Desert Observation Deck

What: Two bedrooms, 4.5 baths in a 5,700-square-foot main residence with an attached three-bedroom, 3,900-square-foot guest house, on two acres.

Where: Paradise Valley, Ariz.

Amenities: Heated pool, exercise room, two fireplaces, barbecue pit, wine cellar, elevator, 8,000 square feet of decks and courtyards, remote-controlled entrance gate, outdoor misting system, office, mechanized shades, natural-gas-fire generator, wet bar, library and "his and her" master bathrooms.

Asking Price: $8 million

Opening Bid*: $6.7 million

Listing Agents: Julie Treiber and Edwin Savage at 602-343-1463; Marcie Hartley at 310-858-5407

Due Diligence: Retired banking executive Donald Hollis and his wife, Marilyn, commissioned Phoenix architect Randall Fonce to build this two-story, modernist "observation deck on the desert" in 1996 for approximately $5 million, Mr. Hollis says. (In 1996, they paid $467,000 for the land and what is now the guest house.) The second floor of the main residence has 14-foot rounded ceilings and glass walls on all four sides, allowing for panoramic desert views. For their 10 dogs, the Hollises also built a canine room that has a fridge, washer and dryer, and floor drain "toilet" with automatic flushing.

Additional Photos

*The opening bid is Weekend Journal's estimate of a reasonable starting point for negotiations to buy the property, based on past sales, prevailing market conditions and interviews with local real-estate experts.

Email your comments to rjeditor@dowjones.com.