hole public golf course, archery and other activities. The Sherman Oaks Galleria — name-checked in the Frank Zappa song “Valley Girl” and today an open-air shopping and dining hub — is a five-minute drive.
The Getty Center, which includes the J. Paul Getty Museum, is less than 15 minutes away by car. Beverly Hills is about 30 minutes away and Downtown Los Angeles about 45.
Size: 1,425 square feet
Price per square foot: $982
Indoors: A paved path leads through the front yard to a Dutch door that opens to the sunny living room, where the original hardwood floors were refinished as part of the recent remodel. The fireplace, also original, has a white brick surround. Around the corner, a dining area is open to the kitchen, which has new appliances including a gas stove and a Fisher & Paykel dishwasher. The countertops are quartz and the floor tiles were imported from Italy.
A hallway off the kitchen links all three bedrooms. At the far end, the primary suite fits a king-size bed, and sliding-glass doors open to the rear deck. The primary bathroom has a shower with tempered glass walls and a separate soaking tub.
Across the hall, a spacious guest room is used by the sellers as a home office, with space for three desks and windows facing the side yard. Another guest room is currently set up as a nursery. The bathroom has a walk-in shower and a custom-made double vanity with a marble counter.
Outdoor space: The deck, accessible via the primary suite and kitchen, has stairs down to a paved patio, with an outdoor dining area on one side of the house and a fire pit on the other. Citrus trees are planted in the backyard. The attached garage holds two cars.
Costs: $17,484 a year in taxes (estimated)
Contact: Dennis Chernov and Sarrah Gallegos, The Agency, 818-269-3222; theagency.com
Berkeley | $1.349 million
A three-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bath Craftsman-style house from 1926 with a detached studio, on 0.1 acres
In Berkeley’s Westbrae neighborhood, this house is a short walk from an array of eating and drinking options: Headlands Brewing and Coffee Conscious are on nearby Gilman Street, while Hopkins Street is home to a sushi bar, a pizzeria and an organic market. A public pool is half a mile away, as is Cedar Rose Park, which has a lawn for picnicking and a playground.
The North Berkeley BART station is less than a mile away, and the University of California, Berkeley, is three miles southeast. Oakland is a 30-minute trip via public transit, and San Francisco, on BART, is 40 minutes away.
Size: 2,119 square feet
Price per square foot: $637
Indoors: The front yard is landscaped with drought-tolerant plants, and through it a red brick path leads to the front stoop.
The living room has a reading nook and a fireplace with a red brick surround and simple white mantel. A picture window looks out at the cactuses in the front yard. Hardwood floors continue through a doorway into the dining room.
A staircase divides the dining room and the kitchen, which has a breakfast bar and a backsplash of earth-toned tiles. Off the kitchen is a combined laundry room and pantry with built-in shelves, along with a powder room and stairs down to the basement.
Two bedrooms are on this level, linked by a short corridor between the living and dining rooms. The primary bedroom is at the front of the house, with a street-facing window and a closet, and the smaller bedroom fits a queen-size bed. The bathroom, between the two bedrooms, has marble floors and a combined shower and deep bathtub.
The third bedroom is lofted above the main level, with barreled ceilings and high-set windows.
Outdoor space: As in the front yard, the wraparound garden is landscaped with succulents. A gravel path links the main house and a detached studio, which the sellers use as a family room and home office. A gate designed by a local artist separates the patio from the driveway, which has two parking spots.
Costs: $16,860 a year in taxes (estimated)
Contact: Roxanna Ahlbach and Ann Arriola Plant, Red Oak Realty, 415-609-9397; redoakrealty.com
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