After losing their Los Angeles home in the wildfire, a California family bought a $1 historic house and moved it onto their burned property | World News
A California family has found a unique way to rebuild after losing its Altadena home in the devastating Eaton fire. Instead of constructing a new house, it bought a nearly 100-years-old historic home for just $1 and moved it to the burned property. The house, nicknamed ‘Pinky,’ was facing demolition in Hollywood before the family stepped in to save it. The 2,500-square-foot Tudor Revival home was divided into two sections, transported 26 miles by truck and placed on the family’s empty lot. This remarkable move is part of the ‘Historic House Relocation Project,’ an initiative designed to preserve older Los Angeles homes while helping families displaced by wildfires. For the Martinez family, this solution offered a larger home filled with historic character, while giving an endangered house another chance to become part of a community again.
How did a $1 house become new home for the California family
Lauren Martinez and her husband learned about the Historic House Relocation Project, launched by Los Angeles architecture firm ‘Omgivning’ in 2025. The project finds older homes that are facing demolition and matches them with families rebuilding after the wildfires. The idea is relatively simple, even if the actual work is not. A house that might otherwise be demolished is purchased, carefully taken apart or divided into sections, transported to another property and then restored. For the Martinezes, the right house was a nearly 100-years-old Tudor Revival property in Hollywood. It had been well maintained and still featured hardwood floors throughout. The one-storey house measured about 2,500 square feet and contained four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Most remarkably, the family bought it for only $1. They gave the house a nickname ‘Pinky’ that reflected how quickly it became part of the family and because it was pink inside and out. Martinez said that the house felt as though it carried years of love and character with it.
Martinez purchased this 100-year-old home in Hollywood for $1. Image Credit Omgivning
What happened to the Martinez family’s original home
The Martinez family had lived in their Altadena home for 8 years and were raising their children, when the Eaton fire destroyed it in January 2025. Lauren Martinez was eight months pregnant with her third child when she received messages warning her to stay away from the neighbourhood. The following day, her husband saw the smouldering rubble of their family home. The family later found themselves living in a rental while considering how to rebuild. But the financial reality made a traditional replacement difficult. According to Realtor, Martinez said insurance would not have provided enough money to recreate the home they had lost at the same size. Building again would have meant accepting a smaller, simpler house. That pushed the family to consider a very different option of moving an existing historic house onto their land.
Moving an entire house across Los Angeles
Moving a house is considerably more complicated than transporting ordinary furniture. The Martinez project required months of planning involving architects, contractors and specialist movers. The house had to be divided along what was considered its most suitable natural seam. Omgivning creative director ‘Morgan Sykes Jaybush’ compared the process to slicing a loaf of bread. Each half then had to be prepared for transport and moved separately. On 12 January 2026, the first half was secured with wood, mounted on steel beams and placed on a flatbed tractor-trailer. It travelled 26 miles from Hollywood to Altadena during the night. Four days later, the second half made the same journey. The Los Angeles Conservancy reports that the wider Historic House Relocation Project requires careful evaluation and documentation before a house is moved. Once relocated, each property needs a new foundation and must be rehabilitated to meet modern building codes while retaining its historic character.
Relocation, instead of demolition of the historic houses
The project is tackling two problems at once. According to the Los Angeles Conservancy, many older homes in LA face demolition as neighbourhoods change and redevelopment takes place. At the same time, families affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires need ways to rebuild without losing the character of their communities. The relocation project connects those two needs. Rather than allowing an older house to disappear, it gives the building a new site and a new family. The Los Angeles Conservancy reports that three early relocations include the 1911 Chambers Residence, the 1910 Duntley-Blackburn Residence and the 1926 Martinez Residence. According to Realtor, Omgivning has helped three families relocate homes so far, while around 200 people are on its waiting list. The project’s organisers estimate that the approach can be about 20% cheaper than constructing a new home on average, while also saving older houses from demolition.
What happens to ‘Pinky’ next
Although the house has reached the Martinez family’s Altadena property, the work is far from finished. The building is currently resting on temporary supports while a new foundation is prepared. Plumbing and electrical systems must be installed, the two sections need to be joined, and the roof, which was removed before the move, must be rebuilt. The kitchen will also be renovated. Martinez expects the entire project to cost between $900,000-$950,000. Even so, she believes building a new house from scratch would have taken longer and potentially cost considerably more. Most importantly, the relocated home gives the family the character of an older house. After watching their old home disappear in the fire, they are now waiting for a house with its own history to become their new beginning.
