Fashion designer Trina Turk's beautifully restored John Lautner house in Los Angeles has officially hit the market with an asking price just under $2.4 million. The property, known as the Jules Salkin Residence, represents one of the modernist architect's earlier works and has been designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument by the city of Los Angeles.
About eleven years ago, Turk discovered an article about this lesser-known house created by John Lautner early in his solo career, approximately a decade after completing his apprenticeship with legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Built in 1948 and owned by the same family for over six decades, the modest-sized gem was originally listed for $999,000. The property featured a striking butterfly roof and a prime location facing west toward the Pacific Ocean, though it was in desperate need of extensive renovation.
Turk and her late husband, photographer and designer Jonathan Skow, decided to visit the property during a broker's open house to see it for themselves. "The funny thing is we were blown away and said, 'This is amazing!'" Skow told The New York Times in 2017. "And everybody was walking around going, 'Oh my God, this is a nightmare.'" Turk added, "We've been on enough architecture tours to see what potential a house could be. It sounded like a fun project."
The couple went on to win a fierce bidding war in June 2014, competing against 14 other interested buyers, including Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea. Their winning bid of $1.23 million was accompanied by a heartfelt letter to the late owner's children, expressing their sincere plans to return the home to its original pristine condition. As ardent preservationists who had previously purchased and restored several midcentury homes from Los Angeles to Palm Springs, they were uniquely qualified for the ambitious project.
Following their purchase, Turk and Skow engaged renowned architect Barbara Bestor to undertake an extensive and costly renovation that would honor the home's original design intent. The comprehensive restoration included waterproofing the entire house, completely redoing a 1960s bedroom addition that had compromised the original design, lifting the sagging foundation to ensure structural integrity, unearthing and restoring the original red concrete floors, and meticulously sanding and restaining the distinctive board-and-batten redwood siding.
The painstaking restoration efforts have been widely recognized by preservation organizations and the city itself. In 2018, the project garnered a prestigious Preservation Award from the Los Angeles Conservancy, and in 2021, the property was officially designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument by the city of Los Angeles. Now, the stylishly renovated home in the Echo Park neighborhood is back on the market, with Brian Linder and Mark H. Mendez of The Value of Architecture at Compass sharing the listing responsibilities.
The home, originally commissioned by developer Jules Salkin as a spec house, sits majestically on a hillside parcel spanning over one-third of an acre. The single-story residence offers three bedrooms and just one bathroom within approximately 1,300 square feet of thoughtfully designed living space. Among the property's most notable features is a combination living and dining area that showcases a dramatic fireplace with a white stucco chimney and sliding glass doors that open on both sides to a beautifully landscaped garden patio, creating seamless indoor-outdoor living.
The home also boasts a window-lined kitchen that floods the space with natural light, featuring sleek black phenolic resin countertops, authentic handmade ceramic tile, and a vintage O'Keefe and Merritt range that adds period-appropriate character. The careful attention to both historical accuracy and modern functionality is evident throughout every room of the residence.
An added bonus for potential buyers is the property's landmark status, which could make it eligible for coverage under the Mills Act in the future. This designation would provide significant property tax savings in exchange for the owner's commitment to preserving the home's historic appearance and architectural integrity. However, the next owner will need to apply for this beneficial program themselves, as it is not automatically transferred with the sale.
