When it comes to spec homes in the Valley, whether it is the large contemporary boxy structure with black framed windows or the black-and-white “farmhouse,” the new builds you see often feature similar designs.
Builder Rob Diaz takes a unique approach. He vows never to do the same house twice. “I get bored easily. I like a challenge,” he explains. Indeed all the spec homes that Rob Diaz Designs (the company he co-owns and runs with Mark Alexander) takes on are markedly different—whether it is the one in Studio City’s desirable Silver Triangle that sold for $4 million or the one in Longridge Estates that sold last year for $7.8 million. At $1,244 per square foot, that property was one of the most expensive homes ever sold in Studio City. (Strip away the exterior decks and just include interior living spaces, and the actual square-foot price on the home jumps above $1,700.)
Rob’s creations do share a through line, though: materials like limestone, travertine and wood. “I use only natural materials—no concrete, for example. I want it to feel simple and organic. Also no recessed lights.” He also has a penchant for A-frames and expansive upper terraces that offer additional living space.
Explaining how he designs each spec home to have its own look and vibe, Rob gave us a tour of his latest and largest project to date: a sprawling abeche wood-clad, 20,000-square-foot home in Fryman Canyon on the estate formerly owned by Jeopardy host Alex Trebek. The game-show host and his wife, Jean, lived in the coveted Studio City neighborhood for more than 25 years. When Trebek died in 2020, Rob and Mark bought the property for $6.5 million.
“I use only natural materials—no concrete, for example. I want it to feel simple and organic.”
“We are building a full-blown compound. The style will be the Hamptons meets California lifestyle,” Rob shares. Construction is also underway behind the main house on two other structures, both fully clad in limestone: a wellness center with a steam room and sauna, and a gym. In between the main house and the two smaller structures: a 75-foot lap pool, set off by a row of recently planted mature olive trees.
“This is a huge undertaking for us,” says Mark, as he gazes around the meticulously clean construction site.
LARGE IMAGE ABOVE A spec home that sold for $7.8 million—the highest sales price in Studio City last year. “We took a bento box and created an A-frame out of it,” says Rob, who likes to build expansive upper decks that offer additional square footage. SMALL IMAGES This spec home in Studio City’s desirable Silver Triangle pocket has two inner courtyards that open off bedrooms as well as large upper decks, offering a seamless indoor-outdoor vibe.
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Currently in year two of what Rob estimates will be a three-year project, the house already conveys a sense of the finished product—particularly its grandeur. The library and formal living room have 30-foot-high cathedral ceilings and large windows that allow in light at every angle. The house has two kitchens—a “service kitchen” near the formal dining room (don’t think galley kitchen; its size and scale are larger than most), and a main kitchen that opens onto an expansive living area. One thing the builders didn’t touch on the property: a ginormous majestic oak tree that canopies over an expanse of the front yard and shades the entry. Priceless—at least in the Valley.
Although he typically works with interior designers, Rob is very hands-on with decor, finishes and furnishings. In fact, he often designs custom furniture for his spec homes and sells them fully furnished. (He is currently working on a bespoke furniture line called Studio Rob Diaz.) For the Fryman Canyon home, Rob is handling interior design himself. He and Mark estimate the price tag for the completely furnished home will be priced around $45 million. If they do get a sales price in that range, it would be the most expensive home ever sold in Studio City by tens of millions. Rob acknowledges the price is high but says, “Nothing like this home exists in the Valley. It is on two flat acres and the lot size is 20,000 square feet. Every room is curated and furnished by renowned designers, making it truly one of a kind and incomparable.”
