Frank Lloyd Wright’s Most Famous Home? First Usonian Designer Auto Listing in Phoenix for $5 Million

Frank Lloyd Wright fans are offered a rare opportunity to own the legendary architect’s most important residence in the form of a colorful Arizona residence that was the very first Usonian Automatic he designed.

Located on a leafy street in Phoenix, the area is built Benjamin Adelmanthe man after whom the place is now named, exudes a rock star appeal rarely seen in other Wright designs.

The house’s gray exterior windows and red-framed windows turn it into an attractive feature in the area, according to. Jan Kabbaniwho joins the place with him Oleg Bortmanboth with The Brokery.

“I’ve been in the business for 26 years and I love unique architecture,” Kabbani noted. “This is the most unique asset I have ever put on my career list.”

On the market for the first time in more than 20 years, this unique residence is asking $4.95 million—almost four times the price it sold for in 2004, when the current owners listed it for $1.27 million.

Before that purchase in the early 2000s, the home had changed hands two more times: first in 1996, when it sold for $710,000, and again in 2003, when it was listed for $1.2 million.

Wright originally designed the home in 1951 for Benjamin and his wife, Regina Adelmanand although it has since undergone some revisions, it bears many of the marks of the architect’s signature style.

Among the most prominent features are the carport – which has already been converted into a closed area – an abundance of windows (438 in total), and beautiful wooden accents that help add a sense of nature to the interior.

Cast concrete blocks, a hallmark of Wright’s Usonian Automatic designs, were installed to capture light and shadows, furthering the design layers that this home displays. There is also a floor-to-ceiling fireplace in the living room, a common feature in Wright homes, and another fireplace in one of the bedrooms.

Recent updates include the addition of a six-car garage to the property.

Beyond the large four-bedroom, 4.5-bathroom residence, there are also two guest houses on the property, which spans an impressive 1.67 acres within the Alta Vista Estates subdivision, adjacent to the Arizona Biltmore resort.

“Actually, this house is two parcels,” said Kabbani. “The second parcel is where the guesthouses are being built.”

In addition, the residence is steps away from the 18th hole of the Arizona Biltmore Golf Club links course.

For those who love history more than hitting golf balls, the resort has impressive heritage that extends beyond Arizona.

The home has a family connection to another Usonian home Wright built, 1,800 miles away in the Milwaukee suburbs.

It was built in 1948, that place is called Albert again Edith Adelmanbuilt for Benjamin’s son and daughter-in-law in Fox Point, Wisconsin. Benjamin established a laundry and dry cleaning business in the Milwaukee area and, like Wright, divided his time between Wisconsin and Arizona.

Set on 1.67 hectares, the property features mature landscaping such as desert, fruit trees and artificial turf.

In 2018, the home was, according to the listing description, “thoughtfully upgraded with modern updates.”

Based on the photos, it’s clear that this work has been extended to the kitchen, which includes a marble waterfall island, as well as to the bathrooms. One includes a free-standing soaking tub and a large walk-in tiled shower.

Known locally as “the house with the red windows,” Kabbani said, the Wright home is one that many people appreciate, even if they weren’t in it.

To find a buyer, in addition to the usual methods, he advertises the Arizona Biltmore, a resort with an architectural style (fabric block construction) similar to Wright’s, in part because the architect responsible for that project, Albert Chase McArthurhe studied under him.

Like Oak Park, IL, where Wright maintains a family home that includes his studio, Phoenix is ​​a city where the famed architect receives many commissions from private homes.

It was also a region where he spent much of his time, establishing a winter home at Taliesin West in Scottsdale in the 1930s, then dividing his time between that location and Taliesin in Spring Green, WI, until his death in 1959.