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The famous Stahl house, a quintessential example of mid-century modern design, is currently listed for the first time in its whole history.

This cantilevered residence, situated in the Hollywood Hills area, appeared on the listings this week. The price tag stands at a notable $25 million.

Owners Decision to Sell

The Stahl family, who have been the proprietors of the home for its complete 65-year timeline, shared a statement regarding their decision to sell. They expressed that the property had proven too difficult to care for.

"This home has been the core of our lives for a long time, but as we’ve gotten older, it has become progressively harder to look after it with the care and vigor it so truly merits," wrote the descendants of the first owners.

They continued that the period had arrived to find a new "guardian" for the house – "someone who not only appreciates its design legacy but also grasps its position in the cultural fabric of the city and elsewhere."

Humble Inception

The inception of the Stahl house date to May 1954, when the first owners purchased a mountainous patch of land in the previously undeveloped Hollywood Hills neighborhood for $13,500.

Despite the Stahl house evolving into a famous icon of the city, the owners often stressed that "no famous individuals ever lived here," describing themselves as a "blue-collar family living in a luxury house."

Design Feat

The first design for the Stahl house was conceived during the summer months of 1956. However, many builders were initially wary to construct it on the difficult hillside.

In November 1957, the Stahls consulted architect Pierre Koenig, who decided to accept the challenge. With backing from the notable Case Study program, pioneered by a key magazine editor, the owners received financial aid to engage Koenig.

The modernist program "was about trial and error" and "using new resources and building in places that maybe earlier the techniques didn’t really allow," commented an authority from a local heritage organization. "All those things are integrated into a property like the Stahl house, which was cutting-edge, progressive and unimaginable in terms of how it was built on that location that everyone else thought, at the time, was unbuildable."

Finalization and Cultural Impact

The Stahl house became Case Study house No. 22, and work commenced in May 1959. According to the residents, construction totaled "a mere $37,500" and the home was move-in ready by May 1960. The final product was "the ultimate vision of what everyone thinks LA is and should be," the authority added.

Soon after construction was finished, a renowned architectural photographer captured what is possibly the most well-known photograph of the home. Shot through the enormous glass windows, the photo features two women sitting in the home’s living room but looking to float over the city skyline.

"I think the lasting effect of that photo is due to the way it communicates an idea about living in Los Angeles, an contrast about being both urban and separate from it," stated a founder of an architectural company and adjunct professor at a leading university.

Cultural Designation

The home has made historic cameos in film, television and videos, including several popular titles from the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In 1999, the city designated the Stahl house a protected monument, and in 2013, the house was included as a protected property on the National Register of Historic Places.

Coming Custodianship

The home remains open for public viewings, as it has been for the last 17 years, although all slots are currently fully booked through February. In their release announcing the sale, the family stated they would give "sufficient warning" before ending the tours.

The listing for the home highlights finding a purchaser who will conserve the essence of the space.

"For enthusiasts of design, advocates of building, or entities seeking to preserve an iconic work, there is simply no parallel," the details say. "This is more than a purchase; it is a transfer of stewardship – a quest for the next custodian who will honor the house’s past, value its original vision, and secure its conservation for posterity."

The authority affirmed that the choice of purchaser would be a vital one, given the home’s history.

"I think any time a longtime owner, and a stewardship like this, is being sold of a home like this, it always gives us a little bit of a concern – because you are unsure what the next owner, what their intentions will be. And can they comprehend and cherish the house, as in this specific case the Stahl family has?"