You Won’t Guess Where You’ll Find This Rambling Ranch

Would you believe it’s in Hollywood Heights?

Because it is!

We have a 1940s Rambling Ranch in the neighborhood and so much more. Even though Hollywood Heights has one of the largest collections of stone-embellished Tudor homes in America, there is really a style here that will fit everyone. You can find Spanish Eclectic and Minimal Traditional, great Ranch homes, and even a couple of Pueblos.

But this Hollywood Rambling Ranch stands out.

It has caught my eye for years because it’s completely different from other homes in the neighborhood. I regularly walk the beasts by it, and about a year ago I met the owners, a lovely young couple named Ashley and Brandon Marlow.

When their Hollywood Rambling Ranch popped up on Realtor.com recently, I gave Ashley a call.

“We absolutely love this house, and the neighborhood is a gem,” she said. “We’re not leaving, just moving down the street for a bit more room.”

Ashley and Brandon are typical of many young couples who want to be in a friendly neighborhood but are not particularly in love with Tudor homes.

“The curb appeal sold us,” Ashley said. “We love the Rambling Ranch one-story style and how it hugs the corner, especially how it is sited up on a little hill. We sit out on the front porch most mornings having coffee and saying hello to the neighbors walking their dogs.”

A Popular Midcentury Style

Cliff May popularized the ranch-style home on the West Coast in the 1930s. He began his career designing furniture, and it became so sought-after that a developer suggested placing his furniture in a home for sale. It blew off the market, making May essentially the first home stager in America.

Because of the immense popularity of his designs and how quickly these houses sold, May decided to turn his attention to creating his own home design. The rest is, of course, history.

The ranch style had been around for centuries, based on the rancho home style brought here by the Spanish. May took that original concept, modernized and simplified it, and by the end of the 1950s, his designs were so popular they had spread across the Southwest.

It is no surprise the style was embraced in Texas because the Rambling Ranch is ideally suited for our climate, with low-pitched gable roofs and extended eaves providing shade from the sun. The open floor plan concept, which we think is so modern, was a feature of these 1930s and ’40s original designs. The sprawling shape allows light to flow through the house, and for that connectivity to the outdoors, we all crave.

It’s always fun to look at the history of a home to ferret out any details.

This 1,876-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-bathroom Rambling Ranch was owned by Malcom F. Sumner for years. He was a plastering contractor, so you can bet the house was beautifully maintained.

There is always something quirky and cool in any Hollywood Heights house, and this one has two doors. The main door faces Blair, and there is a little door facing Vivian. Ashley said she learned it was the tradesmen’s entrance years ago!

Another unusual feature of the property is the enormous backyard. For anyone that loves to entertain outside, there’s plenty of room for adults and children to have fun and not get in each other’s way! Having lived in this neighborhood for a few decades and written extensively about it, I can tell you a big yard is an anomaly.

Coldwell Banker Realty‘s Elizabeth Mello has 6935 Vivian Ave. listed for $684,000. If you know Hollywood Heights, you know that’s an excellent price for a terrific home. With interest in ranch-style homes at an all-time high, I don’t expect this one to be on the market very long.