Novelist Dean Koontz Sells Newport Coast Mansion For $50 Million, An Area Record

Horror novelist Dean Koontz has secured a place in Southern California real estate history after quietly selling his longtime Newport Coast estate for $50 million, setting a new price record for the ultra-wealthy enclave.

Koontz and his wife, Gerda Ann, sold the property off-market, a fitting end for a home that was never publicly listed during the two decades they owned it. The nearly 30,000-square-foot mansion sits on a 2.5-acre hilltop parcel inside Pelican Hill, one of the most exclusive guard-gated communities in Orange County. The Koontzes purchased the land in 2000 for $9 million and spent years designing and constructing what ultimately became the largest private residence in Pelican Hill.

Because the estate was never formally marketed, details have remained scarce. However, aerial imagery and reporting have revealed a sprawling compound featuring dual winding driveways, extensive formal gardens, mature privacy landscaping, multiple infinity-edge pools, a massive partially subterranean garage, and even a rooftop parking area designed to accommodate guests and staff.

The $50 million sale is the highest price ever paid for a home in Newport Coast and ranks among the largest residential transactions in Orange County history. While Arizona billionaire Larry Van Tuyl paid $55 million for a Corona del Mar estate in 2018, that deal involved two adjacent parcels. By contrast, the Koontz sale represents the most ever paid for a single residential property in the county.

The buyer was Glenn Stearns, a Wyoming-based entrepreneur best known as the star of the Discovery Channel series "Undercover Billionaire." Despite later clarifications that Stearns is not technically a billionaire, the purchase instantly made him the owner of one of the most valuable private residences in Southern California.

Pelican Hill has long been a magnet for extreme wealth and outsized estates. The community is home to several headline-making properties, including the infamous mansion owned by Henry Nicholas, the Broadcom cofounder whose massive Pelican Hill estate has been the subject of years of tabloid attention, legal scrutiny, and rumors tied to its scale, excess, and private-party history. Other notable residents have included Canadian furniture tycoon Bill Comrie, further cementing Pelican Hill's reputation as one of the most exclusive addresses on the West Coast.

As for Koontz, the record-breaking sale did not signal a retreat from luxury living. Around the same time the Newport Coast mansion changed hands, he and Gerda expanded their footprint in nearby Irvine's Shady Canyon community, purchasing two separate gated estates for approximately $11.6 million and $10.5 million. The move capped one of the most successful real estate exits ever recorded by a novelist and highlighted how Koontz's publishing empire translated into extraordinary long-term wealth far beyond the written page.