Former craftsman bungalow turned three-story home asks $3.65 million

Technically, the house at 4031 21st Street dates to 1916, but 101 years worth of remodels, redesigns, and renovations may pose something of an existential question as to whether the same house is actually the same house anymore.

Back when it was freshly built, this Dolores Heights home was a comparably simple single-story, two-bedroom, one-bath craftsman hut, a rather less ambitious form than it appears in today.

It was sometime in the 1990s—or so SocketSite said the last time 4031 21st came up to market in 2012—that a previous owner decided to go for broke and accordion the old home upward into new proportions, resulting in the three-story, three bed, two bath home we have today.

After that 2012 sale (for $2.59 million), yet another renovation ensued. No extra floors came out of this one, but the ad does provide a fairly exhaustive list of other changes. It also, however, goes out of its way to qualify changes that weren’t made, namely:

No cold modern renovation here. [...] he entire renovation was thoughtfully considered and designed to create a warm and welcoming home in which to engage, live and entertain.

In other words, no big white open floor plan with glass banisters. Instead the work went into creating something a little more organic and non-confrontational, although still a noticeable departure from the classical look on display five years ago.

And of course, there’s a new price: $3.65 million.

• 4031 21st Street [Sotheby’s]
• Building On a Bungalow’s Bones [SocketSite]