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L.A. Modernist Masterpiece by Rudolph Schindler Asks $2.5M

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Featuring a garden by Neutra

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Location: Los Angeles, California

Price: $2,500,000

The How House, a prime example of prominent 20th-century architect Rudolph Schindler’s early works, has come on the market in Silver Lake, an L.A. neighborhood filled with architecturally-significant properties.

Designed for James Eads How, a physician and activist often referred to as "Millionaire Hobo," the 2,464-square-foot home comprises interlocking rectilinear volumes that feature a slab concrete base, geometric redwood panels and beams, and striking glass walls. This masterful spatial and material composition comes alive in the two-story vaulted living room.

The home was designated an L.A. historical-cultural monument in 2007, after then-owner, producer/midcentury-home-collector Michael LaFetra, thoroughly restored the place to museum quality, a process that also uncovered a flat-terrace garden designed by another L.A. modernist great, Richard Neutra. LaFetra later tried to unload the place for three-and-a-half years before finally selling it in 2012 at a reduced $1.3M. The four-bedroom property is back now with the same glorious bones and a much higher price tag.