The Book of 'Homo Eichlerus' - Page 2

Many vendors in the new 36-page directory do business almost exclusively with Homo Eichlerus, partly because of the latter's devotion to authentic architecture and design. Members of the species are sometimes born to the culture, sometimes inured.

"A large amount of time I spend marketing Eichlers is in educating," said Swartz, whose business has always been a family affair, teaming with his wife, Pelin, and her recently retired mother, Nil Erdal. Swartz added, "I really enjoy getting to educate, spending time answering questions about them."

"People love buying the Eichler lifestyle," he continued about mid-century modern homeowners. "The lifestyle they enjoy is communing with that indoor-outdoor space. That's what I think is most unique about these homes: walls of glass."

A "close second" for Swartz is radiant heating, adding, "That's something I certainly appreciate when I'm visiting an Eichler in the wintertime."

Of course, products of the mid-20th century didn't always age gracefully, even highly coveted homes like Eichlers. This is apparently why the Network's maintenance directory became engrained in the culture.

Nichols even differentiates between MCM homeowners in California and elsewhere. He notes that out west, fewer customers groove on his Weldtex combed or striated plywood interior paneling that he mostly ships back east.

"It's kind of a head scratcher for me why more Eichler owners aren't interested [in Weldtex's snazzy retro look]," said the groove master, questioning homeowner resistance because it is not an original Eichler material. "Eichler didn't use drywall either, and many Eichler owners put that in their homes," he pointed out.

Nichols is describing a dominant characteristic of Home Eichlerus, that being the aforementioned, almost religious devotion to MCM design.

For more information and resources about the all-important maintenance of these classic shelters, please refer to the print edition of 'Eichler Network Home Maintenance Directory 2020,' which was recently mailed free of charge to all our Bay Area homeowners. Additional copies of the print edition can be purchased here. Click here for the online flip-book version.