What is it?
One of the iconic home styles of Portland is the Four Square Craftsman: These are a specific style of home built roughly between 1895 and 1930. Do you like vintage features, and spacious rooms? Do you enjoy sitting on a front porch? This style may be for you! Characterized by front porches, high ceilings, formal foyers and built ins, you’ll find Four Squares dotted throughout Portland’s inner east side.
Where Can I see one?
Today at Living Room Realty we have TWO new Four Square Craftsman Listings on the market!
This one is my listing, located at 2344 NE 55th in the Rose City Park neighborhood. Built in 1910 and cared for the past 50+ years by one family, one of whom was a wood worker, some of the original woodwork has been rebuilt, including the main staircase and millwork around the doorways, in keeping with the original. The house still has the quintessential Four Square feel with a big front porch, large rooms and bright light from large windows. With 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths in the house, plus 1 bed and bath in the separate guest house, it’s priced at $785,000.
Over in the Overlook neighborhood, you’ll find a more affordable option, albeit in fixer condition (I love fixers! It’s always exciting to imagine the history, and envision the potential!) Located at 2021 N Sumner, and listed by Kim Parmon of Living Room Realty, this house has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and 2,354 sq feet. List price? $375,000!
What’s so Special?
As the name suggests, Four Square homes often look square, and include four rooms on the first level (living, dining, kitchen and entry) and four rooms on the second level. They frequently have a centered dormer on top, which today are often used as primary bedrooms or suites. Typical original features are box beam ceilings, hardwood flooring, built in features inside, and stone, brick, and clapboard, shake, or wood siding on the exterior.
One reason American Four Squares became popular was because they were economical to build, and liked by a wide range of home occupants, from families to renters and landlords.
Across the USA in many cities including Portland, Chicago, Atlanta, Minneapolis, even Las Vegas, you’ll see many variations on the theme, with modest, and more luxury adaptations. These houses are a key part of our architectural history, and many survive because they are still loved, and live large even today. A style to transcend the decades.
A couple more examples:
With the popularity of walk in showers, people ask me: can I remove the only bathtub in my home? Will it hurt resale value?