Curvy Casa Luna Bounces Onto the Market in Big Sur, CA

One of architect Mickey Muennig’s whimsical residential designs in Big Sur, CA, is ready for a new owner.

The curvy four-bedroom, four-bath home has had only two owners since its 1982 completion. It is listed for $6,950,000 with Ben Heinrich of Coldwell Banker Realty.

Fans of California architecture likely know Muennig for his design work at the Post Ranch Inn, a luxury coastal resort in Big Sur. He designed many homes in the area, too.

Located on the Central Coast, Big Sur is about 150 miles south of San Francisco, along the Pacific Ocean. The resort town of Carmel is a 45-minute drive north.

Muennig, who died in 2021, was a proponent of organic architecture and designed homes to complement their natural surroundings. In 2000 and 2002, Architectural Digest named him one of the top 100 architects in the United States.

“His homes are as unique as he was,” says Heinrich. “He was very much influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright and one of the first to think in terms of organic architecture. When he got to Big Sur, he said the land spoke to him.”

Perched on Pfeiffer Ridge, this 3,000-square-foot Casa Luna sits on a 5-acre lot in an oceanfront community.

“It’s all curved. There’s not a lot of straight lines in a Mickey house,” says Heinrich.

Spanning three levels, the home features indoor-outdoor living with adjoining patios and terraces. On the top level, a fireplace and wall of windows are found in the living room. From the dining area, you can walk to the garden.

The seller bought the home in 1998 for $675,000 and has since updated the kitchen and baths.

In designing a home, Heinrich notes, the architect “would literally go out and camp on the property and see how the sun came up and the way the lines hit. He was an absolute nature lover.”

Proof of this is in the layout.

“Just about every room in the house has a private patio,” he says. “Wherever you are in the house, you have a view. You’ve got fabulous mountain and ocean views. The light is always changing, and everything is oriented toward the light.”

There’s a detached structure that could be an ideal art studio, and the sale includes plans for a guesthouse.

The likely buyer for this home is already in California.

“Seventy percent of buyers in Big Sur are from Northern California,” says Heinrich, “and a good portion are in the high-tech business. They may have started a company or are running a company. Big Sur is a way to get away from that pressure.”

Another Muennig design is on the market, a glass-walled home built in 2004 on 109 acres. Also represented by Heinrich, it’s currently Big Sur’s most expensive listing.

Muennig’s former home—also in Big Sur—was sold earlier this year.