Los Angeles | $2.8 Million
A 1903 Craftsman house with four bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms, on a 0.2-acre lot
This house was built in 1903 for G.W.E. Griffith, the founder of several local banks, and moved to this lot in Highland Park in 1914. It has been designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument, with much of the facade and interior details intact and in good condition.
The property is within walking distance of a busy stretch of North Figueroa Street with a dumpling restaurant, a vintage furniture shop and Highland Park Bowl, a bowling alley and bar built in the 1920s. Downtown Los Angeles, Pasadena and Eagle Rock are all about 15 minutes away by car.
Size: 2,731 square feet
Price per square foot: $1,025
Indoors: A white picket fence separates the front yard from the street, and a paved path crosses the lawn to the steps that lead up to the wraparound porch.
The red front door opens into a foyer with hardwood floors, original woodwork and a grand staircase. To the left is the living room, which has walls painted a period-appropriate shade of green and more original woodwork. This space connects to another sitting room with built-in bookcases, a fireplace and access to a powder room.
To the right of the sitting room is a dining room with a fireplace, a built-in window seat and built-in cabinetry. This room has direct access to the kitchen, which has black-and-white checkerboard floors and updated appliances. A laundry room with a dog-washing station is off this space.
All four bedrooms are on the second floor. The primary suite includes a large bedroom, a covered balcony facing the side yard and an updated bathroom with green-tile walls, a walk-in shower and a separate soaking tub.
The guest room across the hall also has an en suite bathroom. Two more bedrooms, facing the street, share a balcony and a bathroom off the hall; one of the bedrooms, used as a home office, has a bay of windows looking out into the trees.
Outdoor space: The fenced backyard, landscaped with mature trees, is reached from a door in the laundry room. It includes a patio for dining and a pool with space for lounge chairs around it. The carport, accessible through the rear alley, has two parking spots.
Taxes: $35,004 (estimated, but the home is eligible for reduced property taxes under the Mills Act)
Contact: Liz Cappola, Compass, 847-826-4885; compass.com
San Rafael | $2.749 Million
A 1928 Mediterranean-style house with four bedrooms and three bathrooms, on a 0.4-acre lot
This house, on the market for the first time in 40 years, is in the quiet, tree-lined Dominican neighborhood, named for its proximity to Dominican University of California, a private Catholic school founded in 1890. It is half a mile from the Marin Tennis Club and from Marin Shakespeare Company, with its outdoor amphitheater.
Downtown San Rafael is less than a five-minute drive; from there, public transit offers connections to the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport and to the ferry in Larkspur. Driving into San Francisco takes about half an hour; driving to Napa takes about 45 minutes.
Size: 3,507 square feet
Price per square foot: $784
Indoors: A path runs from the street through the manicured front yard up to the entrance, where an intricately carved wood door opens into a foyer with Spanish-tile floors.
To the right is an expansive living room with high, beamed ceilings, a fireplace and a wrought-iron chandelier and sconces. Off this space is a sunroom with a stone fountain and glass doors that open to the pool area.
To the left of the foyer is a dining room connected by a short hallway to the kitchen, which has stainless steel appliances, original cabinets and access to a breakfast room with built-in shelving. A guest room with an en suite bathroom and a garage converted into a family room are also in this part of the house.
From the foyer, a staircase with a wrought-iron railing leads up to the second floor. The primary suite, at the top of the stairs, has a walk-in closet and dressing area and a bathroom with the original pink-and-black tiling. Two more bedrooms are on the opposite side of this level, each big enough to hold a queen-size bed and a desk; they share a hallway bathroom with a walk-in shower that has frosted-glass walls.
Outdoor space: The backyard has several spots for dining and lounging, including a wood deck behind the house and a flagstone patio facing the swimming pool. On the other side of the pool is a grassy yard surrounded by neat hedges, with a stone fountain at the center.
Taxes: $34,368 (estimated)
Contact: Susan Coleman, Coldwell Banker Realty, 415-378-2350; marinhomeproperties.com
Cambria | $2.75 Million
A midcentury-modern house with three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms, on a 0.3-acre lot
This 1959 house is in the hills of Cambria, with views of the Pacific Ocean and easy access to Fiscalini Ranch Preserve, a 400-plus-acre expanse of open space with hiking trails winding along the coast. It is less than a 10-minute drive from the coffee shops and wine-tasting rooms on Main Street and about 15 minutes from Hearst Castle, in San Simeon.
Driving south along the coast to San Luis Obispo takes about 40 minutes. Santa Barbara is about two and a half hours away. Heading north to San Jose takes about three hours.
Size: 2,100 square feet
Price per square foot: $1,310
Indoors: A driveway leads from the street to the front of the house. A wood front door with a stained-glass inset opens into a small entry area that flows into an airy living room with glass walls, white-painted wood ceilings, a double-sided fireplace and access to a powder room with a washer and dryer. Around the corner is a sunny sitting room with access to the backyard and space for a home-office setup.
The kitchen, at the center of the house, has custom-made Sapele wood cabinetry, Carrara marble counters and stainless steel appliances, including a Viking range and a Sub-Zero refrigerator. Adjacent to the kitchen is a sunken dining room with high ceilings, a Venetian glass chandelier and more floor-to-ceiling windows.
The primary suite is also in this part of the house, with a bedroom that has enough space for a king-size bed; a bathroom with a shower lined in mosaic tile and a separate soaking tub; and a double-sided fireplace between the two rooms.
Two more bedrooms are off the sitting room, behind mahogany sliding doors. One is used as a home office; the other has an en suite bathroom.
Outdoor space: The backyard, accessible through sliding-glass doors in the sitting room, is enclosed by an iron fence lined with mature bamboo. The adjoining lot is part of the property, allowing for the possibility of expansion or the construction of a guesthouse. The attached garage holds two cars.
Taxes: $34,380 (estimated)
Contact: Laura McKinney and Allison Hackett, Central Coast Sotheby’s International Realty, 805-235-0457; sothebysrealty.com
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