Local $75-million home is among the world’s priciest

Almost a year ago, local real estate agent John McMonigle set a record in the area — he put a Corona del Mar home on the market for $75 million.

At the time, the 30,000-square-foot Portabello Estate — “portabello” means “beautiful door” in Italian — was the most expensive property to be listed in Orange County and matched the record for the most expensive residential property in the country.

According to the Forbes list of most expensive homes in the world, the Portabello would tie for the No. 2 spot with a sprawling home on 60 acres in Bridgehampton, N.Y.

But what the Portabello is missing in acreage — the Portabello sits on three lots overlooking the Pacific Ocean — it makes up for in amenities, weather, design and construction, McMonigle said during a recent telephone interview.

“It goes back to the question — what are the land values, what does land sell per square foot. I come from Oklahoma where $75 million can buy the whole state,” McMonigle joked. “We have premium land prices over the Hamptons…. There’s no question you can buy more acreage in the Hamptons.”

The price is driven by local precedents, he said. But it’s also driven by people’s emotions and by affluent people’s affinity for the luxurious.

“The idea of a trophy home that shows you’ve arrived — if you have a landmark home it signifies more than just a valuable real estate holding,” said Carrie Williams, who has helped McMonigle feature the Portabello on shows like “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” “It means that you’re the creme de la creme of that area, and Portabello is certainly a landmark here.”

So what will the lucky new owner get after shelling out the big bucks?

The Portabello includes private access to the beach, eight bedrooms, 10 full bathrooms, five half-bathrooms, a 16-car garage, a guest casita, a grotto with two saltwater pools, two spas, a waterslide, a waterfall, a fitness room, a movie theater and a bowling alley.

And if those weren’t enough to sell the place, it features a master suite that’s bigger than many people’s homes at 2,000 square feet with two bedrooms and two bathrooms.

There’s a mini-diner with a soda and milkshake fountain and a place where family heirloom jewelry can be displayed.

It’s apparent that McMonigle and his team cannot market this property as they do the average Newport-Mesa home. You won’t find him putting out open house signs and baking cookies while waiting for looky-loos.

To see this house, you have to qualify.

“We’re pretty stringent on qualifying those who come in,” McMonigle said. “If they’re a public figure — in other words, if it’s easy to know they’re qualified, then we can just approve the showings. If it’s somebody we’re familiar with but don’t have a grasp on their net worth, then we ask for some type of verification from an American bank.”

And it’s not chump change they’re looking for. McMonigle said it’s safe to assume that if the person is looking at the Portabello, he or she should be worth about $500 million, with $75 million in liquid assets.

“We follow mergers and acquisitions, we mail brochures out to people who have sold companies or have been in any liquidity event,” McMonigle said. “We monitor closely who might be in the market.”

In their seventh month of marketing the home, McMonigle said they’ve had a “consistent number of qualified showings” with inquiries coming in every week.

At the end of March, McMonigle said he was in discussions with someone interested in buying the estate and felt he was “very close.”

He was not available Friday to give an update on the potential buyer.

McMonigle is no stranger to selling super high-end homes and properties. In 2006, he sold 54 properties more than $5 million each, and this year already he’s had about six properties sell for anywhere between $20 million and $30 million.

He was recently named the top seller in the country by Coldwell Banker, an honor he’s enjoyed for three years.

“We’re focused on quality in two areas: packaging and marketing…. The other focus is service,” he said. “We are continually examining our levels of service to figure out how to make them better.”

He also spends more in marketing and advertising than many agents.

And why not?

Commission on one $75 million property can buy a lot of ad space.