Many of our Eichler homes have wood-burning fireplaces, which worked out well in the 1950s and ‘60s when air quality wasn’t the issue that it has become today. We know that all of the Bay Area and Sacramento have Spare The Air ...
Read MoreIt is no coincidence that many of the Streng homes found in the greater Sacramento, CA area resemble Eichler homes. Wanting to build homes that were contemporary and different than the typical ranch-style homes of the times, brothers Bill and Jim Streng found inspiration in the sleek homes that developer Joseph Eichler was building in the Bay Area and Sacramento.
Working with architect Carter Sparks, who had worked with Eichler architects Anshen + Allen in the early 1950s, the Strengs began building their distinctive modern homes in 1959. By the time they built their last home in the late 1980s, Streng Homes had built 3,000 modernist homes (as well as almost 1,000 traditional homes) in seven Central Valley cities. Most of the Streng/Sparks homes were tract homes, although they collaborated on individual custom and semi-custom homes as well.
In many ways, Strengs resemble Eichlers. They have the same clean lines, low-pitched roofs, open floor plans, walls of windows, and simple front facades found in Eichler homes. Where Strengs differ is how they accommodate the hot summers found in the Sacramento area. While Eichlers were built with no AC and unprotected atriums, Streng homes were made for the heat with air-conditioning and interior atriums domed with tinted acrylic that helped block the sun.
In addition to single-family homes, Bill and Jim Streng developed what they called half-plexes, which are smaller attached homes that were designed with the same Eichler-style exterior found in the single-family Strengs. The half-plex homes share a common wall, but not necessarily a similar floor plan.
Streng homes are found in close to 40 subdivisions throughout Sacramento and Yolo Counties. In Yolo County, more than 400 Strengs were built in Davis and nearby Woodland. The majority of the Streng brothers’ homes were built in Sacramento County, and can be found in Sacramento, Carmichael, Citrus Heights, Fair Oaks, and Elk Grove.
Contact us for expert representation if you are planning to buy or sell an Eichler, or one of their similar looking “cousins” - a Streng, Mackay or Cliff May home.