James Packer rises to $6 billion fortune on 2013 BRW Rich 200 list

As James Packer reaches for the sky with his ambitious Sydney casino highrise proposal, his fortunes are also very much on the way up.

His wealth has been estimated by the forthcoming BRW Rich 200 list at $6 billion.

It’s a $790 million jump on last year, Property Observer understands, from his $5.21 billion estimate in the 2012 BRW Rich 200 list.

It was 2006 when James Packer took his late father Kerry’s spot at the top of the Rich List.

At $7.1 billion, the then pre-GFC fortune was almost $2 billion clear of shopping centre magnate Frank Lowy, who retained second position on the list with $5.4 billion.

“Where Kerry liked to play in casinos, James likes to own them,” the then BRW Rich 200 list editor suggested.

Meanwhile James Packer’s latest casino property play could see his highrise become the tallest residential block in Sydney.

It has been estimated that the winning 60-storey Wilkinson Eyre design (pictured below) for Crown Sydney at 250 metres high would give James Packer the tallest habitable building in Sydney.

Its proposed 75 serviced apartments would be located in the top third of the yet to be approved building.

Cashed-up east Asians would be the most likely buyers with managing director of residential at Colliers, Peter Chittenden, told the Weekend Financial Review.

“They like big, tall buildings,” Peter Chittenden said.

There’s been talk of the penthouse coming with a $40 million likely asking price.

Packer’s tower would exceed Sydney’s tallest office building, the 244-metre Chifley Tower, and also the tallest Sydney residential building, Meriton’s 230-metre World Tower.

Sydney Tower, at 309 metres, would remain Sydney’s tallest structure.

There is also a proposal by the Chinese developer, the Greenland Group for the Sydney Water Board site with an approved tower height of 240 metres that would just pip Meriton Apartments’ 230?-metre World Tower.

This article first appeared on Property Observer.