How Rick Caruso Amassed His Fortune
When you consider how a man can amass so much wealth in so little time, you might wonder how he did it. Caruso, a Southern California real estate developer, has many business interests. He’s active in a number of community organizations, including the Los Angeles Coliseum Commission, and he is also a trustee of the University of Southern California’s School of Policy, Planning, and Development. He and his wife, Tina, have four children. Their primary residence is inland, about 20 minutes’ drive from Malibu. Rick and Tina Caruso bought their properties over a twenty-year period, and now own three properties.
While Caruso’s business career is well-established, he also has a long political background. Before running for mayor of Los Angeles, he was a Republican, but in recent years has switched to the Democratic Party. Throughout his life, Caruso has dabbled in politics, including as a member of the Los Angeles Police Commission and the Board of Water and Power Commission.
Caruso’s real estate portfolio is full of luxury properties and malls. While many developers have to sell finished projects to recoup their investors’ money, Caruso has not sold any of his completed projects and has reaped the rewards as a landlord. This strategy has earned him a 4.3 billion dollar fortune.
In Los Angeles, Caruso is well-known for his massive shopping mall developments. Many of his projects have high-end stores, as well as upscale restaurants and movie theaters. Aside from shopping malls, he also owns several residential buildings and office buildings. He’s pondered running for mayor of Los Angeles for years and has also served on several state and city task forces.
Caruso’s vast wealth has allowed him to be able to run for mayor of Los Angeles. He also spent more than $35 million on his campaign. Nearly two-thirds of his money went to ads. That’s a staggering amount, and is well over four times what most presidential candidates spend on their campaigns.
The next step in Caruso’s career was to buy a building once owned by a Seattle retail giant, Nordstrom’s Galleria. The owner of the Galleria had a long-standing feud with Caruso, but Caruso bought the building and promised to pay for improvements. The building then became Dick’s Sporting Items and Bloomingdale’s.
Caruso has been involved in politics for decades. He’s the son of a car dealership magnate and went to private college. His political career has included decades in the city’s municipal government. He pushed for more cops and a social justice platform that criminalize poverty while shielding the effects of economic inequality from richer residents.
0