Monkton, Md. | $ 1.7 million
A contemporary five bedroom, five and a half bathroom glass house built in 1990 on four acres of wooded property that leads down to a river
This house was built with a steel frame structure that withstood multiple hurricanes and at least one tornado. It is 26 miles north of Baltimore in an unincorporated part of Baltimore County. The community has approximately 5,000 inhabitants, a horse country character and a reputation for high-performance schools. There aren't many shops in the area, but the Hunt Valley Towne Center mall is about eight miles to the southwest.
This home sits high above a river called Big Gunpowder Falls, perfect for tubing, kayaking, and fishing. The 20 miles long Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail is nearby. The property has no history of flooding – the Flood Factor website rated the risk a 1 in 10 over the next 30 years – but it is in a FEMA zone that requires flood insurance to get a mortgage.
Size: 5,754 square feet
Price per square foot: $ 295
Inside: As of 2018, the current owners (one of whom is the listing agent) carried out a thorough renovation that included upgrading the electrical, heating and plumbing systems. Laying new floors, cabinets and tiles; Remodeling of the kitchen and all bathrooms; Adding Lutron hues (although the location and surrounding trees give privacy less priority than energy efficiency); Paint the interior trim a continuous black; and implementation of new landscaping and landscaping.
The house is built symmetrically, with each of the two main floors having a large room with glass walls at both ends, which offers a bucolic view and is anchored by a stone fireplace with a wood fireplace. A silo (only in appearance; this house was never a farm) contains a spiral staircase (with a new metal railing) that connects the two main levels and is illuminated by a conical glass plate.
On the first floor, the main rooms are used as a living area (with white carpeting and a brass pendant lamp at one end) and as a kitchen that opens onto a family room at the other end. The kitchen has two shaker-style blue islands (one with a sink; the other for sitting) with waterfall quartz countertops illuminated by cone pendant lights hanging from a wooden ceiling panel. A Wolf dual-fuel row is framed by white cabinets against a marble-patterned porcelain backsplash.
Matching cabinets in the family room area serve as a TV stand and bar with a refrigerator and ice maker. The new floor is made of 9.5 inch wide white oak planks. On this level, just beyond the front door, is a dining room with a colorful, owner-designed wallpapered ceiling. A hallway off the kitchen with additional storage space leads to half a bathroom.
On the second floor, the glass-walled rooms are occupied by a master suite at one end and an office and media room at the other. The bedroom contains Stanton rugs and a circular brass chandelier and opens onto a deck. The bathroom has a 30-inch square tile floor and chevron-pattern marble wall tiles. It also includes a freestanding bathtub and double head shower. The adjoining walk-in closet was designed to eliminate the need for a bedroom dresser and includes a laundry chute that drops into the basement.
The office was intended as a projection room (notably given the glass walls) and still has the original projector and blackout curtains. It also includes a built-in wall of bookcases.
In the middle of this level is a carpeted bedroom which is unusual and has three opaque walls. The bathroom is laid out with hexagonal floor and wall tiles and has a shower tiled with underground trains.
A conventional staircase leads to the third floor, where there are two mirror-image bedrooms with carpeting, each with a glass wall and a private bathroom. In the basement there is an au pair suite with a bedroom with a strike deck, a living room and a bathroom with shower. There are also laundry, storage and mechanical rooms (including a new boiler).
Outside space: The vendors paved the path to the house with bluestone and added a playground and a circle of seats with a fire pit in the front, where crepe myrtle and a magnolia tree grow. The upper and lower decks overlook the river (the upper deck includes a built-in table), and the wooden stairs to the river have recently been replaced. A carport has been closed to create a garage and has a greenhouse on the upper level.
Taxes: $ 9,864 (2020 based on a tax assessment of $ 813,833)
Contact: Alisa Goldsmith, W Home Group, 917-282-8899; nextsteprealtymd.com
Portland, Ore. | $ 1.685 million
A 1914 artisan home with five bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms set in 0.23 acre lot, half of which is a garden
Portland's northeast Irvington neighborhood was developed in the early 20th century by transplanted timber and railroad managers who imported the prevailing architectural styles from the East Coast and Midwest. This Craftsman bungalow is on a tree-lined street about two miles from the Pearl District. It's seven blocks southeast of Irving Park, which has tennis courts and a dog park, and seven blocks north of Broadway, a commercial stretch. Irvington Elementary School is five blocks away.
