Billionaire Bill Gross made headlines when he put $35.8 million down on an oceanfront property in the guard-gated Irvine Cove community in June.
But the co-founder of Newport Beach-based investment firm Pacific Investment Management Co. wasn’t ready to close his checkbook just yet.
Property records show Gross scooped up a second home in Laguna Beach known as Rockledge by the Sea for $32 million in a deal that closed last month.
The 10,000-square-foot contemporary-style mansion sits on one of the largest oceanfront parcels in Laguna Beach, nearly an acre with 190 feet of ocean frontage offering private beach access.
It has four bedrooms and six bathrooms.
The home went through a two-year renovation and expansion before listing at $37.5 million in October, according to listing details.
Its new 3,000-square-foot master suite occupies an entire floor and has a private office, gym, spa and private terrace with ocean views.
The mansion also boasts a caterer’s kitchen, entertainment room, eight-person commercial elevator, and wine display room.
It was owned by Fred Siegel, former business partner of Herbalife International Inc. vitamin supplier Richard Marconi, until he sold it in 2015 for $17.5 million to an entity linked to Patrick and John Boyd.
Rob Giem of Compass held the listing. Rod Daley of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage represented the seller.
Fourth Charm
Meanwhile, an entity linked to Sue Gross, Bill Gross’ ex-wife, purchased a 4,950-square-foot home in Irvine Cove in an off-market deal that also closed last month.
The five-bedroom, six-bathroom home sold for $12 million, or $2,424 per square foot.
Listing details are slim, but the single-story ranch-style home has a front courtyard with a swimming pool and spa.
It’s also within walking distance of the three-home compound Sue owns following the couple’s divorce, according to real estate blog Yolanda’s Little Black Book.
She bought another home this year in Beverly Hills for $20 million. The 5,614-square-foot property has five bedrooms and six bathrooms and was designed by the late famed architect Hal Levitt.
In 2011, the former couple purchased a Hal Levitt-designed home from actress Jennifer Aniston for $35 million. It’s unclear which Gross owns that home now.
The seller of the Irvine Cove property was Fountain Valley mechanical contractor Pan-Pacific Mechanical President Cindy McMackin, and her husband, Chairman and Chief Executive Ronald, according to property records.
The couple bought it last year for $8.2 million—three months after selling their mansion at 8 Mystique in Crystal Cove in 2016 for $28 million.
Chris Valli of Surterre Properties Inc. held the listing. Kathryn White of Compass represented the buyer.
Two for One
A contemporary-style home in the enclave of Beach Road in Capistrano Beach that sits on a lot big enough to be split in two hit the market this month with an asking price of $12.9 million.
The 6,379-square-foot home at 35505 Beach Road, built in 2005, is the largest property to be put up for sale in the guard-gated community which runs alongside Coast Highway, according to listing details. It has four bedrooms and five bathrooms and was designed by notable Laguna Beach architect Morris Skenderian. The property has built-in furnishings, hand-painted wall coverings and sliding glass doors that open to a beachfront patio with a barbecue island. It also has a theater with a wet bar, an elevator, and master bedroom featuring a circular bath and private balcony overlooking the beach.
Beach Road is considered the only area of South Orange County where property owners also own their section of the beach up to the median high-tide line, according to Beach Cities Real Estate.
Records show the home is owned by Las Vegas-based car dealer Joseph Scala, who purchased the property in 2001 for $3.2 million and had it torn down to build today’s home. Scala’s daughter, Veronica, owned the former Tavern on the Coast restaurant in Dana Point that’s now occupied by Two Left Forks.
Ken Ross and Doug Echelberger of Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty have the listing.
