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

This overhanging home, situated in the Hollywood Hills area, was listed on the real estate market this recent week. The price tag stands at a substantial $25 million.

Stewards Move to Part With

The Stahl family, who have been the proprietors of the residence for its entire 65-year existence, released a statement regarding their choice to sell. They expressed that the dwelling had proven too difficult to maintain.

"This home has been the center of our lives for a long time, but as we’ve grown older, it has become increasingly challenging to maintain it with the care and vigor it so truly merits," commented the descendants of the first owners.

They added that the moment had come to find a new "custodian" for the house – "a person who not only appreciates its design legacy but also grasps its position in the cultural history of the city and further afield."

Unassuming Inception

The beginnings of the Stahl house go back to May 1954, when the first owners bought a hilly plot of land in the then undeveloped Hollywood Hills district for $13,500.

Despite the Stahl house growing into a well-known symbol of the city, the family often pointed out that "no celebrities ever lived here," characterizing themselves as a "average family living in a luxury house."

Architectural Challenge

The original design for the Stahl house was conceived during the summer months of 1956. However, many architects were at first hesitant to build it on the challenging hillside.

In November 1957, the Stahls consulted architect Pierre Koenig, who consented to take on the challenge. With backing from the prominent Case Study program, led by a prominent magazine editor, the Stahls received support to hire Koenig.

The contemporary program "was about experimentation" and "using new materials and building in locations that maybe earlier the technology didn’t really enable," stated an specialist from a city heritage organization. "All those things are wrapped up into a property like the Stahl house, which was avant-garde, progressive and unimaginable in terms of how it was built on that site that everyone else thought, at the time, was impossible to build."

Realization and Famous Legacy

The Stahl house was assigned Case Study house No. 22, and construction began in May 1959. According to the owners, construction cost "just $37,500" and the home was finished by May 1960. The result was "a perfect representation of what everyone thinks LA is and should be," the specialist noted.

Soon after the build ended, a celebrated architectural photographer shot what is arguably the most famous photograph of the home. Captured through the full-length glass windows, the photo shows two women positioned in the home’s living room but appearing to hover over the city skyline.

"In my opinion the long-standing impact of this photo is due to the way it conveys an concept about dwelling in Los Angeles, an ambivalence about being both metropolitan and separate from it," commented a founder of an architectural company and lecturer at a leading university.

Cultural Recognition

The home has made notable appearances in film, television and promos, including several well-known 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 preserved site on the National Register of Historic Places.

Future Ownership

The home is still open for public viewings, as it has been for the previous 17 years, although all tours are currently sold out through February. In their release announcing the sale, the family stated they would give "ample notice" before stopping the tours.

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

"For enthusiasts of design, supporters of design, or institutions seeking to preserve an national treasure, there is simply nothing comparable," the listing say. "This is more than a purchase; it is a passing of responsibility – a hunt for the next steward who will respect the house’s legacy, value its design integrity, and secure its protection for generations to come."

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

"In my view any time a long-term steward, and a guardianship like this, is transferring hands of a property like this, it always creates a little bit of a concern – because you cannot predict what the next owner, what their intentions will be. And will they grasp and appreciate the house, as in this unique case the Stahl family has?"