Who Are the Richest Real Estate Investors?

Most major business publications will agree that real estate makes up more than two-thirds of the net worth around the world. Real estate is a lucrative investment opportunity that has created hundreds of millionaires and billionaires. As a budding real estate investor, especially one just getting started, there is much you can learn from those who have already walked in your shoes. This is why in this article we share with you who are the top 10 the richest real estate investors in the world, and what they did to get there.

10. Sam Zell

Net Worth: $4.8 billion

Investments: Multifamily, Office, Manufactured Housing, REITs

In our list, Sam Zell starts as number 10 of the world’s richest real estate investor. Often regarded as a leader within the industry, Sam Zell’s start in real estate began young. Sam was born in 1941 as Shmuel Zielonka to Polish Jewish immigrants in Chicago. While still a student at the University of Michigan, Sam began managing a 15-unit apartment building in exchange for free room and board, before expanding his business managing the same owner’s other properties. By the time he had graduated, he and a fraternity brother joined forces and began bidding, and winning property management contracts all across the area. Once graduating from law school, he sold his interest in the company which was at that time managing more than 4,000 apartments for and owned over 100 apartments themselves, to become a lawyer.

However, one week into law, Zell discovered it wasn’t for him, and partnered with another attorney in the firm, to buy apartment buildings all across the U.S. beginning in Toledo, Ohio and Reno, Nevada. His real greatest traction though, began when he found Equity Group Investment in 1968. The company’s investment strategy was to buy undervalued land and real estate all across the U.S. and hold them for long term appreciation.

This company, and the three others he created, Equity Residential, Equity Office Properties Trust, and Equity Lifestyle Properties, became powerhouses across multiple sectors including multifamily, office, and manufactured home communities. Taking them public in the 1990’s, Zell cemented himself as the face of the modern Real Estate Investment Trust model that we know to this day. By 2006 he sold Equity Office to the largest real estate private equity firm in the world, Blackstone for a whopping $36 billion dollars, and went on to own for more public companies, one of which being the largest residential REIT on the market.

9. Stephen Ross

Net Worth: $7.6 billion

Investments: Affordable Housing, Multifamily, Office, Retail, Sports, Entertainment

The ninth largest real estate investor in the world is developer and sports team owner Stephen Ross. Born and raised in Detroit, in 1940, Ross attended both the University of Florida and the University of Michigan. After graduating from school with his accounting degree, Ross initially stayed local, acting as a tax attorney at Coopers & Lybrand in his hometown before heading to New York City for greater heights. He began as an assistant vice president for a real estate company, before jumping to the corporate finance department at Bear Stearns only to be fired in 1972 for insubordination.

This firing, however, became the spark to his lucrative career. With a small loan from his mother, he freelanced deals for high-net-worth individuals using his extensive real estate knowledge to help them shelter their income through the construction of government subsidized affordable housing. He was so successful in his dealings, that he went on to begin developing his own apartment buildings, condos, offices, retail, and mixed use developments across the Northeastern part of the U.S..

In 1972, he then formalized his dealings as The Related Companies, which went on to develop projects in Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, China, Florida, and California. His company also became the owner of 5,000 luxury residences in New York City, larger than any other investor.

Today Ross has expanded beyond real estate, acting as the owner of the Miami Dolphins, as well as numerous sports and entertainment venues such as the Hard Rock Stadium and the Sunlife Stadium. He remains seated as the largest stakeholder in The Related Companies, which is now considered one of the world’s largest real estate development companies, who most recently created the mega hit development at the Hudson Yards.

8. Hui Ka Yan

Net Worth: $8 billion

Investments: Residential, Commercial, Hotels

Formerly ranking as second on the list, Hui Ka Yan is now considered the eight richest real estate investor in the world. Born into a rural family in 1958, Yan worked his way up from a warehouse, to a cement company, and up the ranks of an Iron and Steel Company where he worked as the director until retiring in 1992.

After jumping around several companies post retirement, in 1997, he founded the Evergrande Real Estate company which went onto develop commercial, residential, and hotel projects across the world before expanding into owning a successful football club under the same namesake. The company currently has hundreds of projects across China, Hong Kong and Australia, and had nearly $23 billion in assets to its name, however the pandemic, mounting debt, and a scandal plunged Yan to his current position on the real estate investor list.

