Net Worth Ranker
What Is Suze Orman’s Net Worth?
Suze Orman, a prominent financial advisor, television personality, author, and motivational speaker, has accumulated a considerable net worth of approximately $75 million. Her wealth is a result of her diverse career, which includes her work as a financial advisor, media appearances, book sales, and entrepreneurial ventures.
Suze Orman’s Career Beginnings and Financial Ventures
Born as Susan Lynn Orman in Chicago, Illinois, in 1951, Suze Orman’s early life included working at her father’s deli. She earned a B.A. in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign in 1976 and later received an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from the same university in 2009.
After graduating, Orman worked as a waitress in Berkeley, California. In 1982, she took a leap of faith by borrowing $50,000 from a restaurant patron and $2,000 from friends and family to start her own restaurant. Unfortunately, on the advice of the patron, she placed the money in a trading account at Merrill Lynch, where a broker convinced her to invest in a high-risk options account. Within three months, the entire sum was lost. This experience became a turning point in her life, leading her to learn about investments and finance. Ironically, she joined the training program at Merrill Lynch.
She also sued Merrill Lynch and settled for the amount lost plus interest, ensuring she could repay her investors. In 1983, she became the Vice President of Investments at Prudential Bache Securities. By 1987, Orman ventured out on her own, founding the Suze Orman Financial Group in Emeryville, California. Her first book, “You’ve Earned It, Don’t Lose It,” became a bestseller, marking the start of her successful career as a financial author.
Suze Orman’s Media Career and Television Shows
Suze Orman’s media career includes numerous appearances on television shows such as “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “Oprah’s All-Stars,” and “Paula’s Party” on the Food Network. Her own television show, “The Suze Orman Show,” aired on CNBC from 2002 to 2015 and became one of the network’s highest-rated programs. The show broadcasted 128 episodes throughout its 8 year run, and featured the famous “Can I Afford It” segment.
She is also the creator of the television show “Can I Afford It?” and wrote an advice column for “O” magazine. She was the writer of “Money Matters” on Yahoo, and contributed to the Philadelphia Enquirer, Your Business at Home Magazine, and Lowes MoneyWorks. In addition, Suze Orman created CD-ROM-based services covering education and financial services, such as “Will and Trust Kit,” “Protection Portfolio,” and “Identity Theft Kit.”
Orman has won several Daytime Emmy Awards for hosting PBS pledge drive specials, including “The Lessons of Life,” “The Money Show for the Young, Fabulous and Broke,” and “The Laws of Money” in 2004 and 2006. She has also received six Gracie Awards from the Alliance for Women in Media.
Suze Orman’s Personal Life and Real Estate Holdings
Suze Orman is a supporter of the Democratic party and their economic policies, and she has made campaign donations in the past, including support for Hillary Clinton. She resides in New York, Florida, and San Francisco, California, with her spouse, Kathy Travis, whom she married in 2010.
In 2007, Suze Orman purchased a 1,200 square-foot apartment in New York’s Plaza Hotel for $3.6 million. The unit has a courtyard view. Similar units with Central Park views were selling for roughly double the amount at the time. In 2004, she acquired a condo in Hillsboro Beach, Florida, for $945,000. In 2014, she purchased an undeveloped plot of land in the Bahamas for $2.5 million, using funds from the sale of a yacht and a home in San Francisco.
