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The renowned Stahl house, a quintessential example of modernist architectural design, is currently listed for the very first time in its whole history.

This cantilevered dwelling, nestled in the Hollywood Hills, was listed on the market this past week. The listing price stands at an impressive $25 million.

Owners Move to Sell

The Stahl family, who have held title to the home for its complete 65-year timeline, issued a statement regarding their decision to sell. They expressed that the house had grown excessively demanding to maintain.

"This house has been the center of our lives for many years, but as we’ve grown older, it has become progressively harder to maintain it with the care and energy it so rightfully warrants," stated the children of the original owners.

They further stated that the period had come to find a new "custodian" for the house – "a person who not only appreciates its architectural importance but also understands its place in the cultural landscape of LA and beyond."

Humble Origins

The origins of the Stahl house trace back to May 1954, when the initial owners bought a sloped patch of land in the previously undeveloped Hollywood Hills district for $13,500.

Despite the Stahl house becoming a famous symbol of the city, the residents often pointed out that "nobody famous ever lived here," characterizing themselves as a "working-class family living in a white-collar house."

Design Feat

The original design for the Stahl house was conceived during the warm season of 1956. However, many architects were originally wary to construct it on the difficult hillside.

In November 1957, the owners interviewed architect Pierre Koenig, who agreed to undertake the task. With support from the prominent Case Study program, pioneered by a leading magazine editor, the owners received support to hire Koenig.

The contemporary program "was about innovation" and "employing new resources and constructing in sites that maybe before the engineering didn’t really permit," commented an expert from a city preservation society. "All those things are combined into a property like the Stahl house, which was innovative, modern and inconceivable in terms of how it was constructed on that location that everyone else believed, at the time, was not feasible."

Realization and Famous Impact

The Stahl house was assigned Case Study house No. 22, and work 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 "a perfect representation of what everyone thinks LA is and should be," the authority noted.

Soon after the build ended, a celebrated architectural photographer shot what is arguably the most iconic photograph of the home. Taken through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, the photograph features two women sitting in the home’s living room but seeming to hover over the city skyline.

"In my opinion the long-standing effect of that photo is due to the way it expresses an idea about residing in Los Angeles, an ambivalence about being both in the city and detached from it," said a principal of an architectural company and educator at a leading university.

Historic Status

The home has made historic features in cinema, broadcast and promos, including several famous titles from the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In 1999, the city declared the Stahl house a protected monument, and in 2013, the house was listed as a conserved building on the National Register of Historic Places.

Future Custodianship

The home continues to be open for public viewings, as it has been for the previous 17 years, although all tours are currently reserved through February. In their release announcing the sale, the family said they would give "plenty of advance notice" before ending the tours.

The property description for the home highlights finding a new owner who will preserve the spirit of the space.

"For enthusiasts of style, patrons of design, or entities seeking to protect an national treasure, there is simply nothing comparable," the listing read. "This is not merely a transaction; it is a handover of custody – a quest for the next guardian who will honor the house’s legacy, value its original vision, and guarantee its preservation for future generations."

The specialist concurred that the choice of buyer would be a critical one, given the home’s history.

"I believe any time a original family, and a guardianship like this, is changing ownership of a residence like this, it always causes a little bit of a concern – because you never know what the next owner, what their aims will be. And do they comprehend and appreciate the house, as in this unique case the Stahl family has?"