7. Sun Hongbin

Net Worth: $9.2 billion

Investments: Multifamily, Entertainment, Office, Hospitality, Technology

Number seven on our list of top real estate investors in the world is Sun Hongbin. Born in 1968 in the Shanxi province of China, Hongbin earned his degree from the prestigious Tsinghua University in 1985. Hongbin’s career began in computing. He was one of the key people leading the development of Lenovo, and rose to become top management there, only to lose his job. Not discouraged, Hongbin secured a loan from his friend and Lenovo founder, which he then used to create his own real estate development company Sunac China Holdings.

Under his direction, Sunac China Holdings got its start investing in residential and commercial real estate across China, from multifamily, conference centers and exhibition halls, to hospitality, entertainment, and medical offices. The company also provides property management services, as well as completing government contracts for tourist attractions. While Hongbin no longer plays an active role in the company’s day to day operation these days, he still retains a sizeable financial interest which derives his net worth.

6. Donald Bren

Net Worth: $17 billion

Investments: Single Family Home Development, Hospitality, Multifamily, Master Plan Communities

Sixth on our list is Donald Bren, a businessman dubbed the richest real estate developer in the U.S. in 2016. Born in 1938 to an entertainment industry professional and civic leader, Bren’s start in real estate came after graduating from school in Washington and joining the military service for several years. Only upon returning home, did he jump into residential real estate development getting a loan from a friend for $10,000 that he used to buy and build a home in Newport Beach.

He quickly formed the Bren Company, which went on to apply the same model of buying land, building single family homes and master suburban communities, and reselling them on a wider scale.

In 1963, he and a few others then founded the Mission Viejo Company which was responsible for buying and developing more than 10,000 acres of land that today form the city of the same personage.

His work, however, at the Bren Company catapulted him to such success that in 1970 he sold the company for $34 million dollars, money he then used to purchase the Irvine company in 1977. While initially he was a third owner, he eventually became a majority owner of the firm which owned 93,000 acres of land in the Southern California area.

Today that number has ballooned, with speculation that the Irvine Company owns now more than 120 million square feet of real estate that includes 550 office buildings, several hotels, 125 multifamily apartment buildings, as well as several dozen shopping centers concentrated in the Orange County area.

Bren also has expanded his reach outside of California, owning the majority interest in the Met Life building in Manhattan, as well as ownership in multiple REITS such as the American Tower Corp, Simoon Property Group, Prologis, and Crown Castle International. He additionally has real estate investment projects in both Mexico and Spain.

5. David & Simon Reuben

Net Worth: $16 – $18 billion

Investments: Sports, Retail, Office, Hospitality, Retirement Housing

The Indian born British brothers David and Simon Reuben are number five on the list of top 10 richest real estate investors in the world. Born into a successful family with business interests in both India and the United Kingdom, what the Reuben brothers lacked in education and schooling, they made up for in business savvy.

In the early 1970’s the brothers entered the scrap metals business and carpeting business, Simon acquiring one of the oldest carpet companies in England, and David investing heavily into the Russian metal market. For more than 20 years they used the profits from these companies to make initial residential investments in key areas in the city.

However, during the 1990’s the metals market shifted, and the brothers forced to sue their partners in the country, exited the industry with a $8 billion settlement. With these proceeds they both began investing even more heavily into real estate, purchasing interests in major office, retail and hospitality assets such as the American Express Office, the Carlton House, The Market Towers, Cambridge House, Millbank Tower, among other hotels and resorts.

4. Wang Jianlin

Net Worth: $20.2 billion

Investments: Residential Development, Movie Theaters, Entertainment, Shopping Centers, Hotels

Wang Jianlin is the world’s fourth richest real estate investor, known for his position as chairman of the

Dalian Wanda Real Estate Group, one of the most popular real estate companies in China. Wang Jianlin was born in 1954, in the Sichuan region of China to a foot soldier in Mao Zedong’s People’s Liberation Army.

