If the above photogallery has you thinking, Aw, look at that charming European country estate! we urge you—plead, in fact—to please think again. Thus begins our (by no means exhaustive) journey through the architecture of yesteryear—those aesthetics that may have had their heyday but who are still kicking around on the real estate scene. (And no, Art Deco was not accidentally left out; we're featuring but a half-dozen of hundreds of possible architectural styles that might fit the bill.)
Kicking things off is the McMansion, arguably not be an architectural "style" at all but a jaunty way to start out nonetheless. Identified much like that noisy cousin at family dinner—by the way it sticks out and its general imposition on its surroundings—McMansions rose to popularity in the 1980s and were first referenced in the New York Times on August 27, 1998: "Twenty mansions were planned for the development, each designed to look like the biggest house in town," wrote Benjamin Cheever. "The McMansion we thought of as ours had an enormous kitchen, more than two stories high." His description still proves apt; while not one aesthetic defines McMansion architecture, they are usually at least two stories high and they do typically have large kitchens. The one pictured above, for example, is a 4,400-square-foot Lexington, Ky., creation asking $699K. Perched in a subdivision called "Tuscany," it's got five bedrooms, six bathrooms, 18-foot ceilings, 11-foot-tall windows, and, of course, a "large gourmet kitchen." Also, there's a "green space to the left of the house where no home can be built." Perhaps a silver lining? Anyhoo, sad news for McMansions and the developers who love them: they're on the way out. A recent story in the Wall Street Journal maintained that most of America's 80M Gen Y'ers would prefer to be in an urban center: "Lawn-mowing not desired."
? Catapulting backwards a century or so lands the compass on Parkitecture, slang for an architectural movement formally called National Park Service rustic. At the turn of the 21st century, the country's National Park System endeavored to design visitor's centers, restrooms, and hotels that blended in with their rustic, woodsy surroundings. Think: lots of timber, lots of stone, grand fireplaces, and so on. This iteration, in Avon, Colo., is what happens when modern Parkitecture goes forth and multiplies phenomenally. Built in 2005, the $9.185M listing has decidedly un-rustic amenities such as a wine cellar, sauna, fitness center, and butler's pantry.
? Moving forward to 1936, here's a prime example of European Modernism in an unusual setting: Orinda, Calif., a, ahem, McMansion-happy city located some 20 miles east of San Francisco. Designed by prominent local architect William H. Knowles, the house boasts clear influences from his lengthy European travels (the white stucco facade is a gesture toward the Greek islands) and from the work of venerable French architect Robert Mallet-Stevens. The five-bedroom, five-bathroom property hit the market in April 2010 with an ask of $2.495M, but it has just been slashed to $1.895M. Long-lost architecture crumpled inside the bargain bin!
? Here's a far more obscure architectural style that rose to fame in the 1950s. Before Paul Rudolph moved to New England to take a gig as dean of the Yale School of Architecture and long before he became known as the "Dean of Brutalism," the architect lived in western Florida. "Sarasota Modern"—used to describe his work during these years in the Sunshine State—met with some criticism for the way it stood out, but it also managed to put Rudolph on the map. The Martin Harkavy Residence, shown here, was built in the mid-'50s and features 14-foot ceilings, sliding glass walls, and a backyard garden area, which created a newfangled kind of privacy. In Paul Rudolph: The Florida Houses (Princeton Architectural Press, 2002), Christopher Domin and Joseph King observe: "This planning strategy was very much a structural inversion of traditional Southern porch culture, where informal public interaction took place along the street front. In this project, along with several others, a new precedent was set that overtly privatized the domestic life of the inhabitants by placing the main living areas toward the rear of the house." $2.5M will buy you this teeny slice of history.
? One look at the overhangs here and it's obvious that they were formed by the hand of Frank Lloyd Wright. Indeed, the American architect built this house in Houston's Bunker Hill neighborhood in 1954; it's his only project in town and a prime example of Usonian architecture. Key features of that movement: flat roofs, cantilevered overhangs, clerestory windows, and a courtyard, not to mention radiant-floor heating and passive solar features. In this case, the current owners expanded Wright's original 1,200-square-foot layout to more than 8,000 square feet, renovating it fully and adding cushy comforts such as a second kitchen. Another bluechip pedigree for a bargain: the property first hit the market for $3.29M but now asks $2.9M.
? And now, for the bonus round, here's a property that's not actually on the market yet still teaches a valuable lesson. Built in 1975, it's classified as "Neo-Eclectic"—a purple-prose catchall term used to describe post-modern architecture that was inspired by more than one architectural styles that came before it. To quote from the Zillow property description:
"This neo-eclectic style home was built in 1975 and includes neo-Mediterranean interpretation of Spanish Eclectic, Mission and Monterey styles.[...]Round-arched windows and doorways, popular in the Southwest and Southern California, are unique in York County and from Moorish, Byzantine, Gothic or Renaissance inspiration." · 2336 Moreno Dr, Los Angeles [Zillow]
· 171 Peak View Rd, Avon, CO [Zillow]
· 113 Morningside Dr, Sarasota, FL [Zillow]
· Frank Lloyd Wright's Only Houston Commission For Sale [Curbed National]
· 12020 Tall Oaks Street, Bunker Hill Village, Tx [HAR]
· 2502 Pascoli Pl, Lexington, Ky [Trulia]
· 140 Laurel Ter, York, PA [Zillow]
· No McMansions For Millennials [WSJ]
· Orinda: 1930s French Modernism Gets No Respect [Curbed SF]
· CLOSE TO HOME; Life in a Crater Will Do, For Now [NYT]
· Martin Harkavy Residence, Lido Shores, Sarasota, FL, 1957-1958 [UMass Dartmouth]
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