Joseph Eichler Or Roger Lee?

When you see a low-slung, Modernist home with exposed post-and-beam construction, concrete slabs with radiant floor heat, and walls of glass opening to the outside, it might be an Eichler.  Then again, maybe it isn’t.  Although we associate the easy, open plan, indoor/outdoor style with Joseph Eichler, Roger Lee was another Mid-Century builder/architect who shared Eichler’s affinity for well-designed homes built for middle class people.

Like Eichler, Roger Lee built spec homes during the building boom after WWII.  Eichler and Lee shared the modernist tradition and the notion that homes should be affordable, stylish, and functional.  While Joseph Eichler built thousands of homes, however, Roger Lee built on a much smaller scale, designing 100+ homes in Northern California, Nevada, and Hawaii, several of which were featured in national publications – including Sunset Magazine.  In addition to private homes, Lee also designed a number of apartment complexes as well as several Lake Tahoe condo developments.

If you are an Eichler enthusiast, I’m sure that you will appreciate the very similar Lee aesthetic.  Roger Lee homes seldom come on the market, but with a little patience you may get lucky.  Most of his homes, including a series of “Universal Homes” in Kensington, were built in the East Bay, with a few more in Marin, and Napa.  If we can assist you in purchasing or selling a home in the Bay Area, whether it be an Eichler, Lee, or other style – contact us at Eichler For Sale, or any of our sister residential real estate companies: East Bay Modern, Marin Modern, Wine Country Modern, or San Francisco Modern.