As a young boy, Wang lied about his aged and entered the army, becoming a commander by the time he was 27. Leaving the service, he worked in business administration in 1986, before getting a loan for $80,000 to acquire a the Xigang Residential Development real estate company. By 1992 he top the company public, becoming the main chairman and changing its name to Dalian Wanda.

To date the company owns millions of square feet in movie theaters, luxury hotels, department stores, and karaoke bars across China. After buying AMC Theaters in 2012, Wang’s company became the largest theater owner in the world and has since diversified from real estate into manufacturing, healthcare, financial services and technology all across the world. Most recently, the Wanda Group has ventured into real estate for entertainment, building theme parks to compete with Disneyland, as well as purchasing stakes in Dick Clark Productions and Sony which respectively hold prime production real estate space in key markets.

3. Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, Saudi Arabia

Net Worth: $22.7 billion

Investments: Hotels, Luxury Developments

The third richest real estate investor in the world is Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud of Saudia Arabia. Born into Saudi Arabian royalty, the Prince’s history is a storied one. After his parents separated he lived with his mother in Lebanon, before attending university in California and a master’s program at Syracuse University in New York.

Upon graduating in the 1980’s, the Prince returned to his country as it was experiencing an oil boom, and with a loan of $30,000 from his father, he formed Kingdom Establishment company. It was a rocky start, as he quickly ran out of money and had to secure another $300,000 loan, before finally achieving success in 1982 after partnering with a construction company to develop projects.

All the money he made was reinvested back into more real estate deals, such as acquiring poorly performing companies such as the National Industrialization Company. Through this acquisition his net worth continued to build, and he gained ownership in key real estate holdings in Canary Wharf, Four Seasons Hotel Group, the Plaza Hotel in New York City, the Savoy Hotel in London, and the Monte Carlo Grand Hotel in Monaco. He developed an expertise in banking as well, which further ballooned his wealth, to the point whereby the early 2000’s his wealth had extended into multiple different industries.

2. Yang Huiyan

Net Worth: $27 billion

Investment: Luxury Residential Development, Hotels, Property Management

The only woman to make it on the list, Yang Huiyan ranks as the second richest real estate investor in the world. Inheriting most of her real estate holdings from, Yang is majority owner of the Country Garden Holdings, a company formed by her billionaire father in the mid 1990’s.

Country Garden has numerous revenue streams from real estate development, new construction, property management and hotel operations across its assets throughout the world. Their most notable projects include the development of 200 luxury townhomes in China, Malaysia and Australia. $2 billion of Yang’s wealth came within four days of the company going public, and its stock prices surging.

1. Lee Shau Kee

Net Worth: $32.3 billion

Investments: Hotels, Cafes, Department Stores, Residential Development  

Finally topping are list as the richest real estate investor in the word is Lee Shau Kee. Kee is considered by major publications like Forbes as one of Hong Kong’s wealthiest people. Born into humble beginnings in the rural Guangdong province of China, Kee moved to Hong Kong as the Communist Party began taking over China, and began first working in the import and export business before starting a real estate brokerage called Eternal Enterprise Company which helped him quickly accelerate in the business.

Kee founded Henderson Land Development in the 1970’s, before taking the company public in 1981.

Today the Henderson Land Development company’s most notable developments include the International Commerce Center and the International Finance Center in the bustling Hong Kong metropolis, and has made numerous successful real estate developments in hotels, cafes, restaurants, and infrastructure. While he is no longer heading the company, he retains a large ownership interest in its real estate investment, construction, hotel operation, and department store operation activities. 

What you can learn:

As you can see from our extensive list of the richest real estate investors in the world, where they started had little affect on what they were able to accomplish. Most of these investors simply had a vision and the persistence to invest their money into real estate and continue to grow and expand.

What’s even more interesting is that many of the richest investors on our list actually got their start by taking on a loan. Receiving that first initial investment became the catalyst for many to buy their first project, develop it, and then repeating the process over time eventually led to the building of their wealth.

As a real estate investor in similar shoes, consider using a loan to get your dreams started. Give me a call at 9177404325 and let’s talk about what you’d like to achieve, and more importantly find you the funds to do it.

Mortgage Rates

Calculate Your Monthly Payment