Four Mid-Century Modern Homes for Sale in East County & Poway

Four of the most interesting mid-century and organic modern homes in San Diego County are on the market right now, all within a short drive of each other in Horizon Hills, Mount Helix and Poway's Green Valley. Asking prices run from $1,598,880 to $2,700,000.

These are not tract houses with a few clerestory windows. Two are by Sim Bruce Richards, the Frank Lloyd Wright apprentice who shaped San Diego's woodsy modernism. Three carry built-in work by artist James Hubbell. Each one sits on close to an acre or more, wrapped in boulders, oaks and views.

Think of this as a gallery walk where you can buy the art. Scroll through each home below, then come see them in person.

01. The Collector's House: 10923 Horizon Hills Dr, El Cajon

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The designer. Al Brooks built this house in 1968 in Horizon Hills, the hillside enclave just east of Mount Helix where custom modernist homes went up on big, view-heavy lots through the 1960s.

The house. Light is the main event here. Floor-to-ceiling glass and vaulted ceilings pull daylight into every room. The owner, a vintage modern furniture and art dealer, has spent her time here on a top-to-bottom restoration that respects 1968 while using natural, nontoxic materials most remodels skip.

What the owner has done:

• Walls: gutted, insulated and re-sheetrocked. Living areas are finished in nontoxic Roman clay by American Clay, which helps filter the air and moderate temperature. All other rooms freshly painted.
• Floors: 3/4-inch, long-length, wide-plank solid European white oak throughout, sealed with a nontoxic German water-based finish. Bedrooms have lifetime wool carpet over natural latex padding from New Zealand. Poured-in-place terrazzo.
• Kitchen: gut remodel with new appliances and custom walnut cabinetry.
• Primary bath: gut remodel with an oversized, extra-deep soaking tub, redwood cladding, slate floors and handmade Japanese-style wall tile inspired by the Esalen redesign.
• Hall bath: a hand-applied, waterproof tadelakt-style wet room with handmade Clé tiles from Spain and built-in double vanities.
• Third bath: gut remodeled. New plumbing throughout, plus high-efficiency, vacuum-assist toilets in the primary and hall baths.
• Millwork and doors: custom-milled European white oak baseboards, door jambs and trim, with new solid-core wood doors.
• Lighting: fixtures replaced with period-appropriate collectible pieces by American and Danish designers.
• Systems: central heating, three mini-split systems for zoned heating and cooling, a new water heater and an additional electrical panel designed by an electrical engineer. The home is on septic.
• Exterior: Brazilian teak cladding.
• Extras for the buyer: spare oak floor finish and Roman clay material for future touch-ups.

The grounds. The landscaping is all native plants that need next to no water, and the property is a designated wildlife sanctuary. A biomorphic in-ground hot tub sits between huge granite boulders and pines, fully restored with its equipment repaired or replaced. Add a lily pond and a flagstone firepit made for long evenings outside.

Why it stands out. It is the entry point of this group: under $1.6M for a single-level, era-original modern home on more than an acre.

02. The Stephens Residence by Sim Bruce Richards: 16208 Orchard Bend Rd, Poway

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The architect. Sim Bruce Richards (1908 to 1983) was born of Cherokee descent in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and apprenticed with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin in the 1930s. He arrived in San Diego in 1938 and spent his career designing custom homes in wood and glass that read like they grew out of the hillside. Source: Modern San Diego

The house. Designed for James and Dee Stephens, this is Richards in his late, mature period: warm timber, big glass and rooflines that follow the land. Built-in work by sculptor James Hubbell and ceramist Rhoda LeBlanc Lopez is woven into the house rather than hung on the walls, and two wood-burning fireplaces keep the evenings cozy.

The grounds. The acre is full of trees, boulders and native plants. A long deck runs the length of the house and wraps the pool, then leads to a front patio built for sunset.

Why it stands out. A genuine Richards with a fresh $50,000 price cut, in Green Valley and inside the Poway Unified School District.

03. The La Chapelle / Stonehill Residence by Robert Thiele: 16512 Wilderness Rd, Poway

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The architect. Robert Thiele designed this house for the La Chapelle family, and it was built by Earth Form Builder. The brief was organic architecture: a home that belongs to its site instead of sitting on top of it. James Hubbell and ceramist Rhoda Lopez joined the project, along with craftsmen working in adobe, carved wood and glass.

The house. It reads more like a sculpture than a floor plan. Curving adobe walls and deep scalloped eaves pull the roof out into a granite boulder field. You enter through a Hubbell door and stained glass into a circular living room built around a sculpted fireplace, with the kitchen, bedrooms and baths radiating off it. Lopez's clay work shows up as lighting and bas-relief in several rooms.

Why it stands out. It is the most original house on this list, and a $310,000 price reduction makes it the value story. It sits about a mile from the Stephens Residence, so you can see both in one trip.

04. The Engstrand Residence by Sim Bruce Richards: 9450 Sunset Ave, La Mesa (Mount Helix)

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The architect. This is Sim Bruce Richards again, a decade earlier than the Stephens Residence and at full strength. It is one of the best examples of his woodsy, organic modernism anywhere in the county.

The house. Set high on its own bluff on Mount Helix, the house takes in views that reach the Pacific and the Coronado Islands. Hubbell's hand is everywhere: stained glass at the entry, a sculpted light fixture in the foyer, hand-carved balustrades and fireplaces that follow the curves of the interior.

The extras. A pool and spa sit in a private corner of the grounds, next to an activity room with its own half bath. Over the carport, a separate 1 bed / 1 bath apartment has worked as both a rental and a studio.

Why it stands out. Historic designation is already done and the Mills Act savings are already in place, so the tax benefit transfers with the home. It is about 7 minutes from the Horizon Hills house.

Side by Side

Price per square foot is the list price divided by living space, rounded. Pricing and status as of October 17, 2026; confirm before you write an offer.

See Them in Person

Architecture like this never photographs as well as it lives. Stand in the circular living room at Stonehill or watch the light move across the glass in Horizon Hills, and you will understand why these homes rarely come up for sale.

Want a private tour, open house times, or a read on how these compare to recent sales? Reach out to me directly.

Josh Taylor | Compass | 760.704.3820 | [email protected] | aussiejosh.com

Listing courtesy of Agents of Architecture. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed.