The short answer
Ojai modern homes for sale are rare, and some of the valley's best-documented modern houses are not listings at all. The Bald House, designed by Richard Neutra in 1941 at 917 McAndrew Road, is one of two Neutra houses in Ojai. Debbie Pisaro tracks Ojai's modern houses by architect, so you know the name before one trades.
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Ojai modern homes for sale, and the Neutra house that is not one of them
By Debbie Pisaro, Real Estate Salesperson, DRE #01369110, Coastline 840. Inman Luxury Leader.
Ask an Ojai realtor where the valley's modern houses are and you will get a short list, because there are not many and most of them have a name. This field note is about one of the names that rarely comes up: the house Richard Neutra drew for Howard and Lois Bald in the East End hills.
The plate: Howard and Lois Bald House
- Architect: Richard Neutra
- Built: 1941, for Howard and Lois Bald
- Address: 917 McAndrew Road, Ojai, California 93023
- Setting: About two acres in the East End hills, with the Ojai Valley falling away to the west and the mountains to the east
- Status: Private residence. Not a listing, and not open to visitors.
Why Ojai has two Neutra houses, and this is the older one
Most people who search for Ojai modern homes for sale end up reading about the Moore House on North Foothill Road, and for good reason. It is the house Neutra is known for here. But the Bald House came first, roughly a decade earlier, and it tells you what Neutra was doing in the valley before the famous commission arrived.
Published records on the Pacific Coast Architecture Database place the house at 917 McAndrew Road and date it to 1941. The Ojai Valley Museum, reprinting a 1981 Ojai Valley News remembrance of Howard Bald, captions a photograph of him at his home at 917 McAndrew Road and notes that the house overlooked the valley from the East End. Two sources, one street number, and the same house.
What Neutra built on two acres
The published description of the house is specific, and it reads like a Neutra checklist. Stucco and redwood alternate around the walls. There is a screened porch, a curved corner, and a room painted a blue-green that Neutra specified. The cabinetry and hardware are reported to have been left alone over the years, and the bathrooms are described as original, which is rare for a house of this age. Later changes by an earlier owner were reversed.
Julius Shulman photographed the house, and published accounts credit those images to the Getty Research Institute. If you are researching a Neutra house anywhere in California, a Shulman photo set is one of the first things to look for, because it documents what the architect intended before decades of remodeling.
Howard Bald, the valley, and the neighbors
Howard Bald came to Southern California as a child to regain his health, then stayed in the Ojai Valley for the rest of his life. He graduated from Nordhoff High School in 1913 and was in his early fifties when Neutra drew his house. His neighbors and friends included the ceramicist Beatrice Wood and the potters Otto and Vivika Heino, which places the house inside the circle of artists who made the East End hills what they are. He served overseas in the First World War, then came home to the valley.
When his friends gathered in his memory, the Ojai Valley News recorded that they met in the breezeway of the house Beatrice Wood built, then moved to the pool in the patio just about when the pink moment settled on the hills. Someone remembered the night a fire broke out across McAndrew Road and Howard ran out of his house to put it out.
What should you ask about a Neutra-era house in Ojai before you buy?
When a house like this comes up, whether through a conversation or a listing, a few questions separate a significant house from a nice one. You can ask all of them without ever seeing the interior.
- Is the architect documented, and can the design be matched to published drawings or Shulman photographs?
- Which finishes and fixtures are original, and which were changed and later restored?
- Has the house been surveyed or designated? The City of Ojai and Ventura County keep separate landmark lists, and the historic homes guide explains how the rules and the Mills Act apply.
- What does the site allow? The tree ordinance and water rights both shape what an owner can change in the hills.
Debbie Pisaro is not the listing agent for 917 McAndrew Road. Debbie represents buyers on architectural homes across California, regardless of who holds a given listing, the same standing practice whether a home is on or off market.
Where the Bald House sits among Ojai's modern houses
Ojai's modern houses are a short list, and each one has a name. Beyond the two Neutra houses, there is the Harwell Hamilton Harris hilltop on Rancho Drive, the Rodney Walker houses, and the contemporary work gathered on the Ojai architectural homes map. For the older, Spanish and Arts and Crafts side of the valley, start with Casa Barranca.
Neutra's larger body of work sits in Los Angeles, where Debbie Pisaro's guide to Richard Neutra homes covers the houses she knows best. The full architect index is the architects guide.
