Where Do The Richest People In The World Live In 2025?
Wealth moves quickly in cities designed for the ultra-rich, where property prices soar like crazy. By 2025, the wealthiest folks are living in areas with the most capital, from the towering buildings of New York to the vast estates in California and Texas. The top earners don’t stick to just one home; many have multiple properties scattered across different continents.
Forbes points out that New York City boasts the most billionaires, but surprisingly, none of them call it home full-time. Instead, they’re investing in real estate in places that align better with their lifestyles and financial goals. Take Elon Musk, for example; he’s the richest guy around and lives in Austin, Texas.
Rather than going for a huge mansion, he’s chosen a unique route with a prefabricated home close to SpaceX. Others have homes in various countries, balancing their time between luxurious estates, penthouses, and private retreats. Some of these properties come with jaw-dropping price tags, especially in sought-after coastal areas. Let’s dive into the profiles of the wealthiest individuals and their real estate ventures.
5. Bernard Arnault
Bernard Arnault is making waves in the real estate and yacht scene. As the chairman of LVMH, he approaches property investments with the same strategic skill that helped him amass a fortune of $166 billion. Each property he buys is carefully chosen, located in prime spots, kept under wraps, and exudes a subtle elegance. One of his standout assets is a 135-acre private island in the Bahamas, valued at a cool $133 million.
This estate is all about luxury and privacy, providing a serene escape from his bustling life in fashion and fine spirits. Not much is known about the island, as Arnault keeps details tightly under wraps. He also owns Château Cheval Blanc, a stunning estate worth $200 million in Saint-Émilion, Bordeaux, which he meticulously restored over ten years after buying it in 1998. Its 12-acre vineyard beautifully blends history with modern techniques.
In addition, he has a luxurious villa in Les Parcs de Saint-Tropez, nestled in a posh 270-acre gated community where homes typically sell for around $13 million. Arnault has also made a mark in Beverly Hills, snagging a mansion in the exclusive Trousdale Estates for $121.5 million. The island scene is buzzing with celebrities like Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio enjoying their own private getaways nearby.
4. Larry Ellison
Larry Ellison has a knack for collecting real estate like some people collect rare art pieces. The Oracle co-founder, boasting a net worth of $194 billion, owns properties that span from Hawaii to California and Florida. His main home is on Lanai, a small Hawaiian island with around 3,000 residents. According to Bloomberg, his purchase in 2012 allowed him to control 98% of the island's 90,000 acres. His investments reflect a commitment to high-tech and luxurious living, featuring a solar-powered hydroponic greenhouse and the lavish Sensei Retreat spa, which charges $3,000 a night.
Overall, he has poured $500 million into the island, significantly impacting its infrastructure and economy. In Florida, he made headlines by buying a Palm Beach compound for $173 million, setting a record for the area. Just two months later, he sold a nearby mansion for $145 million, nearly recouping his initial investment. His North Palm Beach estate, which he bought for $80 million, ranks among the largest oceanfront properties in the region. Ellison also owns a significant portion of Carbon Beach in Malibu, where he added a 7,700-square-foot home to his portfolio in 2017 for $48 million, complete with a tennis court and pool.
In Newport, Rhode Island, he purchased the historic Beechwood Mansion, built in 1851 and once owned by the Astor family, for $10.5 million in 2010. He has invested over $100 million to transform it into a private museum. Lake Tahoe is another gem in his real estate collection, where he has owned several properties in a region favored by Warren Buffett, Frank Sinatra, and NFL star Aaron Rodgers. In 2018, he acquired the iconic Cal Neva Lodge for $35.8 million.
3. Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos plays the real estate game like a pro, strategically moving his assets around just like chess pieces. His property collection reflects Amazon's smart growth strategy. With a staggering net worth of $142.8 billion, Bezos owns properties in major financial hubs, beautiful vacation spots, and super-private hideaways. When you adjust for inflation, his real estate investments are valued at over $570 million. In New York, he has five high-end apartments that look out over Madison Square Park.
He initially dropped $80 million on the first three units before going all in with two more in the same building. In 2020, he made headlines by purchasing the Jack Warner Estate in Beverly Hills for $165 million, which was a record-breaking deal in California at that time. In 2021, he expanded his real estate empire to Hawaii, buying a stunning 14-acre estate in Maui for $78 million. For years, his main home has been in Medina, Washington, close to Amazon's headquarters.
This sprawling 20,600-square-foot estate was bought for $10 million, and he expanded it in 2010 by acquiring a neighboring Tudor-style house for $53 million. The compound boasts several pools and direct access to Lake Washington, a setup similar to what Bill Gates has. Bezos has also invested over $237 million in three mansions on Indian Creek Island, famously known as the “Billionaire Bunker.” He picked up a three-acre property for $68 million, a Mediterranean-style mansion next door for $79 million, and a $90 million estate shortly after. Reports suggest he plans to tear down two of the homes while residing in the third one built in 2002.
2. Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg is building his real estate empire like a tech ecosystem—it's vast, interconnected, and all about keeping control. The Meta CEO has poured $320 million into real estate, crafting a remote work setup that totally changes what a home office can be. His first big purchase was a 5,617-square-foot house in Palo Alto, which he snagged for $7 million back in 2011. This five-bedroom gem, built in 1903, boasts a saltwater pool, a backyard pavilion, and even a custom AI assistant.
Starting in 2012, Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, strategically picked up four neighboring homes, later merging two of them into a single 1.83-acre property. Their portfolio also includes the Brushwood and Carousel Estates, which sit right by Lake Tahoe in California. When it comes to Hawaii, Zuckerberg's real estate collection is both extensive and exclusive. Over the last ten years, he’s dropped more than $200 million on Kauai, amassing 1,400 acres.
His land-buying spree kicked off in 2014 with the acquisition of 707 acres, including Pila‘a Beach and Kahu‘aina Plantation, for $116 million. This was followed by a $89 million purchase of 45 acres in 2017 and a $53 million deal for 600 acres in 2021. By 2024, rumors emerged that his Kauai estate features a $100 million underground complex with more than a dozen buildings and at least 30 bedrooms. The property is said to include a 5,000-square-foot underground bunker, along with its own energy and food supplies, bringing the total investment to over $270 million.
1. Elon Musk
Elon Musk has become the first person to surpass the $400 billion mark, but his real estate choices are more in line with a minimalist lifestyle than that of a typical billionaire. Unlike many of his wealthy counterparts, Musk doesn’t have a portfolio of lavish estates. In 2020, he made headlines by announcing his intention to sell "almost all" of his physical possessions, declaring he wanted to "own no house."
He actually went through with it, letting go of all his major properties. The only place he’s been living in lately is a $50,000 ranch-style home in Boca Chica, Texas. This simple three-bedroom house is just a block away from SpaceX's Starbase and stands in stark contrast to the extravagant mansions usually linked to billionaires. Before moving to Texas, Musk lived in a multimillion-dollar property in the San Francisco Bay Area, which he bought in 2017 for $23 million and later sold for $30 million in 2021.
He also sold a historic Los Angeles home that once belonged to Gene Wilder. Musk purchased the Bel Air property through a trust in 2013 for $6.75 million. Instead of putting it on the market, he transferred it to Wilder's nephew, Jordan Walker-Pearlman, even lending him $6.7 million to help with the $7 million sale. After Walker-Pearlman defaulted on the loan, Musk quickly reclaimed the property and started foreclosure proceedings.
