San Mateo Highlands Eichler History: The Hillside Tract and the X-100
The San Mateo Highlands, Eichler's hillside tract begun in 1955: its ridge-top setting, the steel X-100, the architects linked to it and what to know about hillside Eichlers.
Sunnyvale Manor Eichler History: Where the AA-1 Prototype Began
Sunnyvale Manor's two phases: Eichler's 1947 Sunnyvale Building Company tract and the 1950 addition that introduced Anshen & Allen's AA-1 prototype.
Primewood Eichler History: Sunnyvale's Late Steep-Gable Tract
Primewood, Sunnyvale: a 35-house Eichler tract from J. L. Eichler Associates, with glass-filled gables, twin-cottage models and a 2017 single-story district.
Fairbrae Eichler History: Sunnyvale's 1958–1961 Tracts
Fairbrae, Sunnyvale: the 1958–1961 Eichler tracts tract by tract, their street layout, what county records show about the houses, and the 2016–2018 single-story districts.
Royal Manor Eichler History: Reading Palo Alto's 1957–58 Tract
What the public record says about Royal Manor, Palo Alto's 1957–1958 Eichler tract: its map, the 2015–2016 single-story overlay request, flood rules and house types.
Charleston Meadow Eichler History: Palo Alto's Anshen & Allen Tract
Charleston Meadow, Palo Alto's 1950–1951 Anshen & Allen Eichler tract: its two recorded units, original plan features, Eichler's first control committee and today's rules.
Greer Park Eichler History: Palo Alto's 1950 Anshen & Allen Tract
Greer Park, one of Eichler's 1950 'Subdivision of the Year' tracts: its Seale Tract map, three circle streets, Anshen & Allen design roots and overlay rules.
Fairmeadow Eichler Tract: The Story of Palo Alto's Circle Streets
Fairmeadow, Palo Alto's 'Circles': how the 1951–1954 Eichler tract was mapped and built ring by ring, who designed it, and what original houses show.
Greenmeadow Eichler History: Palo Alto's Jones & Emmons Tract
How Jones & Emmons designed Greenmeadow, Palo Alto's 1954–55 Eichler historic district: six models, a pooled community center, original interiors and today's rules.
How to Date a House: A Field Guide to Mid-Century Features
A buyer's field guide to dating a postwar California house by its windows, garage doors, roofing and plan, with an Eichler timeline and the records to check first.
Eichler Architects: Who Designed Which Homes, Tract by Tract
A reference index to Eichler's three architecture firms, what each introduced, the Palo Alto and San Jose tracts credited to each in public records, and how to look up your own house.
Streng Brothers Homes: Sacramento's Mid-Century Modern Tracts
Bill and Jim Streng and architect Carter Sparks built about 4,000 houses in the Sacramento area. What defines a Streng house, how it differs from an Eichler and where to find one.
Mackay Homes: What the Records Say About a Mid-Century Builder
What National Park Service, Palo Alto and Caltrans records say about Mackay Homes, its brief work with Anshen and Allen, how its houses differ from Eichlers and how to confirm one.
Cliff May Homes: The Designer Who Shaped the California Ranch House
Who Cliff May was, how his ranch houses were planned around patios, the panel houses he designed with Chris Choate, his Menlo Park work, and how to check whether a house is really his.
Mid-Century Modern ADU: Adding a Unit Without Fighting the House
What California ADU law allows on a single-family lot, why a conversion often fits a mid-century house better, and how to design a detached unit that respects the original architecture.
Repair Requests After a Home Inspection: A Guide for Older Homes
How to sort an inspection report on a mid-century house, when to ask for repairs or a credit, the California and EPA rules that apply to the work, and how to write a request a seller can answer.
Prop 19 Inherited Home Rules: A Guide for Heirs of Mid-Century Houses
When a long-held mid-century house passes to a child, Prop 19 decides whether the low tax base survives. The conditions, the value cap, filing deadlines and common heir situations.
Supplemental Property Tax in California: What Home Buyers Should Know
Why a California home purchase triggers a separate supplemental tax bill, how the county calculates it, when it arrives and what to file after closing.
Sell a House As Is in California: Original Mid-Century Homes
Selling as is changes what you repair, not what you disclose. The California rules that apply to 1950s and 1960s houses, and a simple way to sort fix, credit and leave.
Pricing an Architectural Home When the Comparables Don't Match
A method for pricing a mid-century or architect-designed home when comparable sales don't line up, built on Fannie Mae's appraisal rules, quality ratings and the reconsideration of value process.