Architectural gems languish in Calif. housing market, as downturn hits storied structures

Marquee homes languish in Calif. housing market

LOS ANGELES — The real-estate meltdown has hit some of Southern California’s most valuable architectural treasures, with homes that once sold briskly for stratospheric prices now selling at a loss — if at all.

A renovated house by Austrian-born Rudolph Schindler in Los Angeles’ trendy Silver Lake neighborhood hit the market in September 2008 for about $5 million. Its last listing was at around $1.9 million.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s hillside Ennis house had its price reduced from $15 million last summer to about $7.5 million, and it still hasn’t found a buyer.

Another Wright house in Pasadena has had its price cut from nearly $8 million to around $5 million during the two years it’s been for sale.

Its owners have even entertained a proposal to have the home dismantled and shipped to a buyer in Japan.