Donald Bren

Master builder, master planner — and still the pilot of the powerful Irvine Company.

Donald Bren remains the quiet leader in California commercial real estate (as well as the wealthiest real estate owner in the United States). Irvine Company oversees 129 million square feet of prime commercial real estate — with 590 office buildings, 125 multifamily communities, 40 retail centers, marinas, a coastal resort, and even Manhattan’s MetLife Building. 

In terms of Southern California’s office market, it’s not even close. Concentrated mostly in Orange County, Irvine Company owns 266 office properties spanning more than 23.7 million square feet, according to recent CoStar data shared with Commercial Observer. That’s almost 8 million square feet more than the company with the second-largest portfolio in L.A., Orange County and the Inland Empire.

This year, Irvine Company leaned into repositioning office holdings, especially in San Diego. Following the sale of the landmark Symphony Towers, Irvine quietly listed two Downtown San Diego buildings, signaling a strategic pivot toward the life sciences corridor in the University City submarket.

Bren’s Irvine also registered 10.6 million square feet of office leasing over the past 12 months, driving occupancy across its portfolio to nearly 90 percent, which is well above the regional average. That occupancy rate comes after the firm spent $637 million over the same period.

Irvine counts J.P. Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Willow Laboratories as some of the tenants who signed lease deals in Orange County this year. 

Of course, Bren’s legacy through Irvine goes beyond buildings to shaping entire cities. His company master‑planned and master-built the City of Irvine and its Newport Coast. Bren also played major roles master‑planning communities such as Mission Viejo, Westlake Village and Newhall Ranch, and preserved more than 57,500 acres at the Irvine Ranch.