Jeff Greene Net Worth

Jeff Greene has an estimated net worth of $10.1 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Jeff Greene profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $3.4 billion in 2019.

Jeff Greene is an American real estate entrepreneur and investor. He built his career by combining property deals with market bets. While studying at Harvard Business School, he bought his first house in 1977 and rented out rooms. By the time he graduated in 1979, he owned 18 properties. In 1980, he moved to Los Angeles, where his first new construction project was an office building in West Los Angeles.

His fortune took off after he bought credit default swaps tied to subprime mortgage-backed bonds as the housing market fell. That trade helped make him a billionaire and also protected his business. Later, most of his wealth came to sit in real estate in Los Angeles and South Florida, along with equities and other investments. He also spent more than $20 million on the Greene School in Palm Beach, which now has more than 100 students.

How Jeff Greene built his wealth

Greene paid his way through school with scholarships, loans, and several jobs. He taught Hebrew 3 days a week, checked IDs outside the gym and library, and later traveled the country selling circus tickets to cover Harvard Business School. He started buying property early. In 1977, while still an MBA student, he bought his first house and rented out rooms. At graduation in 1979, he already controlled 18 properties.

After relocating to Los Angeles in 1980, Greene kept expanding in real estate. His first ground-up project there was an office building in West Los Angeles. In the late 1980s, he focused on condominium construction. He also oversaw 100 Vandam in Manhattan, a 25-story tower in west Soho that restored the original stories of a building from 1877. Over time, his holdings grew into a large real estate portfolio in Los Angeles and South Florida, plus equities and other investments.

What moved his Forbes fortune

A major turning point came in mid-2006, when Greene grew concerned about the housing market and spoke with John Paulson. They agreed the market looked unstable, and Greene went into credit default swaps on subprime mortgage-backed bonds. That trade became the move that made him a billionaire as the housing market crashed. Forbes later tracked his wealth rising from $3.4 billion in 2019 to $3.7 billion in 2020, $3.9 billion in 2021, and $5.1 billion in 2022.

Forbes then estimated $7.2 billion in 2023, $7.5 billion in 2024, $7.9 billion in 2025, and $9 billion in 2026. As of October 20, 2026, Forbes' real-time billionaires tracker put him at $10.1 billion. The main drivers described by Forbes are his real estate holdings in Los Angeles and South Florida, along with equities and other investments. He also spent over $30 million in the summer of 2018 on an unsuccessful Florida primary run.