WILLIAM LYON HOMES - 10-K filing on 2014-03-21

Equity (Narrative) (Detail) (USD $)	0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended		0 Months Ended			12 Months Ended		0 Months Ended			12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended	0 Months Ended			12 Months Ended		10 Months Ended
Equity (Narrative) (Detail) (USD $)	Feb. 24, 2012	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2013 Parent [Member]	Oct. 12, 2012 Paulson [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Warrants [Member]	May 21, 2013 Common Class A [Member]	Oct. 12, 2012 Common Class A [Member]	Feb. 24, 2012 Common Class A [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Common Class A [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Common Class A [Member]	May 21, 2013 Common Class A [Member] Shares Sold By Company [Member]	May 21, 2013 Common Class A [Member] Selling Stockholders [Member]	May 21, 2013 Common Class B [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Common Class B [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Common Class B [Member]	Feb. 24, 2012 Common Class B [Member]	May 21, 2013 Warrants [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Warrants [Member]	May 21, 2013 Warrants [Member] Minimum [Member]	May 21, 2013 Warrants [Member] Maximum [Member]	Feb. 24, 2012 Common Class C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Successor [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Successor [Member] California Lyon [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Successor [Member] Common Stock [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Successor [Member] Common Class A [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Successor [Member] Common Class A [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Successor [Member] Common Class B [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Successor [Member] Common Class B [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Successor [Member] Common Class C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Successor [Member] Common Class C [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Successor [Member] Common Class D [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Successor [Member] Common Class D [Member]
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Conversion of Stock, Description				Conversion of all outstanding shares of Parent’s Class C Common Stock, Class D Common Stock and Convertible Preferred Stock into Class A Common Stock on a one-for-one basis
Sale of Stock, Price Per Share										$ 25.00
Common stock, shares outstanding		31,436,167					27,146,036							3,813,884												27,216,813	8,499,558	3,813,884	3,813,884	0	1,941,859	0	302,945
Common stock, shares issued																						1,571,680				27,622,283	8,499,558	3,813,884	3,813,884	0	1,941,859
Common stock, par value	$ 0.01								$ 0.01	$ 0.01					$ 0.01		$ 0.01					$ 0.01				$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Aggregate cash consideration							$ 163,700,000																$ 163,685,000	$ 163,685,000
Capital Stock, Shares Authorized		190,000,000
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)										150,000,000					30,000,000		3,813,884									150,000,000	41,212,121	30,000,000	6,060,606	0	14,545,455	0	3,636,364
Share Price		$ 0.01
Reverse stock split							1-for-8.25 reverse stock split							1-for-8.25 reverse stock split
Preferred stock, shares authorized (in shares)		10,000,000
Common stock, shares issued to purchase warrants															1,907,551
Warrants to purchase common stock price per share																$ 2.07
Restricted shares granted		31,091								370,959	302,944
Convertible Preferred Stock, outstanding, issued in exchange for aggregate cash consideration	50,000,000				14,000,000
Aggregate purchase price	81,000,000
Market value of common stock	43,100,000
Warrants expiration date			February 24, 2017
Adoption of fresh start accounting						$ 1,000,000
Issuance of common stock (shares)	92,400,000						10,005,000	1,847,042	5,429,485	5,429,485		7,177,500	2,827,500									381,091			3,059,000
Class of warrant extended term period (in years)																				5 years	10 years
Investment warrants expiration date																		Feb. 24, 2022	Feb. 24, 2022
Stockholders Equity Reverse Stock Split Ratio										0.1212					0.1212