Corona del Mar’s luxury residential market is on a tear.
A home once owned by Roth Capital Partners executive chair Byron Roth traded for $24.5 million in the off market to claim a new record for the Newport Beach neighborhood’s Cameo Highlands community. The mansion at 4700 Surrey Drive is also one of the priciest deals in Corona del Mar this year.
The seller walks away with a tidy profit after paying $18.5 million for the property in 2023. The sale was recorded in listing sites as closing for $23 million, but when factoring in furniture and fixtures — including Baccarat chandeliers — the total comes to $24.5 million, according to Paul Daftarian of Daftarian Group | Luxe Real Estate.
The brokerage double-ended the deal with Michael Balliet and Ruby Xiaoya Wang handling the listing. Meanwhile, Daftarian and one of his agents, Obeid Habibi, represented the buyer.
Daftarian cited a non-disclosure agreement in declining to provide details on the buyer and the seller. Records have not yet been filed with the county, but the agent described the buyer as a personal client and Orange County local who knew the property’s history and “he just jumped on it.”
The home’s new owner plans to add a tennis court, multi-car garage, gym, wellness center and possibly even a bowling alley that will expand the home by another several thousand feet, according to Daftarian.
Currently, the home counts five bedrooms and 10 bathrooms, including a nightclub in the basement. The residence totals just under 13,000 square feet and sits on about a 1-acre lot. It was originally built in 2011 and later saw a massive renovation that took the property down to its studs before being redesigned by C.J. Light Associates, which specializes in coastal properties. The rebuilt property once asked just under $33 million when it was listed in late 2020 by a different seller.
When homes are priced right, they move in Corona del Mar, Daftarian said.
That’s only if sellers understand their property objectively, the agent added as he noted an emerging disconnect in how some properties are priced in relation to what buyers are actually willing to pay.
“Certain homes that have some irreplaceable qualities, whether sizable lot or view or unique design elements, are still selling for more money than the year before,” Daftarian said. “That’s skewing the market.”
Other sellers who may not have sizable lots or some other unique quality think they can price their properties similarly, and the market’s not biting amid growing macroeconomic uncertainty, according to Daftarian.
“There are a lot of unknowns for people: Where are rates going? Where’s the market going? People open their stock portfolio and the value’s less,” he said. “There is a sentiment among buyers that prices will come down, and they might. If you have a property that isn’t in the most prime location, the price might be softer today. But if you have one of these trophy lots, chances are it’s going to sell for more. It’s a flight to quality right now and everybody’s looking for these one-off properties.”
Data from Zillow shows Corona del Mar had an average home value of $4 million as of April 30, which was up 4.4 percent year over year.
The Surrey Drive trade is the latest buzzy deal for the Newport Beach neighborhood.
Last month, 2201 Bayside Drive sold for $26 million and now sits in the top spot as Corona del Mar’s priciest deal this year. That trade was followed up the same month with 1615 Bayadere Terrace, which closed for just under $20 million and is the most expensive home sale ever in the Corona del Mar community of Irvine Terrace.