Dara Buzzard was practically born to be a midcentury modern architecture enthusiast.
She was born in Walnut Creek, California, in a Joseph Eichler-built home that her parents moved to when they crossed the country from New York. Decades later, when it was time to buy her own home, she returned to Walnut Creek and purchased an Eichler with her husband.
Now, the real estate agent is looking to recruit the newest members to what she describes as a network of like-minded homeowners: She’s selling a four-bedroom, two-bathroom Eichler in Concord for just shy of $1.4 million.
“You have some that are very original … You have some that have been completely updated. This one is really the perfect blend of original details with modern updates, but keeping with the original integrity of the home,” Buzzard, an agent with Dudum Real Estate Group, said of the nearly 2,000-square-foot home in an interview with Homes.com.
Eichler emphasized indoor-outdoor living
As a developer, Eichler partnered with architects and built roughly 11,000 midcentury modern homes between the 1950s and the 1970s. Most of his developments were in Northern California.
This particular property was designed by one of his closest professional companions, Claude Oakland, in 1964, according to a listing on Homes.com.
“The curb appeal is incredible,” Buzzard said. “You walk through the atrium, you have floor-to-ceiling glass, you look straight through the house, through the windows to the yard, which is paradise…It really brings together Eichler’s vision of indoor-outdoor living.”
The home maintains its original kitchen cabinetry — including a built-in kitchen table — and its original bathrooms, she explained. Other systems, including the roof and backyard pool, have been updated.
Homeowners have their own community
But more than that, Buzzard said that buying an Eichler home grants membership in an exclusive community of homeowners.
“Eichler homeownership is really unique,” she said. “There’s a community of people who are always willing to share.”
For example, there are Facebook groups for neighborhoods of Eichler-built homes and there's an annual magazine about upkeep.
Buzzard said she and her husband learned the ins and outs of Eichler properties when they refurbished their own home from the studs. Now, she uses that experience to help educate buyers interested in historic properties.
“It’s like buying an old Porsche, you need to know where to get the right part, who to service it,” she explained. “Buying these homes, there is a network and there’s a community of people who come together and who will support you because you do need to know. It’s important to know who to call for certain things.”
