At first glance, this house stands out among Portland’s more common Craftsmans, midcenturies, and ranches. For starters, with its tall stucco facade capped in terra-cotta roof tiles, wrought iron Juliette balconies, and arched doors leading to a tiled backyard pool, it feels more like an Italian villa than a typical Portland house. That was the point, it turns out, when a real estate developer named Frank McGuire asked architect Charles Ertz to design it.
The year was 1925, and Mediterranean style was all the rage, whether employed in garden apartments in Northeast or grand homes like this one. Ertz came to Portland in 1903 and gained his architectural training in the offices of notable architects Joseph Jacobberger and Emil Schacht. He designed several buildings in the Mediterranean style in the Alameda neighborhood, including houses and the Beaumont Market on NE Fremont Street. In 1938, Ertz moved to Beverly Hills (fitting), at which point prevailing tastes here had moved on.
Still, this house garnered attention, most notably for being called “among the most handsome of the Mediterranean style homes” by the architectural tome Classic Houses of Portland 1850–1950. The authors admired its asymmetrical rooflines, turrets with arched entrances, and all the pretty wrought iron details, which extend inside on the staircase in the foyer, and at a charming balcony that overlooks the living room.
That’s the thing about this house. It has its grand gestures, like the gorgeous aforementioned living room, with its vaulted ceilings outlined in carved wood beams, and an original Renaissance fireplace at one end. There are five doors to the surrounding stone terraces, which include one with a dining gazebo so you can eat in the garden.
But we can’t help but be charmed by the smaller elements sprinkled throughout: the original bronze light fixtures imported from Italy, the thick plaster texture on the walls, the peekaboo arch windows in the living room that echo the arched leaded glass built-ins in the dining room, and the clinker brick fireplace and exposed beams in the downstairs rec room. Of course, there’s no shortage of arched doorways, which create a nice rhythm moving between spaces.
It’s a generous plan across the three levels, with a primary suite, two bedrooms and a hall bathroom upstairs, and an extra bedroom on the lower level. Two of the bedrooms have double-glass doors to the little balconies, while the bathrooms reveal earthy tile picks and leaded glass windows.
Atop the detached garage, there’s a separate studio apartment, with a kitchenette, bathroom with clawfoot tub, and its own mini-split heat and AC unit. But it’s the yard, stretching across 1.28 acres, that really fulfills the villa vibes here. There’s the pool, of course, rumored to be one of the first dark-bottom pools in the city, and with views of Mount Hood while you swim. But also: the garden, planted with all manner of fruit trees, and fittingly, mature pinot noir grapevines.
- Address: 11108 S Collina Ave, Portland, 97219
- Size: 5,038 square feet/4 bed/4 bath
- List Date: 6/19/2026
- Price: $2,170,000
- Listing Agent: Allison Williams, Allison Williams Real Estate
Melissa Dalton is a freelance writer who has focused on Pacific Northwest design and lifestyle since 2008. Contact Dalton here.
Editor’s Note: Portland Monthly’s “Property Watch” column takes a weekly look at an interesting home in Portland’s real estate market (with periodic ventures to the burbs and points beyond, for good measure). Got a home you think would work for this column? Get in touch at [email protected].
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