Barbara Corcoran Has the Lowest Net Worth of All the Sharks
Barbara Corcoran may be most famous for being a Shark, having appeared on all 14 seasons of ABC’s Shark Tank, but she made her fortune long before her TV debut, when she founded her real-estate company, The Corcoran Group, in 1973. "I'm exactly the same person I was [...] before Shark Tank," she said in an interview with Inc. "Yet the whole world treats me as if I'm somebody new. It's a joke. It's false fame."
False or not, Corcoran’s mainstream TV success helped her publish a bestseller, Shark Tales: How I Turned $1,000 into a Billion Dollar Business!, and start a popular podcast. When she’s not on the Shark Tank set, the 74-year-old investor spends her time speaking on small business and real estate; she even has an active TikTok, where she's amassed more than a million followers.
While she’s not the richest Shark (in fact, she’s the poorest), Corcoran has a lot to say about what it takes to make it in the business world. See how she went from rags to riches—and exactly what her net worth is today.
How did Barbara Corcoran get so rich?
The fact that Corcoran labels herself the “NYC Real Estate Queen” might give you an idea of how she got so rich. But before she was rich, she didn’t have much to her name.
According to her website, Corcoran earned straight D’s through high school and had 20 jobs by the age of 23. Growing up with nine siblings, she came from modest means and perhaps never expected to “make it.” But make it, she did.
In 1973, Corcoran borrowed $1,000 from her boyfriend at the time, quit her waitressing job and founded what would become The Corcoran Group, one of the largest names in real estate today.
Recalling what she did after she made her first profit, Corcoran told CNBC Make It, “I went out and I bought my mother and father a new car. They had never had a new car. I had my Uncle Richie and his best friend drive the car down to Florida, put a big bow on the top and park it in the driveway.”
What is Barbara Corcoran's net worth?
In 2023, Corcoran has an estimated net worth of around $100 million.
Is Barbara Corcoran a billionaire?
Barbara Corcoran is not a billionaire, but with an estimated net worth of $100 million, she's still pretty darn rich. She's also insistent that money doesn't buy happiness. “I’m no happier today than I was when I was dirt poor," she told CNBC Make It. "You think something would have changed? No, I’m still insecure about the same things. I’m still nervous about the same things.”
What business did Barbara Corcoran start?
Barbara Corcoran founded The Corcoran Group in 1973. At the time, it was called Corcoran-Simone, named in part for her then-boyfriend Ramone Simone, who fronted the starting cost of $1,000. While Simone paid for it, Corcoran did the legwork to get the business on its feet, turning it into one of the most successful real-estate brokerages in New York City.
Speaking with The Future of Business and Tech about what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur, Corcoran stressed the importance of failure. “Failing a lot is the ultimate proof that you’re meant to be a successful entrepreneur, as it shows you’re willing to shake up the status quo and try new things,” she said. “You need to be able to take a hit, bounce back up and say ‘Hit me again.’ If you can’t take a hit, you won’t stay in business.”
How much did Barbara Corcoran make from selling her business?
In 2001, Corcoran sold The Corcoran Group to NRT for a jaw-dropping $66 million. This was the same business she’d started from a $1,000 loan and built for more than two decades. But that figure—$66 million—didn’t come from a company evaluation, or even from NRT.
“Six was my lucky number,” Corcoran told CNBC Make It. When NRT initially made an offer for $22 million, she responded, “It’s worth $66 million. Call me when you get $66 million.”
The deal went through. The next morning, when she went to withdraw some cash from her bank, was when it really sunk in for Corcoran. “I looked at [the receipt] and I had $44 million in my checking account!” she told Make It. “That’s when it hit me, you know, it hit me: I’m in a different position now. I can do whatever I want.”
How much money has Barbara Corcoran made from Shark Tank?
According to Variety, Corcoran earned a reported $50,000 per episode of Shark Tank in 2016. It's unclear what she makes on the show today, but it's likely more than it was seven years ago.
Related: Barbara Corcoran Reveals Her Best Shark Tank Investment to Date
How much has Barbara Corcoran made from her Shark Tank investments?
Over her 14 seasons on Shark Tank, Corcoran has made 53 deals on air, according to the website Sharkalytics (Corcoran herself claims to have invested in more than 80 businesses). While no investment is guaranteed to shake out, at least one has been a veritable gold mine for the real-estate mogul.
In 2017, the founders of The Comfy, a wearable blanket, appeared on Season 9 of Shark Tank. They originally asked for $50,000 in exchange for a 20% stake in the company.
“I took the deal myself. I got a third of the business for, I think, $50,000,” Corcoran said on The Daniel Mac Show. She shared that The Comfy has been, by far, her most successful investment. “They made me $468 million in three years. Nobody wanted it... I never anticipated.”
Related: How to Avoid Shark Tank Scams
What is Barbara Corcoran's house worth?
As a woman who made her fortune selling New York City real estate, it’s fitting that Barbara Corcoran still calls the Big Apple home. In 2022, she went viral on TikTok for a quick tour video of her Manhattan apartment, which costs $10,000 a month just in maintenance (a steep price to most, though maybe not to millionaire Corcoran).
A 2020 interview with CNBC estimates that Corcoran spent $13 million on the property.
"I was working as a messenger 26 years ago. I came, I delivered a package, I saw the view out of her door right there," Corcoran said in the TikTok, gesturing to the main kitchen window. "And I said, ‘If you ever sell this, ma'am, would you sell it to me?’ She called me 26 years later."
More recently, Corcoran gave a tour of her $1 million Los Angeles mobile home located in the Pacific Palisades."Here's my Taj Mahal," she said, opening the door to her luxe new digs. "Everything's little." Except, of course, the price tag.