Los Angeles’ long history as a major television and film capital means that it’s not uncommon to stroll through one of the city’s diverse neighborhoods and stumble upon a house or apartment building that you immediately recognize as a beloved character’s home.
Though many famous television residences were built especially for filming, some iconic exteriors were once just regular homes—and reverted to private residences after the series’ finales. So, if you’re a TV fan looking to move in Los Angeles, keep an eye for listings that look strikingly familiar. Your favorite television abode might just be looking for a new owner.
Ozzie and Harriet’s House
The classic 100-year-old colonial house, with five bedrooms, five and half baths and a pool, sits on a beautiful half-acre plot in the Hollywood Hills, a neighborhood featuring winding residential streets and dazzling cliffside views. The residence was the real-life home of the Nelson family, whose patriarch, Ozzie Nelson, created, directed and starred in the television show that epitomized the culture of the 1950’s: The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. The house is one of the most recognizable residences in LA because it also served as the exterior for the Nelsons’ on-screen home during the show’s record-holding 14-season run from 1952–1966.
Built in 1916, the house was bought in 2014 by actor Christopher Meloni (Law and Order: SVU) for $5.25 million.
The Brady Bunch House
Reportedly the second most photographed house in the United States, this modest 3-bedroom home is famous for having been featured for the exterior shots in the iconic mid-century show about a blended family: The Brady Bunch. The show ran for 5 seasons from 1969–1974 but has never been off the air, keeping the Brady residence fresh in our minds for forty years. The Brady family was supposed to have lived in a Southern California city like Los Angeles, though it was never explicitly stated. It’s quite possible the inspiration for the show’s setting came from the home’s real-life location: the equally residential and hip Studio City neighborhood.
One of the most astonishing revelations about the house is that, despite never serving as an interior filming location for the show, it has been preserved in pristine 1970’s décor, with wood-paneled walls, thick carpeting, and period wallpaper. It sold in 2018 for $3.5 million, almost double the asking price, after a bidding war between HGTV and former NSYNC member Lance Bass. Ultimately, HGTV won and plans to use the home in a future undisclosed show.
Carswell and Partners not only brokered the deal, but we had an inside attachment to the property. One of our co-listing agents, Spencer Daly’s aunt was Kayla Pressman, longtime agent representing Florence Henderson, who played Carol Brady.
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Happy Days House
The fictional Cunningham family, most well known for their permanent houseguest, Arthur “Fonzie ” Fonzarelli, lived out 11 seasons of blissfully Happy Days in this 6-bedroom house. The show was set in the 1950’s Midwest United States, but it was actually filmed in Los Angeles from 1974–1984 in Mid-Wilshire, a central neighborhood boasting historic buildings and cultural destinations like the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art).
The 3,904 square foot Cunningham House was built in 1923 and last sold for $422,000 in 1995. If the house went up for sale today, Zillow estimates it would list for nearly $3.5 million.
Seinfeld Apartment Building
The building that housed Jerry Seinfeld’s apartment made appearances in nearly every episode of Seinfeld’s 9-season run. It was supposedly located in Manhattan’s Upper West Side, but in fact, the building used for the recognizable exterior shots was a small 5-story building in trendy Koreatown just northwest of downtown. The neighborhood is known for its robust cultural diversity and under-the-radar hotspots. There haven’t been any noticeable changes to the building’s exterior since Seinfeld’s first season aired in 1989.
The building, known as The Shelley, houses 49 studio and 1-bedroom apartments. Though there are currently no available rentals in the building, you could expect the small units (ranging from 600–750 square feet) to go for around $2500/month.
Don Draper’s Mad Men House
We were first introduced to this dignified home in 2007, when the first season of AMC’s Emmy award-winning series Mad Men debuted. During its 7 seasons, show followed the lives involved with a prominent advertising agency during the glamorous 1960’s. The main character was Don Draper, who lived for three years in the house he bought with his first wife Betty.
Though in the show it was said to be located in New York along the Hudson River north of New York City, the residence actually is in South Pasadena just outside Los Angeles. The wooded residential neighborhood was ideal to represent the glory days of American suburbia. Built in 1916, the house was most recently sold in 2002 for just under $1 million. Today, Zillow estimates it’s worth over $2.2 million.
