An Okoboji lakefront home in Iowa, featuring 52 rooms including a movie theater and a replica Irish pub, set a state record for the most expensive home sold, closing at $9.5 million. The 25,000-square-foot property, located on 1.25 acres with 178 feet of lakeshore, was previously owned by Tom Bedell, former CEO of Pure Fishing and a former U.S. Congressman from Iowa.
The home's original listing soft-launched in April with an asking price of $9.95 million. Built in the early 2000s, the mansion features an in-home bar designed to resemble an Irish pub, complete with a stage area that can host up to 300 people. Bedell traveled to Ireland for authentic inspiration for the pub, naming it after an imaginary childhood leprechaun friend, Kevin O'Sullivan.
Additional features of the record-breaking home include a media room that seats 20 to 25 people with a concession area, eight bedrooms, and 15 bathrooms. The main level also boasts an elevated stage area with a piano and lake views, as well as two kitchens: a grand open-space kitchen for entertaining and a commercial kitchen. Over 90 officers were hired to guard the home during its three-year construction, and it was frequently used for community and fundraising events hosting up to 500 guests.
Holly Lovell, the broker and CEO of @properties-elleven | Christie's International Real Estate, facilitated the sale and told the Wall Street Journal the buyer was from the Midwest. This $9.5 million sale surpasses Iowa's previous record, also a mansion on West Okoboji Lake, which sold for $5.6 million in 2022. Median asking prices for homes in Dickinson County, where Spirit Lake is located, were $370,000 in June, with median sale prices at $402,500.
