During a recent open house in California, real estate agent Nina Kurtz turned on a jazz playlist featuring the likes of Billie Holiday and Chet Baker. It was as much to set the mood as it was to appease the 126-year-old house, she said.
“The house has its own personality and its own spirit,” Kurtz said in an interview. “When we were doing the open houses, I could feel the house kind of in dialogue.”
With its green exterior, pink front door, wraparound porches and intricate molding, the Pasadena Queen Anne Victorian is a rarity, even in Southern California, where architectural houses abound.
“We have so much access to incredible historic homes,” Kurtz said of the Los Angeles area. “But we don’t have a lot of 1895, 1899 Victorians around … it feels like you can travel in time.”
The five-bedroom, three-bathroom residence is known as the “Hutchins House.” A designated cultural heritage landmark, the 3,009-square-foot property is on the market for $2.8 million, according to the listing on Homes.com.
Kurtz said it was relocated from its original spot in the neighborhood to its current plot around 1906.
It was a house built for royalty
Kurtz said the home was built for a descendant of British royalty, and the 1890s extravagance of the project is still tangible.
“No expense was spared,” she said. “It’s like a multisensory experience to be there.”
Indeed, detailed wood molding lines the walls, many of which are either layered with colorful wallpaper or hand-painted motifs. The doors feature iron knobs with carved swirls. The original wooden staircase greets guests who enter through the front door.
“It’s one of those houses where every corner is a work of art,” Kurtz added.
Most of the home is original, according to Kurtz, save for the updated and expanded kitchen and the reimagined carriage house in the backyard that now serves as a loft, studio and office space.
The sellers, members of pop star Harry Styles’ band, used the space “as a jam room,” Kurtz said. “Their kids would come upstairs and play while they would do their jamming.”
Maintaining a 126-year-old house is a commitment
While the property’s age adds to its allure, it also adds a layer of complexity.
Older houses can be more challenging to maintain. They can have outdated systems and replacing original parts of the home can be more difficult.
Kurtz, however, said she expects this house to be more low maintenance for the next owners. The sellers redid the plumbing and electrical, and they added central heating.
“There’s not a lot of upkeep,” she said. “It’s just one of those houses that is designed so well it kind of runs itself.”
They don't make them like this anymore, Kurtz added. "It's designed to stand the test of time."