For first time, this one-of-a-kind, mid-century modern Sacramento home is for sale
In the mid-1960s, Sacramento pediatrician Dr. Walton Brainerd hired renowned architect John Harvey Carter to design his new home based on his love of bonsai.
The unique five-bedroom mid-century modern home in the Willhagin neighborhood was completed in 1965. Fifty-seven years later, the bonsai plants are gone, but the pleasing Japanese-inspired design and most of the original architectural details remain.
“I designed it principally as a zoned home for children and adults to include bonsai … Dr. Brainerd’s hobby,” John Harvey Carter told The Sacramento Union in an article about the house in 1969.
The serene home is entered through a peaceful front courtyard, where a wood bridge crosses a rock and water pond and leads to the full-glass front door.
Signature Carter elements stand out, including clerestory windows that allow natural light to stream in and distinguished roof lines. The floor-to-ceiling glass walls throughout the home allow for a different view of the garden and backyard from every room.
The Brainerd family is selling the home for $765,000. The new listing marks the first time the house has hit the market since it was built well over a half-century ago. There’s been only one owner.
Nobody expected the property at 523 Grosevnor Court to be available for long. After just one week on the market, the family was entertaining multiple offers. Hundreds of people visited during the first open house.
“During the open houses, it was like a Disneyland ride over there with so many people coming to see it,” said Gaby Moreira, a Sacramento Realtor whose website midmodsac.com and Instagram account midmodsacramento tracks the local mid-century modern market.
An offer on the home was pending on Tuesday.
The floor plan is comprised of two square sections — essentially, a kids wing and a parents wing — connected by a long hallway. On one side of the home is the primary suite and bathroom, study, kitchen, dining and living room. The remaining bedrooms, a laundry area and family room sit on the other side of the home. There are four bathrooms in all.
Sharp angles, vaulted ceilings and floating interior walls (where ceilings are left exposed and detached from the walls) bring a distinctive visual element to the interior. The floor-to-ceiling windows throughout the home offer views of four different sections of the backyard, including a swimming pool area.
There’s a tidy carport off the inviting driveway. Inside the house is ample storage space.
For homebuyers, there is a lot to love about the captivating home, Moreira said.
The residence “is definitely one of a kind, really special, unique property by John Harvey Carter,” she added. “I know it takes a unique buyer to want a home without a garage or with that kind of layout. But I think there’s definitely a market for that out there. There’s a strong indoor-outdoor connection because there’s nature all around, lots of windows, wood tones.”
The listing agent, Angela Heinzer of Coldwell Banker Realty, said the home stands out in its tranquility and untouched architectural details.
“Its beauty is evident the minute you walk in,” she said. “You feel the serenity, and the floor-to-ceiling windows capture all the beautiful greenery outside. That gives us the serene and peaceful feeling. It’s in its original condition, so it’s never been touched, and that’s what people love about it. We expect it to be loved and admired.”
Dr. Brainerd and his wife Joan raised their five children in the home, which is near Rio Americano and Jesuit high schools. His love for bonsai started with one plant as a gift, said his son Kirk Brainerd, a retired architect who once worked for John Harvey Carter. Walton Brainerd took a course in bonsai gardening, and that eventually led to an entire garden.
The doctor’s plants were displayed in a central bonsai court visible from inside the home.
“John (Harvey Carter) was real particular about designing the house,” Kirk Brainerd said. “And he had the knowledge and the skill to take the program and do an excellent job.”
This story was originally published October 25, 2022 at 1:08 PM.
