The World's Richest People in Real Estate

It is estimated that real estate is 12.7% higher in value today than several years ago. Also, another study from 2014 announced that real estate investments are going to be No. 1 in 2015 because great majority of billionaires plan to buy properties throughout this whole year. But why would this be so? Well, one thing is for sure – one can never lose money if he had invested it in real estate. There is always the chance to sell the property at higher price than you have previously bought it or to recover your invested money in the worst possible scenario. That is why we provide you with a list of the richest people who constantly invest in real estate and who constantly become richer. 

Lee Shau Kee

Photo: forbes.com

Lee Shau Kee is among the richest people in Hong Kong. He is a landlord and all his wealth came from investing in real estate, beginning with a majority stake of shares of Henderson Land Development. He is also the owner of Miramar Hotel and Hong Kong and China Gas. Earning all his money mostly through buying properties got him several nicknames among which are 'Hong Kong's Buffett' and 'Asia's Master of Stock'. His current net worth is estimated at $24.8 billion, which makes him 27th richest man in real estate in the world. Apart from buying properties all round the world, Lee Shau Kee is a great philanthropist.

Wang Jianlin

Photo: World Economic Forum

Another master of stocks comes from China. Wang Jianlin is the owner of Dalian Wanda Group which is actually a commercial real estate powerhouse controlling hundreds of luxury hotels and shopping plazas. But Dalian Wanda Group is even more - it is world’s largest operator of movie theaters. Wang Jianlin had expanded his business to Australia, Beverly Hills and Chicago. But apart from his properties in China, Hong Kong, USA and Australia, he also has Edifico Espana building in Spain, properties in India, Great Britain and just he himself knows where else does he have real estate investments. His current net worth is estimated at $24.2 billion and this year it is expected to grow even more.

Cheng Yu-tung

Photo: scmp.com

Cheng Yu-tung is the old fox of real estate business with extensive business dealings and real estate interests in both Hong Kong and Macau. Although many reports are stating his health is in quite poor condition which made him leave the chairmanship of his New World Development to his elder son Henry this tiger from Hong Kong is still having a huge impact on company’s future. His family is also having control over Asia's largest jewelry retailer and their hotel empire is constantly increasing so don’t be surprised if in forthcoming years they make a jump from 5th place to the top when it comes to real estate business.

Donald Bren

Photo: bloomberg.com

Donald Bren is an owner and the Chairman of the Irvine Company, a US-based real estate investment company, and he is also the only non-Chinese who made it to top 5 of richest people in the real estate business. This guy owns 500 office properties, more than 40 shopping centers, 50,000 apartments, three hotels and several golf clubs and marinas, mostly in Southern California and if that was not enough, he bought an office tower in downtown Chicago for $850 million. This amount of money might sound astronomic but for Donald Bren whose net worth is estimated around $15 billion this is just pocket money. He had also started a new project that will make him even richer, namely he has started building a 1.2 million square-foot office campus that will open in Silicon Valley in 2016.

Thomas & Raymond Kwok

Photo: scmp.com

We might say that Thomas Kwok is a real bad boy in real estate business, since he was found guilty in December 2014 of bribing the city's former number two official and was sentenced to five years in prison. But he had found a suitable replacement – his brother Raymond who was also under investigation but was cleared of all charges. Their father Kwok Tak-seng was the founder of their family business which would be even bigger if they did not had a feud with their older brother, Walter, who's now listed separately as a billionaire. Thomas and Raymond Kwok are the owners of Sun Hung Kai Properties, a real estate developer that is well known for building many skyscrapers all around Tokyo. Their net worth is estimated at nearly $16 billion and this amount is increasing continuously despite all of these affairs.

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