Dive into these 3 East Bay Eichlers with pools

Each complete with central courtyards

By Brock Keeling@BrockKeeling May 21, 2020, 11:12am PDT

A bulbous-shaped swimming pool next to a grassy lawn in front of a single-story home.

The swimming pool is a rare sight in San Francisco, where climate errs on the chilly side. But head east over the Bay Bridge and you’ll find neighborhoods riddled with these watering holes, including some in the backyards of highly sought-after—and pricey—midcentury Eichler homes.

Here’s a closer look at three pool-enhanced Eichlers that also come with courtyard atriums, a signature of the iconic developer, giving you the best of the great outdoors without having to leave home.

Exterior of a flat one-story home with a turquoise-painted double front door. A large, winding tree grows next to the door. — Note the double entry on the facade.

A sunny courtyard flanked on all sides by floor to ceiling windows that look inside the home.A big cut out in the courtyard reveals a shingled roof. — One of the largest atriums you’ll find in any Eichler.

A living room with a red brick fireplace a white shag run on top of a gleaming concrete floor. — Exposed beams and a brick fireplace highlight the living room.

A green lawn with a pool that looks like three bubble stuck to each other. — The renovated pool blends in nicely with landscaping.

253 Wiget Lane, Walnut Creek

$1.7 million

Located in Walnut Creek’s Northgate neighborhood, this circa-1969 Eichler, designed by Claude Oakland, comes with four bedrooms and two-and-a-half bathrooms. Considered a massive Eichler compared to its smaller cousins typically found in Palo Alto and San Rafael, this home measures 2,435 square feet. It’s also noted for its large open-air atrium fronted by a dramatic double-door entry.

Highlights here include a period-perfect Malm fireplace in the loggia, a living room with wood-burning brick fireplace, polished concrete floors, and of course, a pool. But this isn’t any pool; it’s a salt water pool, which produces softer-feeling water. Comfy.

The listing is through Thomas Westfall of Compass

The facade of a single-story home with a peaked roof in the center that looks like the shape of the letter A. — New landscaping can be found in the front and rear yards.

A living room with ceilings that peak at the center. A white-painted brick fireplace soars to the ceiling. — A spacious living room with floor-to-ceiling windows and a brick fireplace.

An open and airy dining area with midcentury dining table and dining chairs. Two glove light fixtures hang from the beamed ceiling. — Globe lighting highlights the formal dining area.

A kidney-shaped pool on a sunny day in front of the rear of the home. — A Marco Polo-ready pool.

8010 Shay Drive, Oakland

$1.55 million

This Oakland home, designed by famed architects A. Quincy Jones and Frederick E. Emmons, features four bedrooms and two bathrooms. The 2,421-square-foot Eicher is a double A-frame, noted for its two high-pitched roofs that form an atrium starting in the courtyard entrance and running to the back of the living room.

The circa-1965 house retains all of the period details that make Eichlers still so alluring—soaring ceilings, massive windows, globe lighting, and an open-floor plan—but a renovation has updated the kitchen and bathrooms.

The pool still bears its original, oh-so midcentury-modern kidney shape.

The listing is through Cheryl Berger of Compass.

A fluorescent lime green-painted beam adds color to an the neutral facade.

The atrium with its retractable roof closed.

Exposed beams and soaring ceilings in the living room.

5787 Highwood Road, Castro Valley

$1.35 million

Measuring roughly 2,000 square feet, this Castro Valley home, built in 1962, comes with five bedrooms and two bathrooms. This double A-frame specimen, also designed by Emmons and Jones, features new tile flooring, a motorized retractable roof for the central atrium, skylights, a gas-heated pool, and—uncover your eyes, midcentury purists—an unpainted brick wood-burning fireplace.

The listing is through Thomas Westfall of Compass.