Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hills-De Caro House Sells in Oak Park

The record sale of a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home in Oak Park sets a new valuation benchmark for the architect’s residential portfolio in the Chicago area.

The six-bedroom property on 313 Forest Avenue closed at $2.3 million, exceeding the initial asking price by $5,000. According to Crain’s, this is the highest price paid for a Wright design in the region in recent years. It surpasses the 2024 sale of the Winslow House in River Forest, which previously held the recent record at $2.2 million.

A contract was signed just days after the property was brought to market in August. Due to the rapid nature of the offer, the home was never officially listed on the Multiple Listing Service.

Compass agent Eudice Fogel, who represented the sellers alongside Jayme Slate and Pamela Linn, told the outlet that the property attracted immediate interest from highly motivated buyers. The deal closed on Tuesday, following an unusually long seven-month contract period.

This extended timeline arrangement allowed the sellers, Sallie and Mark Smylie, sufficient time to relocate after 25 years of stewardship. Fogel said that finding buyers willing to accommodate such flexible terms was a critical factor in the successful closing.

Cynthia Howe Gajewski of Beyond Properties, the agent for the buyers, told the publication that the new owners are committed to maintaining the home’s historical integrity. One of the buyers has a long-standing personal connection to the neighborhood’s architectural heritage, having grown up in the immediate area.

Known as the Hills-De Caro House, the residence is a 1900 remodel of an existing Victorian structure built in 1883 near the late Wright’s own home and studio, as previously reported in The Real Deal. Wright’s design features distinct Japanese influences, including exaggerated roof peaks reminiscent of pagodas he observed during his travels abroad.

Wright’s client, Nathan Moore, purchased the home in 1900 as a gift for his daughter. Wright updated the 6,350-square-foot home in his Prairie style, turning the home 90 degrees in the process.

The Smylies’ tenure involved extensive restoration efforts to return the interior to Wright’s original earthy color palette, replacing later modifications. They also updated the kitchen and basement using design cues consistent with the Prairie School aesthetic to ensure modern functionality, according to the outlet.

The property includes unique details, such as the living room fireplace and the primary bedroom fireplace that feature narrow, horizontal Roman bricks, and built-in bookcases are featured throughout. The yard has a ticket booth originally brought from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. It was first used as a children’s playhouse by one of the first families to live in the home.

— Eric Weilbacher