Jesse Endahl sold Fleetsmith, the tech startup he co-founded, to Apple in 2020. The 36-year-old pocketed an undisclosed but likely impressive sum in the process, so it’s no surprise he can afford a small but impressive fleet of homes, including a Parisian-influenced charmer in San Francisco and a midcentury treehouse in L.A.’s Mount Washington neighborhood. And now he’s added to that portfolio with the $3.1 million acquisition of a perfectly zen original ranch house in Los Feliz, complete with unobstructed views of Griffith Observatory.
Built in the mid 1950s and last sold in 2016 for $2 million, the unpretentious abode has been meticulously maintained over the years. Only the two-car attached garage is visible from the street, with the rest of the house obscured behind gates and a towering thicket of bamboo. Beyond that, a courtyard-like front yard fronts the double-door entryway.
Inside, terrazzo floors flow throughout the Goldilocks structure, which packs three bedrooms and two bathrooms into about 1,600 square feet of single-story living space — not too big and not too small, it’s just right. Still, if that is not enough room, the listing notes that a “feasibility study, soil and geological work [have been] done” for the possibility of expanding the existing residence and adding a swimming pool, which the property currently lacks.
Nearly every room in the house offers huge glass sliders, allowing natural light to seep inside. A floor-to-ceiling stacked-stone fireplace warms both the living room and dining room, while the kitchen is fully upgraded with Sub-Zero and Viking appliances. Apart from the master bedroom, which offers panoramic views of Griffith Observatory and the surrounding hills, perhaps the home’s best spaces are the two bathrooms, both of which offer whimsically vintage and colorful tile treatments.
Out back, a pancake-flat swath of lawn has ample space for a pool and decking, and there’s an existing raised deck with a seating area and views overlooking the Downtown L.A. skyline. Towering palm trees keep a watchful eye on the 0.34-acre lot and remind homeowners and visitors alike that they’re living a quintessentially SoCal lifestyle, with the Hollywood Sign, Sunset Strip and movie studios just a quick hike or traffic-choked drive away.
