Case Study House No. 16 hits the market for $3M in Bel Air

The Case Study House program, sponsored by Arts & Architecture and designed between the 1940s and 1960s, was designed to create affordable homes that could be constructed quickly to accommodate growing postwar families. Interestingly enough, they ended up being built in neighborhoods that went on to become synonymous with luxury homes—case in point, Case Study House No. 16 (also called Case Study House for 1953) in Bel Air.

Designed by Craig Ellwood, the two-bedroom, two-bathroom house sits on a flat lot with views galore. “From the street the house presents itself as a glowing, floating glass pavilion,” says the Los Angeles Conservancy.

The modular steel house features walls of glass—including exterior panels of frosted glass— grooved fir siding, a natural rock fireplace, a cantilevered roof, and a design that aims to “bring the indoors out and the outdoors in.”

1811 Bel Air Road, a city landmark, is almost entirely original. The floors are a later addition, added 50 years ago, which is also when the house last traded hands. It’s listed for $2.9 million with Aaron Kirman, Dalton Gomez and Weston Littlefield of Compass.