Finding a home with character that’s been updated and is move-in-ready can be a challenge today. That’s why this Spanish-style ranch is such a refreshing opportunity to own a unique home.
The “Styled Ranch” was built during the Ranch-house era, roughly 1935–1975, with their peak of popularity in the 1970s. So, this 1968-styled Spanish Ranch would have been considered cutting edge when it was built.
By the early 1970s, buyers wanted something a bit more eclectic, so builders started adding a twist by embellishing homes with exterior details in styles that ranged from Tudor, Neoclassical, and French to Spanish and Colonial Revival.
The late legendary preservationist Virginia McAlester gives insight in her book A Field Guide to American Houses.
The earliest Styled Ranch subtype was Spanish. Cliff May, the prolific house designer, and builder credited with popularizing the ranch-style, was a sixth-generation Californian. His 1946 book Sunset Western Ranch Houses identified the pitched-roof Spanish Colonial homes of southern California as the genesis of the Ranch house and included designs for them. Built throughout the entire Ranch-era and into the 1980s, Spanish Ranches are most common in California and the Southwest.
One or more round or parabolic arches are often present, usually at the front entry or porch, principal windows, or courtyard entry. Other decorative elements may include exposed roof rafters and beams, wood or metal window grilles and balconettes, and inward-slanting chimney or wing walls.
It’s easy to see the excellent renovation of this Styled Spanish Ranch brought in all of the modern elements buyers want in a home while beautifully maintaining those that give it character. While I always opt for character, I also want a chef’s kitchen with quartzite countertops, a Sub-Zero refrigerator, and fully remodeled bathrooms.
The centerpiece of this 3,126-square-foot house is the dramatic half-arched window. I’m thrilled that the majestic Live Oak was not removed because it simply adds to the home’s character. The great room has a lovely repetition of the arched window in the face of the fireplace and incredible original beamed ceilings.
With four bedrooms, four bathrooms, a powder bath, a sizable backyard, and minutes from NorthPark Center, this is the ultimate family-friendly home.
We see homes go to contract at record speed, so if you’ve longed for a Styled Spanish Ranch, Paragon’s Rick Brooks has 7279 Ashington Drive listed for $949,000.
