The Donaldson Futuro, an orange, UFO-shaped home near Idyllwild, California, was reported for sale in October 2026 for about $1.5 million. The listing page showed an asking price of $1,495,000 and active status when updated October 6, but sale listings can change. [SFGATE; Land.com listing]
Where is the UFO-looking house in California?
The property is at 52895 Big Rock Road in the Idyllwild vicinity of Riverside County. It is the Donaldson Futuro, a real prefabricated dwelling—not a flying saucer or a recently built novelty house. The California Office of Historic Preservation record identifies the location as Idyllwild (vicinity), while the sale listing gives Idyllwild, CA 92549. [California Office of Historic Preservation; Land.com listing]
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What is the Donaldson Futuro?
Built in 1969, the home belongs to the Futuro design created by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen. Its orange, ellipsoid shell was designed as a portable, prefabricated dwelling and is made of fiberglass-reinforced polyester plastic, according to the National Register nomination draft. That material and construction approach make it an unusual example of late-1960s experimental housing, rather than a conventional site-built house. [California Office of Historic Preservation; National Register nomination draft]
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The nomination draft estimates the shell at about 26 feet 4 inches across, 13 feet 2 inches high, and approximately 11,900 pounds. It gives the home’s area as 520 square feet. The current property listing instead advertises 793 square feet; these are conflicting figures from different records, and neither should be treated as a confirmed, independently reconciled measurement. [National Register nomination draft; Land.com listing]
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How did the house get to Idyllwild?
The home was moved from San Diego to the Idyllwild area in 2004. SFGATE reported that an airlift could not complete the move, so the house made the final trip by flatbed truck. Its original portability concept did not mean that relocating this particular structure was a simple or purely aerial operation. [SFGATE]
What is its historic status?
The National Park Service’s 2021 weekly list records the Donaldson Futuro at 52895 Big Rock Road, Idyllwild vicinity, as added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 4, 2021 (reference SG100005994). Heritage Architecture & Planning also identifies it as California Historical Landmark No. 1062, recognized in 2021. [National Park Service weekly list; Heritage Architecture & Planning]
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How rare are Futuro houses?
SFGATE reported that about 50 of the 100 Futuros originally constructed survive. That is a news-reported estimate, not an official current census, but it conveys why this home is notable beyond its striking shape. [SFGATE]
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What is known about the sale listing?
SFGATE’s October 8, 2026 report rounded the asking price to $1.5 million. The Land.com page reproducing the Idyllwild MLS listing showed $1,495,000, active status, and an October 6, 2026 update; it also listed the parcel at 0.56 acre. Those are listing details, not a sale result or independent property measurements, and the price and availability may have changed since publication. [SFGATE; Land.com listing]
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