William Lyon’s Coto de Caza Mansion for Sale

The Lyon Estate, a 137-acre compound in Coto de Caza once home to late real estate developer William Lyon, is on the market for $125 million.

The property features much more than just a 21,000-square-foot Georgian-style mansion. It has a car museum and a history of hosting guests like President Ronald Reagan, according to the Wall Street Journal, which reported on the new listing.

Lyon, a former major general and commander of the United States Air Force Reserves, built the home in 1986, the Orange County Register reported. The main house has eight bedrooms and 11 bathrooms and is complemented by three additional guest houses. One guest house has two bedrooms, one bathroom and a full kitchen, while the other two have a single bedroom, bathroom and kitchenette.

If you want to spend time outside, you can take advantage of a championship-size tennis court and equestrian facilities including a 10-stall barn and riding arena, or relax by the resort-style pool and use the dry sauna in the pool house. The property also has two lakes used for irrigation, a scenic pond, a greenhouse and a 41-acre orchard of 4,500 Valencia and navel orange trees.

Perhaps the most unique piece of the property is the nearly 24,000-square-foot car museum built for Lyon’s massive collection. The space can hold more than 70 cars and is served by an on-property private gas station and service shop. At one point, Lyon owned nearly 100 vehicles, with nearly 80 kept at the house and the rest on display in a museum at John Wayne Airport, his son told the Journal. The collection included a 1941 Mercedes-Benz 770K Grosser that belonged to Adolf Hitler.

No car is needed to get to the property, however. The estate features a helipad for the buyer to leave and return without getting stuck in traffic.

Lyon’s property comes with pre-approved plans for a 64-acre development of 25 homes in a new gated community at the southern end of the property. Listing agent Matt Altman of Douglas Elliman told the Register he’s fielded offers from developers to buy the lot separately from the rest of the estate.

The Lyon compound is the second-most expensive listing in Orange County at the moment, according to the Register. A 42-acre San Capistrano estate known as “Porcupine Hill” hit the market last June for $150 million.

Lyon’s William Lyon Homes, founded in 1954, built more than 100,000 homes throughout the World War II veteran’s life. The company merged with Arizona-based home builder Taylor Morrison for approximately $950 million in February 2020, three months before Lyon’s death at 97. His wife Willa died last October at 93.

— Chris Malone Méndez