Two architects, two homes

An architectural compound with extraordinary provenance and creativity is rare indeed.

But on a private hilltop, 15 miles north of Los Angeles and at the edge of Angeles National Forest, sits a unique pair of pedigreed properties on 5.7 acres of land that was originally planned to be a hillside subdivision designed by internationally renowned architect Richard Neutra.

The 1952 Surulnic residence was designed by Neutra; and the nearby award-winning Pittman Dowell residence, completed in 2009, was designed by architect Michael Maltzan.

"It all flows with perfection with the rest of the house," says listing agent Sherri Rogers of Compass. Oh, yes—that property of perfection, at 3947 Markridge Road in La Crescenta, is all yours for $9,799,000.

"In the showings I've had, I've heard the same comment," says Rogers, "that when you're in the Maltzan house, you feel like you're in a futuristic UFO; and when you're in the Neutra, you feel like you're in a time capsule."

Rogers' client purchased the property in 2018, says Rogers, and "it was commissioned by Pittman and Dowell, fine artists who owned it at the time.

"They lived in the Serulnic residence while they completed all of the renovations and developed the cactus garden," Rogers adds, "a garden that is so carefully curated, it could be at the Getty [Museum]." Pittman and Dowell also commissioned the addition, which was designed by Maltzan as well.

In planning for the subdivision, three sites were cleared, but only one Neutra was built. Neutra designed the 1,350-square-foot home for his secretary, Dorothy Serulnic.

Opening onto a level, grassy pad, the jewel-like architectural gem faces west, designed for maximum appreciation of the local mountains combined with panoramic views of the Los Angeles city skyline. In the early 1950s, during the time the Neutra was built, this was a remote area, but it has been built up considerably over the past half century.