A graduate of USC’s School of Architecture, midcentury modernist Philmer J. Ellerbroek would probably be better known today had he not chosen to open his practice in Orange County. Though he did land a few big-name Hollywood and Bel Air clients, including Ray Milland and Art Linkletter, Ellerbroek’s main legacy lies in the series of elegant residences he designed in South Coast towns such as Newport Beach, Santa Ana, and North Tustin. The latter community is where you’ll find this handsome home produced by Ellerbroek in 1955, which has just come on the market for the first time ever.
Located in North Tustin’s Red Hill neighborhood, the house was built for Edward Corlett, a local orthodontist, his wife, Susan, and their two children. Approached via a circular driveway, the home is fronted by a wall of knitted brick punctuated with a grid of vertical windows. Adding further visual interest is a metal-screen gate in a Moorish-influenced pattern at the double-door entry. Screens are a hallmark feature of Ellerbroek’s homes; a second one is located on the other side of the doors, acting as a divider between the entry foyer and the living room.
Measuring 3,155 square feet, the impressively well-preserved residence contains three bedrooms, three and a half baths, one of which is equipped with an atrium and a luxurious Roman tub sheathed in aqua blue tile. The dining room and kitchen each look out onto their own atrium as well.
Other notable interior attributes include a floating staircase, an intercom system, a living room fireplace, copious built-in cabinetry and shelving, and extensive banks of glass sliders. Oh, and let’s not forget the built-in pencil sharpener!
Out back, it’s the classic ideal of a kids’ paradise, with a sizable swimming pool, mature trees fit for climbing and supplying shade to the patio, and a sprawling patch of grass.
On a 0.35-acre lot, the time capsule residence is listed with Casey Lesher of Coldwell Banker at an asking price of $1.895 million.
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