Meet Asia’s 13 Wealthiest Real Estate Barons

Out of the world’s 20 real wealthiest real estate tycoons, 13 of them are Chinese, according to the latest Forbes Rich List which tracks the fortunes of the world’s wealthiest people.

Only six of the richest real estate 20 are from Western nations with three each from the U.S. and the U.K.

Altogether among the top 20 personal real estate fortunes, 13 come from Asia, including seven from Hong Kong, four from mainland China and two from Singapore.

Here’s the breakdown on the mainland’s top four:

Dalian Wanda’s Wang Jianlin leads the way at #64 on the list with a fortune estimated at US$15.1 billion.

China’s richest woman, Yang Huiyan, the Vice-Chairman of Guangzhou-based developer Country Garden ranks #196 overall, with personal wealth of $6.9 billion

Another female billionaire, Chan Laiwa of Beijing real estate company Fu Wah International Group stands at #234 on the list with an estimated value of $6 billion.

Guangzhou Evergrande’s Hui Ka-yan is next among the mainlanders at #244 with a personal net worth estimated at $5.7 billion.

There were even more Hong Kong locals on the list than mainlanders, proving that small spaces and high prices seem to go together. Here’s how the Hong real estate billionaires stack up.

Lee Shau Kee of Henderson Land ranked tops overall among real estate players on the list, coming in at #35 globally on Forbes ranking with a estimated fortune of $19.6 billion.

Next in the ranks for Hong Kong is Cheng Yu-tung of New World Development, a Hong Kong developer with extensive assets on the mainland. Cheng’s personal assets of $16.2 billion put him at #54 on the list.

In a double billing, brothers Thomas and Raymond Kwok of Sun Hung Kai Properties come in at #86 overall for Forbes, with combined assets of $12.6 billion. (Wouldn’t that make them worth $6.3 billion each)?

Tycoon Joseph Lau of Chinese Estates comes in at #158 on the list with wealth estimated at $8.4 billion.

Peter Woo of developers Wharf and Wheelock is next among the Hongkies at #186. Woo also owns six percent of mainland real estate firm Longfor and his assets are estimated at $7.2 billion.

At #244 on the list is Fujian native Hui Wing Mau (Xu Rongmao in Mandarin), the owner of mainland developer Shanghai Shimao Property, with a personal fortune of $5.7 billion.

Rounding out the Hong Kong contingent is Walter Kwok, the estranged brother of Sun Hung Kai’s Thomas and Raymond Kwok, who still manages to come in at #281 with Forbes which estimate his wealth at $5 billion.

In addition to the Hong Kong and mainland representatives, Singapore’s Robert & Phillip Ng of the Far East Organisation jointly rank #106 with assets of $11 billion, and the island state’s Kwee brothers, who own developer Pontiac Land, come in at #270 with combined assets of #5.2 billion.