Size: 3,600 square feet
Price per square foot: $ 468
Inside: The classic Craftsman interior starts with an oak door with leaded glass. an anteroom with a built-in seat; and a Douglas-shaped living room that wraps around the base and crown, and a wood-burning fireplace surrounded by marble. Bookcases with leaded glass doors stand like sentries at the wide entrance to the adjoining dining room, which has a fir-beam ceiling, original lighting, a large window with leaded glass and additional fixtures. Pocket doors close off these rooms from the back of the house.
The kitchen off the dining room has been updated from a previous owner and features cabinets with wood paneling to match the molding and Corian countertops. The view is on the garden. White paneling illuminates an adjoining breakfast room, as do the French doors that open to a mahogany aft deck. On the other side of the breakfast room is a library with fixtures with a leaded glass front. This level also has half a bathroom.
Each of the four bedrooms on the upper floor has its own color and character. The main room is brown and has a seating area in an alcove. Other rooms are gray, evergreen, and teal. The hallway bathroom has a jacuzzi and glass-walled shower. The evergreen room has a closet with access to plumbing that can easily be converted into a second bathroom on the upper floor.
In the basement there are guest rooms with a bedroom, a living room and a bathroom. There is also a wine cellar on this level (at one time the sellers were growing grapes on the property) and a sauna. The renovated walk-in loft with bamboo flooring and skylights offers more bonus and storage space.
Outside space: Raised garden beds with berries and lettuce, a hot tub, a Wells and a pond are distributed on the large property (for its neighborhood). Among the many trees, shrubs and perennials are cypresses, roses, Japanese maples, star magnolias, wisteria, rhododendrons, lilies, tulips and an olive tree. The double veranda is heated. A detached garage that is used as a garden shed is to the side of the property.
Taxes: $ 11,741 (2020 based on a $ 459,590 tax assessment)
Contact: Laurie Holland, Laurie Holland Real Estate, 503-242-9000; laurieholland.com
Glendale, California | $ 1.695 million
A two bedroom, two bath, lap pool home completed in 2000 on 0.12 acre lot
Stan Allen, the former dean of Princeton University's School of Architecture, designed this house for an artist located 10 miles north of downtown Los Angeles on a busy street. Known as the L.B. The house named after his client Linda Burnham was Mr. Allen's first residential building and is admired for creating a sense of calm in the dense, mixed-use environment. The surrounding businesses sell groceries, used cars, office supplies, ceramics and psychic chakra as well as energy balancing. Freight trains pass in the immediate vicinity. Forest Lawn Memorial Park, where actress Carole Lombard and Wizard of Oz writer L. Frank Baum, are buried, is just a few blocks east.
Size: 1,994 square feet
Price per square foot: $ 850
Inside: The building consists of stacked aluminum-sided concrete volumes on a narrow lot. Cement paving stones embedded in gravel lead to a sunken glass front door; A light shaft at the entrance gives a glimpse of the sky and the occasional raindrop in Southern California. Immediately behind the foyer is a double-high main room with a concrete floor, interior and exterior windows, a fireplace, wall accents made of corrugated iron, and Fleetwood sliding glass doors that lead to the rear pool area.
A cherry-red cupboard with an integrated hob separates the open kitchen; A green backsplash adds another pop of color. Behind the kitchen is a small guest room with a wall of open shelves and a wall of glass across from it. The guest bathroom is laid out with tiny sage-green tiles that extend into the walk-in shower.
A curved staircase in the kitchen leads you to the loft primary suite. The top landing is big enough for a desk and bookcase. The bedroom has bamboo floors and translucent plastic closet doors (it looks a lot better than it sounds). The bathroom has tiny tiles, double sinks, and Anglepoise-style lamps that hang above the vanity. A custom-made bathtub and freestanding shower nestle in one corner. Sliding glass doors open to a narrow balcony overlooking the pool.
Outside space: A deck from the top of the stairs to the street side wasn't intended for lounging (it lacks a railing or parapet, and there's a circular cavity in the middle), but the owner strategically set it up and used it. The pool area is sheltered with bamboo, palm trees, and grasses and includes many pots of succulents arranged along one wall. The main gate of the attached garage looks solid from the outside but is translucent from the inside. Additional parking spaces are available in a driveway.
Taxes: $ 21,188 (estimated)
Contact: Tracy Do, Compass, 323-842-4001; tracydo.com
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