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The famous Stahl house, a epitome of midcentury modern architecture, is currently listed for the initial occasion in its complete history.

This cantilevered home, perched in the Hollywood Hills, was listed on the real estate market this week. The asking price stands at an impressive $25 million.

Owners Move to Sell

The Stahl family, who have owned the home for its full 65-year existence, released a statement regarding their resolution to sell. They noted that the house had proven too difficult to upkeep.

"This home has been the center of our lives for decades, but as we’ve aged, it has become more difficult to look after it with the dedication and energy it so richly deserves," stated the offspring of the original owners.

They continued that the period had arrived to find a new "custodian" for the house – "an individual who not only recognizes its architectural importance but also understands its role in the cultural landscape of LA and beyond."

Modest Inception

The inception of the Stahl house date to May 1954, when the first owners bought a mountainous patch of land in the then undeveloped Hollywood Hills area for $13,500.

Despite the Stahl house evolving into a well-known symbol of the city, the residents often stressed that "no famous individuals ever lived here," describing themselves as a "blue-collar family living in a architectural masterpiece."

Architectural Feat

The original design for the Stahl house was developed during the summer of 1956. However, many builders were originally reluctant to build it on the precarious hillside.

In November 1957, the Stahls met with architect Pierre Koenig, who decided to accept the challenge. With backing from the prominent Case Study program, spearheaded by a leading magazine editor, the family received financial aid to engage Koenig.

The progressive program "was about innovation" and "employing new building materials and constructing in places that maybe previously the engineering didn’t really enable," remarked an expert from a regional conservancy. "Each of these factors are combined into a property like the Stahl house, which was avant-garde, progressive and unimaginable in terms of how it was constructed on that plot that everyone else believed, at the time, was impossible to build."

Realization and Iconic Influence

The Stahl house was assigned Case Study house No. 22, and work began in May 1959. According to the family, construction cost "just $37,500" and the home was completed by May 1960. The final product was "a perfect representation of what everyone envisions LA is and should be," the authority commented.

Soon after construction was finished, a renowned architectural photographer shot what is perhaps the most iconic image of the home. Shot through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, the photograph depicts two women positioned in the home’s living room but seeming to float over the Los Angeles skyline.

"I believe the enduring impact of the photograph is due to the way it expresses an idea about residing in Los Angeles, an duality about being both urban and removed from it," stated a founder of an architectural practice and lecturer at a prominent university.

Historic Status

The home has had notable cameos in movies, broadcast and music videos, including several well-known titles from the late 1990s and early 2000s.

In 1999, the city recognized the Stahl house a protected monument, and in 2013, the house was added as a protected property on the National Register of Historic Places.

Coming Custodianship

The home remains open for public viewings, as it has been for the previous 17 years, although all tours are currently fully booked through February. In their release concerning the sale, the family indicated they would give "ample notice" before discontinuing the tours.

The sales details for the home emphasizes finding a new owner who will preserve the character of the space.

"For connoisseurs of architecture, supporters of design, or organizations seeking to preserve an American masterpiece, there is simply nothing comparable," the listing state. "This goes beyond a transaction; it is a transfer of stewardship – a quest for the next steward who will respect the house’s past, appreciate its architectural purity, and secure its protection for future generations."

The authority concurred that the decision of new owner would be a critical one, given the home’s past.

"I believe any time a long-term steward, and a guardianship like this, is transferring hands of a residence like this, it always creates a little bit of a pause – because you never know what the next owner, what their aims will be. And will they understand and appreciate the house, as in this particular case the Stahl family has?"