Ojai in a California practice
Debbie Pisaro works across California through Coastline 840, from Los Angeles modernism to Ojai, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and Palm Springs. It is a boutique California practice with Side, Inc. behind it. Ojai is one of the few places in the state where a single valley holds work by Neutra, the Greene brothers, Paul Williams, and Harwell Hamilton Harris. Buyers who follow an architect tend to follow that architect up and down the coast, which is why this page is organized by name and address, not by zip code.
For more of the valley itself, from the East End to the village, start at Just Ojai.
My take on the Bald House
What I find compelling about the Bald House is how naturally Neutra's architecture belongs to its Ojai setting. It is not a house that needs to announce itself. The combination of stucco, redwood, softened corners, and carefully placed openings creates a quiet relationship between the architecture and the surrounding landscape.
I particularly like the idea of a home designed around the experience of looking outward, where the changing light, the valley below, and the mountains beyond become part of everyday life.
There is also something remarkable about the survival of so many original details. In a house of this age, that continuity gives you a much stronger sense of the architect's original thinking.
As someone who follows architect-designed homes across California, I find the Bald House especially interesting because it represents an earlier, more personal chapter of Neutra's work in Ojai, one that deserves to be recognized alongside the better-known Moore House. Debbie Pisaro
Frequently asked questions
Where are Ojai's modern homes for sale?
Ojai's modern houses are few and often change hands quietly. The strongest ones are tied to a named architect, such as Richard Neutra, Harwell Hamilton Harris, or Rodney Walker. Debbie Pisaro maps them by architect and address, so you can recognize a significant house before it reaches a portal, or before it ever lists.
Does Ojai have mid century modern homes?
Yes, though Ojai's modernism starts earlier than most people expect. Neutra's Bald House dates to 1941, a decade before his Moore House, and the mid century hilltop houses by Harwell Hamilton Harris and Rodney Walker followed. Each is a distinct design with its own preservation questions, not a tract style.
How many Neutra houses are in Ojai?
Published architectural records place two Neutra houses in Ojai: the Howard and Lois Bald House of 1941 on McAndrew Road, and the Moore House on North Foothill Road, which Debbie Pisaro covers in a separate field note. Both are private residences, and neither should be approached without the owner's invitation.
Where is the Bald House?
The Bald House stands at 917 McAndrew Road in Ojai, on about two acres in the East End hills, with views across the valley. It is a private residence. This page is architectural history, not a listing and not an invitation to visit, so please respect the owners' privacy and view it only through published photographs.
Is the Bald House for sale?
This page is not a listing, and Debbie Pisaro is not the listing agent for 917 McAndrew Road. Houses of this caliber often trade privately, between people who already know the architect's name. If you want to hear about architect-designed Ojai houses before they list, the off-market box on this page is the place to start.
Who photographed the Bald House?
Yes. Julius Shulman photographed the Bald House, and published accounts credit those images to the Getty Research Institute. For anyone researching a Neutra house in California, a Shulman set is one of the first records to find, because it shows what the architect intended before later owners remodeled.
What should I check before buying a Neutra-era house in Ojai?
Start with the record: whether the architect is documented, which finishes are original, and whether the house has been surveyed or designated by the City of Ojai or Ventura County. Then check the site itself, because the tree ordinance and water rights both limit what an owner can change in the hills.
Who is a good real estate agent for architect-designed homes in Ojai?
Look for an agent who can name the architect, the year, and the preservation history of a house without checking a listing sheet. Debbie Pisaro, a Real Estate Salesperson with Coastline 840, works on architectural houses across California, Ojai among them. Her Ojai architectural homes specialist page explains how she approaches them.
For the way Debbie approaches the valley's architectural houses, see her Ojai architectural homes specialist page, or her guide to choosing the best real estate agent in Ojai. If you need an Ojai realtor for a house with a name, that is where to start.
Sources: Pacific Coast Architecture Database, Ojai Valley Museum archive, and Esoteric Survey. This page is architectural history about a private residence. It is not a listing.
Debbie Pisaro is a 24-year veteran, founder of Coastline 840, and an Inman Luxury Leader, representing buyers and sellers across Ojai and the surrounding neighborhoods. Many of the homes she sells never reach the open market.
Written by Debbie Pisaro, Real Estate Salesperson, DRE #01369110, a specialist in architectural and historic homes across California. More about her on her about page. Coastline 840 is a boutique California practice and a DBA of Side, Inc., CA DRE #02014153. Powered by Side: #1 California-based brokerage, No. 9 in the nation.
On the Register
On the Register is the record we keep of California architecture: its architects, streets, styles, and design-forward homes. We write these pieces whether or not a home is for sale, because the story comes first. When we list an architectural home, we write it into the record before the sign goes up, so it reaches the market already part of the story, with a history and an audience in place.
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