Downton Abbey in Mission Hills

This classic Italianate villa–styled home is introduced in listing materials as “Downton Abbey in Mission Hills.” The 7805-square-foot home, built in 1921, was designed by the noted architect Robert Sutherland Raymond, who went on to design public buildings throughout Southern California around a stint as a U.S. Navy commander during World War II.

The interior features the original maple hardwood flooring and wood wall paneling. The living room alone measures 800 square feet and has raised ceilings along with French windows and doors leading to an enclosed sun room overlooking the pool area. Oversized custom fireplaces “form the central focal point in the living, dining and family rooms,” including a carved stone fireplace in the 20-by-24-foot formal dining room. Other rooms include a library, formal powder room, and a finished basement area and recreation room that adds 2504 square feet to the living area in addition to the main levels. In all, the home boasts eight bedrooms and seven full baths in addition to the powder room.

Other buildings on the estate include a guard house and three-car garage with two guest apartments above measuring about 1300 square feet combined, for a total of over 11,600 feet of residential space.

The 1.15-acre lot is bounded on three sides by Sunset, Couts, and Orizaba Streets, creating “a private island in the midst of a quiet, vibrant neighborhood.” The grounds are fully fenced and gated, with a circular drive at the front entry.

A concrete privacy wall surrounds the pool and outdoor courtyard, which includes two private dressing areas with showers. The grounds also include a vegetable garden and “a private, expansive lawn area for family personal time.”

Public records identify the current owners as Thomas and Sylvia Vecchione. Mr. Vecchione operates a private plastic-surgery practice and is listed as a staff surgeon at Scripps Mercy Hospital, where his biography names him as “a founding member and serves on the board of directors of the Mercy Outreach Surgical Team (MOST), Children’s Corrective Surgery Society, and International Surgical Team for Congenital Anomalies in Children. “The MOST program alone has performed more than 9500 cases of congenital and acquired anomalies in the United States and Mexico.”

The Sunset estate hasn’t been on the market in over 30 years — it last sold in 1979 for $790,000 — equivalent to just over $2.8 million in 2014 dollars. It was listed for sale in mid January with an asking price of $5 million.