William Sanders: The Real Estate Titan with a $600 Million Net Worth
William Sanders, a pioneering real estate investor, has a net worth of $600 million. He is known for his influential role in the REIT industry and his strategic investments in commercial properties.
Real EstateNet WorthReitWilliam SandersBeto OrourkeReal EstateAug 10, 2025
Over the course of a five-decade career, Sanders built and sold multiple companies, managed tens of billions of dollars in real estate assets, and helped institutionalize commercial property as a mainstream investment class. He first gained national prominence as the founder of LaSalle Partners, which became one of the leading real estate advisory firms in the country.
He later launched Security Capital Group, a real estate holding company that incubated a fleet of specialized REITs across multiple sectors, including apartments, warehouses, office parks, and self-storage. At its peak in the late 1990s, Security Capital controlled more than $20 billion in assets. Sanders ultimately sold the company to GE Capital for $5.4 billion, personally walking away with hundreds of millions. Though frequently mischaracterized as a billionaire, his fortune has long been estimated in the hundreds of millions. A private and strategic operator, Sanders earned comparisons to Warren Buffett for his long-term vision, market timing, and industry-shaping influence.
William David Sanders was born in 1941 in Minnesota but was raised in El Paso, Texas. His father, David Sanders, was born in Mexico to German Jewish immigrants and worked in advertising. His mother’s side included both Irish Catholic and German Jewish ancestry. William attended Cornell University, where he studied in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and graduated in 1964. He began his professional career in the real estate sector shortly after college, ultimately deciding to strike out on his own within a few years.
In 1968, Sanders moved to Chicago and founded LaSalle Partners, a real estate advisory firm that worked with major corporations like Ford, Coca-Cola, and Eastman Kodak. The company specialized in helping corporate clients manage, finance, and optimize their property portfolios. This included structuring sale-leaseback deals, developing headquarters buildings, and advising on how to treat real estate as a strategic asset rather than just a line-item expense. LaSalle’s model was ahead of its time, and the firm became highly successful in the growing corporate real estate sector.
In 1987, Sanders sold his stake in LaSalle to Japan’s Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company for an estimated $65 million, the equivalent of about $185 million today after adjusting for inflation. The timing was notable, as the sale occurred shortly before the late-1980s real estate downturn. While Sanders downplayed the timing as coincidence, the deal further cemented his reputation as a shrewd market operator.
In 1999, LaSalle Partners merged with the London-based firm Jones Lang Wootton to form Jones Lang LaSalle, now known globally as JLL. Headquartered in Chicago, JLL is one of the world’s largest commercial real estate services firms, with a presence in more than 80 countries.
Following his exit from LaSalle, Sanders shifted from advising companies to building them. In 1991, he launched Security Capital Group, a Santa Fe–based holding company designed to incubate and control a new generation of REITs. Rather than simply investing in real estate, Sanders aimed to build operating companies with strong management teams and data-driven acquisition strategies. His goal was to professionalize and scale real estate investment in the same way industrial firms had scaled manufacturing.
Security Capital backed or developed more than a dozen REITs, including ProLogis (industrial), Archstone (apartments), CarrAmerica (office), Homestead Village (extended-stay hotels), and Storage USA (self-storage). At its peak, Security Capital managed more than $20 billion in assets across 18 affiliated companies. In 1997, Security Capital went public itself. In 2002, Sanders sold the company to GE Capital for $5.4 billion—roughly $10.1 billion in today’s dollars. He personally earned an estimated $250 million from the deal, or about $467 million today.
After Security Capital, Sanders launched Verde Realty, a REIT focused on industrial and commercial properties along the U.S.–Mexico border. The company was active in warehouse development in Texas, New Mexico, and northern Mexico. In 2012, Verde was acquired by Brookfield Asset Management in a deal worth $886 million. Sanders reportedly owned 6.4 percent of the company, resulting in a personal payout of around $22 million.
Sanders was also active in civic development projects, particularly in El Paso. He was one of the founders of the Paso del Norte Group, a private business coalition that spearheaded an ambitious downtown redevelopment plan in the mid-2000s. The project became controversial when it proposed using eminent domain in a historic working-class neighborhood, leading to local protests and public backlash. Sanders was at the center of the debate, and the controversy became a recurring talking point in political attacks on his son-in-law, Beto O’Rourke, who served on the city council at the time.
William Sanders has largely kept his personal life out of the public eye, preferring to maintain a low profile despite his professional prominence. He was married to Marion Fredman Sanders, with whom he had several children. One of his daughters, Amy Sanders O’Rourke, is married to former U.S. Representative and presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is William Sanders' net worth?
William Sanders has a net worth of $600 million.
What is William Sanders known for?
William Sanders is known for his pioneering role in the Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) industry and his strategic investments in commercial properties.
How did William Sanders start his career?
William Sanders started his career in the real estate sector shortly after graduating from Cornell University in 1964.
What significant companies did William Sanders found?
William Sanders founded LaSalle Partners and Security Capital Group, both of which were highly successful in the real estate industry.
What is the controversy surrounding William Sanders' civic projects in El Paso?
The controversy involved a downtown redevelopment plan that proposed using eminent domain in a historic working-class neighborhood, leading to local protests and public backlash.
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