Loving Eichlers in Many Ways

What's not to love about an Eichler home?

We all know their appeal. The openness. The light. Direct connection to the out of doors and nature. But it's more complicated than that.

Owners love their Eichlers for many different reasons.

Over the past 20 years we've visited thousands of Eichler homes, meeting thousands of owners—almost all of whom sincerely love their Eichlers. Many cite the same reasons; those mentioned above, but also the atrium, the functionality, the modernity, the homes' evocation of an Asian sensibility, the detailing, the warmth and textures of paneling and more.

And when we say love, we mean love in an almost romantic manner. How many Eichler owners have told us this story?: "We fell in love with the house the minute we walked in and knew this would be our home." Easily one in ten.

Margaret Parra, an original owner of a Community Center Eichler in Palo Alto, focused on light and its Asian sensibility as reasons for her love affair.

"To me, [the home] had a Japanese aspect. I really loved the light," she says. "And we were lucky enough to get this lot that is situated so that when you look out the back, you only see trees. So it looks like you're in a wood."

"The light is beautiful at every season," she added. "I just never get over it."

Among the categories of Eichler owners, based on our informal taxonomy, Margaret comes close to being a 'purist,' someone who so appreciates the Eichler as designed by its architects, as a kind of art object, that they make no changes.

You won't find many Eichler owners whose homes are absolutely unchanged. But you will find owners who go out of their way to preserve—and replace, if necessary—original kitchens, bathroom fixtures, and mahogany paneling—just to stay true.

It's human nature, after all, to want to put your stamp on your home, and not just through décor. Margaret and her husband themselves did that—by prevailing on Joe Eichler, as he was building their small subdivision, to make a few changes in doorways and materials even before the home was built.

Another Eichler owner who could be placed in the 'purist' category is Rosalie Taimuty, who has lived in Palo Alto's Palo Verdes neighborhood since 1976. A friend and neighbor described Rosalie's Eichler as "the best maintained original Eichler you will ever see."

When we visited, the home was almost entirely original—except the kitchen, which had been remodeled, "in the Eichler style," she said. Beams had also been painted white.

Rosalie, an artist, still managed to put her very personal stamp on the house, where she'd lived since 1976, through her own artwork, including murals on hallway doors, and art and collectables by others.