Futuro House, the bizarre 1960s prefabricated home designed by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen, is a sci-fi lover’s dream home. It looks like a spacecraft, with an oval-shaped layout that stands on slim, metal legs. Fewer than 100 of these homes were built, and they are now mostly abandoned. But you could own one of these UFO dwellings, now named Donaldson Futuro, if you have $1.5 million to spare.
Historic preservationist Milford Wayne Donaldson and his wife, Laurie Donaldson, own one of the homes. It’s a portable dwelling, making it ecologically friendly since its construction limits impact to the build site.
The Donaldson Futuro House underwent extensive restoration but retained Suuronen’s original 1969 design, materials, and workmanship. It still features the elliptical yellow fiberglass shell and porthole windows. It also retained the modularity of some components, allowing on-site installation.
Moreover, Suuronen’s original concept also proposed only four concrete pillars to support the structure. This eliminates extensive foundations and construction impact on the surrounding terrain. This version on sale measures 26.2 feet (about eight meters) in diameter and 13 feet (four meters) high, putting it in the modern tiny house category.
The Donaldson Futuro House weighs about 5,398 kg and offers 800 square feet of livable space decked in kaleidoscopic color palettes, including lime green, pastel blue, white, yellow, red, and more. Designed to heat up quickly, it features fiberglass-reinforced polyester plastic with thick polyurethane insulation, suggesting it’s ideal for colder environments.
This perfect mirror of Suuronen’s Futuro House now sits on a 0.23-hectare property in the San Jacinto Mountains near Idyllwild. The Donaldson Futuro House stands as a rare piece of architectural history.
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Images courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty
