Second Dana Point mansion sells for $32M this year

The luxury home market in Dana Point, a seaside town south of Laguna Beach, continues to gain momentum with a $32 million sale closing on Nov. 8, according to listing sites. It marks the second sale in the $30 million-plus price range this year.

The 5,300-square-foot mansion located at 37 Monarch Bay Drive sold for $6,045 per square foot. It also kept pace with the closing prices for homes considered the record holders for priciest listings in Dana Point. One neighbor, 67 Monarch Bay Drive, sold for $33 million in 2022. Another neighbor, 39 Monarch Bay Drive, sold for about $32 million in July.

The seller of 37 Monarch Bay was a trust linked to hotelier Ronald Brown, according to property records. The home was listed by Chas Aufhammer of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties. Representing the buyers were Compass agents Todd Davis and Samantha Nugent. They declined to identify the buyer. 

However, South Orange County agents familiar with the deal told The Real Deal the buyer is Gordon Crawford. The retired finance executive bought 67 Monarch Bay last year and has tried to flip the mansion, putting it back on the market for $46 million in October.

The deal for 37 Monarch Bay shows that Dana Point ranks among the prime luxury markets in Orange County, said John Stanaland of the self-named John Stanaland Group at Douglas Elliman.

“Dana Point historically has been behind Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. It’s catching up if not already caught up,” Stanaland said.

In 2011, he sold a house for about $23 million at 33 Strand Beach Drive in Dana Point. He did not work on the recent deal for 37 Monarch Bay.

Nugent of Compass said the Monarch Bay neighborhood started breaking Dana Point records in 2020. That year, residents of the gated community collectively paid $225 million to buy the ground lease to their homes. “It was a game changer,” Nugent said. The homeowner’s  proprietorship of Monarch Bay’s land has boosted home values, she said.

Davis said he’s seeing an increasing number of Los Angeles residents shop for homes in South Orange County. Davis and Nugent currently hold the listing for a neighboring home at 63 Monarch Bay Drive with an asking price of $46 million.

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