Tamara Gustavson Net Worth

Tamara Gustavson has an estimated net worth of $9.1 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Tamara Gustavson profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $4.6 billion in 2019.

Tamara Gustavson is an American businesswoman best known as the largest shareholder of Public Storage. Her father, B. Wayne Hughes, cofounded the self-storage company in 1972. She joined Public Storage in 1983 after graduating from USC and spent 20 years there, rising to senior vice president before leaving in 2003. Since 2008, she has served on the company’s board, keeping a direct role in the business tied to most of her wealth.

Her fortune is closely linked to Public Storage, where Forbes says she owns about 10% of the company. She also sits on the board of American Homes 4 Rent, a publicly traded REIT focused on single-family rental homes that her father cofounded. Outside those companies, Gustavson and her family own Spendthrift Farm, the Kentucky breeding operation that has been home to 10 Kentucky Derby winners. Forbes puts her net worth at $9.1 billion on its real-time tracker as of October 20, 2026.

How Tamara Gustavson built her fortune

Most of Gustavson’s wealth comes from her stake in Public Storage, the self-storage company started by her father in 1972. Forbes says she is the company’s largest shareholder and owns about 10%. She worked there from 1983 to 2003 and later joined the board in 2008. That long connection matters because her fortune is tied to the value of a major public company, not a one-time sale or outside deal.

She also has board roles and family holdings beyond Public Storage. Gustavson serves on the board of American Homes 4 Rent, a publicly traded REIT that focuses on single-family rental homes and was also cofounded by her father. Her family also owns Spendthrift Farm, a well-known thoroughbred breeding farm in Kentucky. On the nonprofit side, she is a director of the William Lawrence & Blanche Hughes Foundation and served on USC’s board from 2010 to 2020.

What Forbes says about her wealth

Forbes has tracked Gustavson’s wealth rising over time alongside the businesses tied to her family. On the Forbes World’s Billionaires List, her estimate moved from $4.6 billion in 2019 to $8.5 billion in 2022. It then came in at $7.8 billion in 2024 before reaching $8.6 billion in the 2026 billionaires list. Those moves line up with the market value of the public companies connected to her holdings, especially Public Storage.

The latest Forbes update is higher still. Forbes’ real-time billionaires tracker listed Gustavson at $9.1 billion in October 2026, with self storage as the main source of wealth. That estimate fits the basic structure of her finances: a large ownership stake in Public Storage, plus her connection to American Homes 4 Rent and her family’s other assets. Her role has been steady for years, even as the Forbes number has moved up and down.