Ten Richest Real Estate Tycoons

Acknowledged by Forbes, these people are not just rich; they are “Richie-Rich” rich. We bring to you the richest real estate tycoons around the world.

Lee Shau-kee

Born on January 29, 1928 in Shunde, Guangdong, China, Lee Shau-kee is a Hong Kong-based real estate tycoon and majority owner of Henderson Land Development, a property conglomerate with interests in properties, hotels, restaurants and internet services. Bloomberg Billionaires Index listed him as the 19th richest person in the world in 2012. According to Forbes, his personal wealth is estimated to be $24.8 billion He is also affectionately known as Uncle Four.

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Wang Jianlin

Wang Jianlin, a 1954b born Chinese businessman and philanthropist, serves as the chairman of the Dalian Wanda Group, which is also China's largest real estate company, as well as the world's largest movie theater operator. He owns 20% of the Spanish football club Atlético Madrid. After sixteen years in the People's Liberation Army, Wang started working as the office administrator for the Xigang District in the city of Dalian. The Economist called him "a man of Napoleonic ambition.

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Donald L Bren

Born May 11, 1932, he is an American businessman who is chairman of the Irvine Company, a US real estate investment company, which he wholly owns. Bren built his first house in Newport Beach with a $10,000 loan, in 1958. He began his business career in 1958 when he founded the Bren Company, which built homes in Orange County, California. Forbes, in its 2015 edition of, "The 400 Richest Americans", ranked Bren as the wealthiest real estate developer in the US and 30th "Richest American" with an estimated net worth of $15.2 billion. In 2008, BusinessWeek named Bren one of the top ten philanthropists in the nation, with his contributions to various causes such as education, conservation and research among other areas exceeding $1 billion.

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Cheng Yu-Tung

Cheng Yu-tung owns Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, a conglomerate which operates the Sheraton Marina Hotel and controls the publicly listed New World group. Among their businesses, Chow Tai Fook is Asia’s largest jewellery retailer with New World having large interests in real estate. According to Forbes, his net worth is estimated to be around $14.4 billion.

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David & Simon Reuben

Starting their careers by heavily investing in the Russian metals market, the Reubens became the world’s third largest producer of aluminium. When the Russian business environment turned sour, they sold all Russian assets and have since focussed most of their business activities around the UK property market. They recently completed the purchase of Metro International from Goldman Sachs in 2014 and a data centre business, GlobalSwitch, buoyed by demand for cloud computing space. Fobes estimates their net worth at $13.7 billion.

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Joseph Lau

With the net worth of around $10.9 billion Joseph Lau is a Hong Kong real estate investor who owns a 61% stake in Chinese Estate Holdings, one of Hong Kong’s largest real estate investors. He is a wine lover. It is estimated that Lau owns more than 10,000 bottles of red wine as well as a Boeing 787 private jet, and a multi-million art collection. According to the Sunday Times, Lau owns one of the world's fine least 10,000 bottles, and is an avid art collector. In May 2007, Lau was revealed to be among the first seven purchasers of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner jet for private use.

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​Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor

Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor is not only a landowner, businessman and former Territorial Army Officer, but is also the 6th Duke of Westminster, with a net worth significantly greater than Queen Elizabeth. Heading private property group, Grosvenor Group, he owns hundreds of thousands of acres across the UK, alone owning 190 acres in one of London’s most expensive neighbourhoods, Belgravia, adjacent to Buckingham Palace. His net worth is estimated to be around $12.6 billion.

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Pan Sutong

Pan Sutong made the wealth of his fortune from his stake in Goldin Financial Holdings, which has interests in real estate, wine and factoring. Beginning his career trading with electronic brands such as Panasonic, Sutong went on to found Matsunichi Digital Holdings Limited, which is now known as real estate giant Goldin Properties Holdings Limited. An avid wine lover, Sutong has purchased a number of wineries across France and in the famous Napa Valley region. His net worth is around $8.6 billion.

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Stephen M Ross

Stephen M Ross is an American real estate developer, philanthropist and sports team owner. According to Forbes magazine, Ross has a net worth of $6.5 billion. Ross began his career as a tax attorney at Coopers & Lybrand in Detroit. In 1968, he moved to New York City and accepted a position as an assistant vice president in the real estate subsidiary of Laird Inc.

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Hui Ka Yan

With an estimated riches of $6.2 billion, he is a Chinese businessman and the founder and chairman of Evergrande Group, a Chinese real estate development company. Xu Jiayin was born in a rural family in Jutaigang Village in China.

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