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Oracle co-founder and former CEO Larry Ellison falls within the top 10 richest people in the world and has an enormous net worth of $49.3B and an impressive real estate portfolio to match. In fact, impressive may be an understatement as Larry has been called the "nation's most avid trophy-home buyer." His holdings are too numerous to discuss each in detail, but check out Bisnow's top five and we think you'll understand the title.
Lanai Island
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When it comes to extravagance it doesn't get much better than buying your own island, and that's exactly what Ellison did. In 2012 Ellison shelled out a reported $500M to buy 98% of Lanai Island—the sixth-largest Hawaiian island, leaving 2% for the State of Hawaii. Ellison hopes to turn the 89,600-acre island into an economically viable, 100% green community—and it would be the first.
Woodside Home
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Ellison owns many, many homes, but this one is somewhat different from the rest. After buying the 23-acre estate he built a compound modeled after a 16th-century Japanese emperor's palace, complete with a man-made 2.3-acre lake. The property is estimated to have cost from $70M to $110M and took nine years to design and build.
Malibu Properties
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Ellison owns at least two dozen properties in Malibu, CA, and he's taken over large chunks of the billionaire-favored Carbon Beach, owning 10 houses on the stretch. In 2004 and 2005 Ellison spent more than $180M picking up homes in Malibu, while in 2013 he bought producer Jerry Bruckheimer's house for $18M.
Kyoto Historic Garden Villa
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It seems modeling his home after a feudal Japanese emperor's palace wasn't enough, so Ellison bought a historic garden villa in Kyoto, Japan, on the temple grounds of Nanzenji. While the price he paid is unknown, we do know it wasn't cheap—the property was reportedly listed for $86M. Ellison told CNBC he intends to turn the property into a museum to house his Japanese art.
Porcupine Creek Estate
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In 2011 Ellison threw down $42.9M for the 249-acre Porcupine Creek Estate and private golf course in Rancho Mirage, CA. The club includes a main house with no less than 16 bedrooms along with a few separate guest houses. Ellison was able to snag the property after the divorce and bankruptcy of its previous owners, Yellowstone Club founders Edra and Tim Blixseth.
