$329K California Cabin Has a Tree Growing Through Its Center: ‘Commune With Nature in a Whole New Way’

Many homes are hailed for blurring the line between the inside and out, but one intriguing California dwelling takes that concept to new heights—by merging, quite literally, with its surroundings.

The property in Lake Arrowhead, CA, is not only immersed in the trees, it also has one growing right through its center, stretching up out of the roof, where its leafy branches create a stunning canopy over the dwelling.

Though some might balk at the idea of having their home connected so closely with nature, listing agent Sue Weaver, with Coldwell Banker Sky Ridge Realty, insists it is not only safe, but also unique.

There is "a very large fir tree growing through the middle of the bedroom,” Weaver reveals. “It's a very healthy tree. In fact, these owners had two different arborists come out and look at it and make sure it was fine and healthy and everything.”

The huge tree certainly creates a fascinating focal point for the home, which was listed on Nov. 29 for $329,000, enabling residents to "commune with nature in a whole new way."

Weaver sold the house to the current owners in 2021 and also knew a previous owner, so she has been aware of the quirky place for some time.

“I was stunned. I had never seen anything like it, and I thought it was cool," she recalls of the first time she saw it. "It's very artsy. It's very cool. I mean, everyone loves it, but then not everyone wants to live in it.”

The 576-square-foot home dates to 1949, and Weaver notes that the area that is now the bedroom might have been something different in the past.

“What I imagine, and what it looks like structurally underneath it all, is that it was a deck and a little bitty cabin, a loft-bedroom-only cabin, and it had a deck with a tree through it,” she explains. “You see decks with trees through them all over the place up here.”

At some point, Weaver suspects an owner closed the deck in and created a bedroom around the fir tree.

When this was done, steps were taken to ensure that the tree could still move in the breeze without impacting the structural integrity of the home—or causing the property to shake.

This was achieved by adding rubber padding to cushion the trunk of the tree and prevent it from knocking into the floor or roof around it. This also ensures that no damage is sustained to the house itself.

“There's kind of like a rubber thingy around the tree that keeps [the house] from moving when [the tree] moves back and forth in the wind,” Weaver says. “It's a very tall tree, so if the wind blows way up there in the tops of the trees, it's going to move a bit.”

While the tree provides a unique look, it also comes with unique issues that may deter those who are less than enthusiastic about getting too close to nature.

“One thing that we have to disclose is there are going to be bugs," Weaver admits. "Trees have those little neat grooves down them in the bark, and I'm sure little ants and things travel up and down those little grooves."

She adds that the tree is also growing and might someday cause some structural issues for the home.

The home has the one bedroom with the tree in it as well as another lofted sleeping area. Both the kitchen and the single bathroom have red accents, helping the home earn the name of Christmas Cabin Treehouse.

“These [sellers] named it. They went with the Christmas theme year-round, and they named it their Christmas cabin,” Weaver says. “I have always thought of it as the tree house, the tree house with the tree in the house.”

The house can be a short-term rental, but Weaver says to make that legal, the buyers would have to build a deck to park at least two cars.

She says she sees an artsy person buying the tree house because it seems to spark creativity and has an inspiring feeling.

“You walk in and just kind of go, ohhhh. It feels like it's hugging you. The whole house is hugging you.”