Just outside of the Fryman Canyon neighborhood, Rob has another project underway in the Silver Triangle section of Studio City. The lots are smaller in this neighborhood than in Fryman (just above it), and it has a mix of old and new homes. Still, the area is highly desirable due to its proximity to the shops and eateries on the Boulevard—walking distance, really. The contemporary home with a limestone/travertine façade on Viewcrest Road is more modest than the Fryman property, but Rob is equally proud of it. The three-bedroom home, with interior design by Jessica Nicastro, will hit the market this summer. The price tag will be around $6 million—fully furnished. The home has a handsome vibe with solid oak floors and cabinetry throughout. The walls, a warm, sandy hue, are created with a plaster from the British company Clayworks. The application, done in three separate coats, is a meticulous process. “It is natural and easy to clean—you don’t paint the walls in this house,” Rob explains.
Rob Diaz in the 20,000-square-foot, work-in-progress spec home, the former Alex Trebek estate, in Fryman Canyon.
Knobs on cabinetry are cool and unusual shapes in solid brass. A guest room bathroom features a unique solid wood, forest-green-stained medicine cabinet by Josh Greene. A sleek oblong concrete sink basin by Kast—in a matching hue—is perched below. In lieu of a standard AC/heat system with vents, subtle long thin slats are cut in the ceiling for temperature regulation, “a very expensive option,” Rob acknowledges.
Of course, all Rob Diaz homes are smart homes, including this one. “From your bedside you can basically shut down the entire house, from lights to shades.” A stickler for even the smallest of details, he taps a company called Meljac for old-fashioned switch plates and buttons that are engraved with their functions. For example, the light switch by the bed in the primary will have several buttons labeled “Goodnight” that shut off lights in various areas of the house.
Rob’s sense of style and refinement doesn’t derive from any formal education or training. He says he has had a sophisticated palate as far back as he can remember. Raised in the Valley by a single mother who worked for a Pacific Theatres executive, he had an elevated sense of style even during his days at Grant High School in Van Nuys.
“I was wearing Japanese denim! I always had an eye for scale and materials.”
After graduating high school, Rob attended college for a few years, but dropped out. In the late ’90s, he worked as a bartender at Skybar in LA’s Mondrian Hotel. At the time the open-air nightspot was something of a rage. “I had a lot of fun in my 20s,” he laughs. It was at Skybar where he met Mark Alexander, who worked as a doorman. “He was a pretty influential guy at the time,” Rob chuckles.
At the age of 29, Rob switched gears and embarked on a career as a real estate appraiser. “I did that for four or five years, but was very bored.”
In 2007 he took a break from work to participate in CBS’s The Amazing Race. He didn’t win, but he did come in second. A year later, amid the stock market crash, he switched gears and flipped his first home. He made $80,000 on the Sherman Oaks sale—and was hooked.
One home led to the next and before Rob knew it, he had a busy career as a spec-home flipper. In 2013 he realized he need a major life change; his drinking was holding him back. He checked himself into rehab and got sober. What sparked the change? “One really bad night.” From a career standpoint, things really started to pick up after that.
Over the years Rob and Mark kept in touch, and often joined forces to work on small remodels together. They had a yin-yang that worked, and in 2020 the two decided to become partners. “I’m basically the budget guy,” quips Mark, who has a background in engineering.
The partnership has been fruitful. Most of the duo’s spec homes presell, never even making it to the market.
The firm got even more gas this past spring when Architectural Digest did a cover story featuring model Amber Valetta’s Studio City home. It was one of Rob and Mark’s projects, and the firm was flooded with requests. They turned down all of them. “There wasn’t anything interesting enough. Truthfully, I just prefer to do my own thing,” Rob says. In particular, he loves creating homes in Studio City, where he lives, and he won’t build anything in Encino. “Look, there are some pretty neighborhoods in Encino. I just don’t like that stretch of Ventura Boulevard. The commercial district is awful.”
As for his career success, he is pragmatic. He works hard. He knows he has a unique talent, and doesn’t apologize for being well paid for it. One does, however, detect a note of delight.
“I am an example of a self-made dream—how to make it in America,” he says, briskly stepping off the curb and into his shiny electric Porsche. As we said our goodbyes and he drove off, I couldn’t help but stare at the Porsche’s unusual greenish hue. Like everything else Rob selects, his car has a distinct sense of style.
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