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SAN DIEGO BUSINESS JOURNAL - Architect-Designed Homes Attract Sophisticated Buyers

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 modem 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 ltalianate 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 modem 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.

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