The best midcentury modern homes, particularly those in the Pacific Northwest, involve some gorgeous, usually understated woodwork. This home—which cabinetmaker Charles E. Grant designed and built for himself in 1952, long before the Brentwood-Darlington neighborhood was officially part of the city—is a little more stated than most while evoking the same sleek, natural tones. If you like a 1950s built-in, this is the home for you.

The floor plan follows some classic geometry of the era. The front door opens to an airy living and dining room, complete with vaulted ceilings, tucked away from the rest of the home behind decorative room dividers. But everything just has a little extra magic. The two dividers that offset this particular living room each have an ornate floral relief at the center, surrounded by a lattice in a Chinese motif. Both have drawers facing the living room for a built-in sideboard at the base.

The windows opposite run floor to ceiling but have bold wood casings that frame the small, ornamental trees just outside. Otherwise, the walls are mostly made of wood-grain panels so large that it’s hard to see the seams at first glance. On the dining room side—opposite the minimalist wood-burning fireplace—recessed cabinets nearly disappear into the wall, save for some subtle brass hardware. 

The suite just off the living room also shows off some woodwork, starting with a built-in desk and wardrobes in a short vestibule. In the bedroom, there’s a peaked vault ceiling, a whole patterned wall reaching up into it; square tiles alternating grains to give a kind of parquet or woven effect. The room also has its own private fireplace recessed into floor-to-ceiling brick and its own private patio area, sheltered by a generous overhang and nestled into some landscaping.

The home’s other bedroom, while not blessed with an en suite bathroom, has some sweet details of its own: a vaulted ceiling, sliding glass doors to the patio with stained glass sidelights, and built-in bookshelves.

Interestingly, three different doors lead to the small laundry room: one from the en suite bath, one from the main bath, and another from outside. It’s exactly the kind of quirk that exists in a house that someone built for themself.

Just down the road from Errol Heights Park, the house features landscaping that isn’t lawn-centric, as is common with midcentury moderns—there’s a small patch in case you want to sit down and read in some grass, but most wide open areas are concrete patios. The surrounding foliage layers different colors and textures of trees and bushes into a kind of high-design mini forest. There’s a hot tub, too.

Listing Fast Facts 

• Address: 5655 SE Harney Dr, Portland, OR 97206
• Size: 4,904 square feet, 2 bedrooms/2 bath
• List Date: 9/20/2024
• List Price: $850,000
• Listing Agent: Marisa Swenson and Megan Kondrasky, Modern Homes Collective

Editor’s Note: Portland Monthly’s “Property Watch” column takes a weekly look at an interesting home in Portland’s real estate market (with periodic ventures to the burbs and points beyond, for good measure). Got a home you think would work for this column? Get in touch at [email protected].