By Libertina Brandt

The specs

   -- List Price: $2.3 million 
 
   -- Size: 2,000 square feet 
 
   -- 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms 
 
   -- Land: 9 acres 

From paddles to offer

In 2006, Deborah and Greg Lapp were kayaking down the Kings River in California's San Joaquin Valley when they spotted a for sale sign on a stretch of shoreline.

The pair happened to be on the hunt for a riverfront property. They pulled their kayak ashore and inspected the land, which had an old barn on it. "'This is big enough for a house,'" Deborah recalls saying.

Both retired teachers, they kayaked back to base and called the Realtor. "We memorized the phone number," Deborah says. "I memorized the first half and he memorized the second half."

They closed on the land for about $640,000 later that same year and tapped architect Arthur Dyson, who studied under Frank Lloyd Wright, to design their dream home.

Made for music

It took about four years and $1.5 million for their vision to come to life. The single-level home was designed to blend in with the Sierra Nevadas foothills in the distance.

Greg is a musician, and loved hosting concerts with Deborah. The home was designed to be acoustically tuned, with a curved indoor ceiling and ductwork routed through the floors instead of the ceilings. The living room was built around Greg's circa-1902 Steinway piano. Built-in cabinets can hold about 50 folding chairs, which the couple used for concerts.

Outside, they installed a pool and a bocce court, and planted a vineyard. Near the home, they converted a storage container into a wine cave, which has a wall of wine corks that took Deborah about two years to create.

The Lapps also kept the old barn on the property and converted the upstairs into a one-bedroom guest apartment. Greg used the first level as a wood shop and to make wine.

Can't-miss features

Most of the home's furniture is built in, including the bookshelves. There are indoor and outdoor built-in benches along the sides of the home and a round kitchen island with a 3-foot Lazy-susan that rotates.

Reason for selling?

Deborah and Greg are moving near New York's Catskill Mountains to be closer to Deborah's daughter -- but will miss California. They often hiked and biked in Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon National Park, and kayaked along the Kings River.

Market snapshot

There are few homes along the Kings River, according to Nader Assemi of SME Real Estate, who shares the listing with his colleague Layla Granata. When these riverfront homes hit the market, they often list for upward of $1 million.

The Lapp home is the third most expensive property currently for sale in Sanger. If it sells at or near its asking price, it will break the city's home sale record, which currently sits at $1.92 million, according to Realtor.com

Write to Libertina Brandt at Libertina.Brandt@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 18, 2025 15:15 ET (19:15 GMT)

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