Iconic Californian Lair For Sale – Lautner’s Garcia House

John Lautner's Garcia House – an iconic Californian Lair – is for sale through Aaron Kirman with an asking price of $12.5m

Suspended high above a Los Angeles canyon, poised on 60-foot stilts like a futuristic perch, Garcia House is one of California’s most distinctive residences. Designed in 1962 by visionary architect John Lautner, the home is both a work of art and a cinematic lair — a structure that has captivated architecture enthusiasts, Hollywood filmmakers, and dreamers of bold design for decades.

A Rainbow in the Hills

Also known as the Rainbow House, Garcia House sits along Mulholland Drive in the Hollywood Hills, its dramatic parabolic roofline rising 30 feet above stained-glass windows that cast kaleidoscopic light across the interior. The effect is nothing short of theatrical: part sanctuary, part spaceship, part cinematic set. It is one of Lautner’s most celebrated works, a home that seamlessly merges architecture with drama and landscape.

Built to Defy Gravity

The property’s design is as daring as it is beautiful. Resting on 60-foot steel caissons, the structure appears to hover above the canyon, supported with the confidence of an engineering marvel. A 55-foot wall of windows frames sweeping views across Los Angeles, giving the sense that the house is both anchored to the hillside and floating above the city lights.

Arrive at the lava rock entryway and you are immediately met with Lautner’s commitment to tactile detail — from original terrazzo flooring to the home’s iconic curved ceiling that feels more cathedral than residence.

Faithful Restoration

In recent years, Garcia House has undergone a meticulous restoration by Marmol Radziner, a firm renowned for its sensitivity to historic architecture. Every update — from structural improvements to modern amenities — has been executed in perfect alignment with Lautner’s original vision, ensuring that the property remains not only livable but timeless. The restoration preserved both the bold futurism of the 1960s and the functional elegance that defines Lautner’s work.

The Pool That Nearly Was

A highlight of the property is its pool terrace, built in 2008 according to Lautner’s original drawings but never realized during his lifetime. Designed by landscape architect John Sharp, the lush gardens and pool setting complete the vision, cascading down the hillside in a harmony of concrete, glass, and greenery.

A Proven On-Screen Lair

Garcia House has more than architectural pedigree; it has Hollywood credentials. The home was famously used in Lethal Weapon 2 as the lair-like headquarters of a South African drug cartel. In one of the film’s most memorable moments, Mel Gibson’s character rigs his jeep to the property’s stilts, sending the house crashing down the hillside (via studio mock-up). Its cinematic cameo cemented the home’s reputation as more than just an icon of architecture — it is a ready-made lair for the big screen.  See below for a Youtube video of that particular, iconic scene.

The connection to movie lairs runs deeper still: Lautner’s Elrod House in Palm Springs played a starring role in Diamonds Are Forever, where James Bond (Sean Connery) battled assassins amid its futuristic interiors. Garcia House is cut from the same cloth — a structure so striking, it feels destined for legends.

A Piece of Living History

Comprising 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and 2,596 square feet, Garcia House balances intimacy with grandeur. For those who acquire it, the home offers not only a private residence but also an architectural landmark — a place where art, design, and storytelling converge.

This is more than a house. It is a stage set, a landmark, and a lair — a property that embodies mid-century daring, Hollywood mythology, and the genius of John Lautner.

For the discerning buyer, Garcia House represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: the chance to live in an icon, to wake each morning in a structure that has already transcended time, and to claim a lair worthy of both cinematic legend and architectural history.