My L.A. Dream Home in the “Canyon of Dreams”

I’ve never liked the cliché that real estate is all about “location.” Not because I disagree with the basic premise; location, after all, is the number one driver of real estate value. But when I picture my dream home, I like to think of it as more than a financial investment located in a desirable area with a high resale potential.

Rather than concerning myself with the location of my L.A. dream home, I prefer to consider it’s place. I understand this could be deemed a semantic quibble, but the nuance here, I would like to propose, is significant. For me, a home’s place conjures so much more than proximity to good schools and trendy restaurants. Place implies an area’s history, its vibe, its soul. Being connected to these things is profoundly important to me.

So, my dream home in Los Angeles, where I work for Redfin serving our Southern California communications needs, is in a place steeped in L.A. history, rock n’ roll lore and some seriously good vibes: Laurel Canyon.

Perched in the Hollywood Hills just above the Sunset Strip, Laurel Canyon was the keynote, the middle ‘C’, the absolute epicenter of the 60s music scene in L.A. on a major scale. This is the place where Jim Morrison lived and penned the song “Love Street,” describing his home in the canyon that he shared with Pamela Courson, the woman who would stick with him to his untimely end. This is the place where Joni Mitchell lived, in whose living room Crosby, Stills and Nash met for the first time. Her Laurel Canyon home, which she shared with her lover, Graham Nash, was the inspiration for one of the sweetest and most sincere love songs ever written, “Our House.” The Mammas and the Papas lived here. The Buffalo Springfield. Glenn Frey of The Eagles claims he learned to write songs by listening to Jackson Browne play his piano through the ceiling in the duplex they shared in Laurel Canyon.

After a quick stop at the Laurel Canyon Country Store, “the place where the creatures meet,” according to Jim, I’d love to come home to my place here, in this 1920s Spanish revival with city lights views and what I imagine to be jam session-inducing acoustics from the vaulted ceilings.

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There’s something about white stucco against deeply-stained exposed-beam ceilings that has always gotten my heart palpitating. Between the rich custom tile work in the kitchen, multiple wood-burning fireplaces and the period wrought iron finishes, this home strikes the perfect balance of warm and cool, just like the neighborhood in which it’s situated.

The terraced and lushly landscaped outdoor spaces are perfect for entertaining during L.A.’s endless Indian summers. And my dog, Stevie Nicks, would love swimming in that serene, azure pool while a feast of friends come and go, taking full advantage of my open door policy.

The price tag on this home is high. Redfin’s mortgage calculator puts my monthly payment at around $15,000. But, like the music icons that once called this neighborhood home, I also like to dream big. And who knows, once surrounded by the musical history of the canyon, maybe I’ll write my own “Our House” here. But instead, I might call it, “My Place.”

About Jeffery Marino
Jeffery Marino is Redfin’s Communications Specialist for the Los Angeles metro region. An experienced writer and editor, Jeffery first became obsessed with real estate and economics while earning his Master’s degree in comparative literature at UC Santa Cruz. He proudly lives on L.A.’s eastside and spends most of his free time outdoors with his border collie, Stevie Nicks.