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The famous Stahl house, a paragon of midcentury modern architecture, is now available for the first time in its whole history.

This suspended home, situated in the Hollywood Hills, hit the market this week. The price tag stands at a notable $25 million.

Family Decision to Let Go

The Stahl family, who have owned the property for its entire 65-year existence, released a statement regarding their decision to sell. They noted that the house had grown excessively demanding to upkeep.

"This house has been the center of our lives for many years, but as we’ve gotten older, it has become more difficult to look after it with the attention and vigor it so richly deserves," stated the offspring of the first owners.

They further stated that the time had arrived to find a new "guardian" for the house – "an individual who not only values its architectural importance but also grasps its role in the cultural history of LA and further afield."

Unassuming Inception

The origins of the Stahl house date to May 1954, when the original owners purchased a mountainous plot of land in the then undeveloped Hollywood Hills area for $13,500.

Despite the Stahl house becoming a well-known symbol of the city, the owners often pointed out that "nobody famous ever lived here," describing themselves as a "average family living in a white-collar house."

Design Feat

The initial design for the Stahl house was developed during the summer of 1956. However, many builders were originally wary to build it on the precarious hillside.

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

The modernist program "centered around experimentation" and "utilizing new building materials and erecting in places that maybe earlier the techniques didn’t really allow," commented an authority from a city preservation society. "All these elements are wrapped up into a place like the Stahl house, which was avant-garde, progressive and unthinkable in terms of how it was constructed on that site that everyone else thought, at the time, was impossible to build."

Completion and Famous Legacy

The Stahl house was assigned Case Study house No. 22, and work began in May 1959. According to the family, construction totaled "just $37,500" and the home was move-in ready by May 1960. The result was "a perfect representation of what everyone envisions LA is and should be," the specialist commented.

Soon after construction was finished, a celebrated architectural photographer shot what is perhaps the most iconic picture of the home. Shot through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, the image features two women sitting in the home’s living room but seeming to levitate over the city skyline.

"I believe the lasting impact of that photo is due to the way it communicates an idea about residing in Los Angeles, an ambivalence about being both urban and detached from it," stated a head of an architectural practice and educator at a leading university.

Protected Designation

The home has made notable cameos in cinema, broadcast and promos, including several popular titles from the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In 1999, the city recognized the Stahl house a heritage site, and in 2013, the house was listed as a conserved building on the National Register of Historic Places.

Coming Ownership

The home remains open for public viewings, as it has been for the previous 17 years, although all tours are currently fully booked through February. In their announcement announcing the sale, the family said they would give "ample notice" before stopping the tours.

The sales details for the home emphasizes finding a purchaser who will conserve the character of the space.

"For enthusiasts of style, patrons of design, or entities seeking to protect an national treasure, there is simply no equal," the details read. "This is not merely a purchase; it is a handover of custody – a quest for the next guardian who will respect the house’s history, respect its original vision, and guarantee its conservation for generations to come."

The specialist affirmed that the decision of new owner would be a vital one, given the home’s past.

"I think any time a longtime owner, and a guardianship like this, is being sold of a home like this, it always creates a little bit of a pause – because you are unsure what the next owner, what their aims will be. And do they comprehend and appreciate the house, as in this specific case the Stahl family has?"