Harry Triguboff

Harry Triguboff
Triguboff in his World Tower penthouse apartment
Harry Triguboff
Born	Harry Oskar Triguboff 3 3, 1933
Birthplace	Dalian, Kwantung Leased Territory
Nationality	Australian (since 1961)
Occupation	Real estate developer
Known for	Founder and managing director of Meriton
Education	University of Leeds
Children	2

Harry Oskar Triguboff (born 3 March 1933) is an Australian billionaire real estate developer, the founder and managing director of Meriton, and one of Australia's wealthiest individuals. Born in the Chinese city of Dalian to a family of Russian Jewish heritage, Triguboff's life has traced an unlikely arc from wartime displacement across multiple continents to the summit of Australia's property industry. Widely known by the nickname "High-Rise Harry," he has built Meriton into Australia's largest apartment developer, responsible for the construction of tens of thousands of residential units across Sydney, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast. His career, spanning more than six decades, has made him a defining figure in Australia's urban landscape and a persistent voice in debates over housing supply, planning regulation, and immigration policy. His fortune, derived primarily from Meriton's apartment construction and a growing rental portfolio, has placed him consistently at or near the top of Australian wealth rankings. In 2025, Meriton recorded an after-tax profit exceeding $222 million, with rental income constituting an increasing share of the company's revenue.

Early Life

Harry Oskar Triguboff was born on 3 March 1933 in Dalian (then known as Dairen), a port city in the Kwantung Leased Territory of northeastern China, which was at that time under Japanese administration. His family was of Russian Jewish descent, part of a broader community of Jewish emigrants who had settled in China during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, fleeing pogroms and economic hardship in the Russian Empire. The Triguboff family had business interests in the region, and Harry spent his early childhood in Dalian and later in Tianjin (Tientsin), another major Chinese treaty port with a significant international community.

The upheavals of the Second World War and the subsequent Chinese Civil War fundamentally altered the lives of foreign communities in China. As the Communist revolution swept through the country in the late 1940s, many of the remaining Jewish families departed. The Triguboff family eventually left China, and Harry's path led him to Australia, where he would settle permanently. He arrived in Australia as a young man, gaining Australian citizenship in 1961.

Triguboff's early experiences—growing up as part of a displaced minority community, witnessing political upheaval and economic transformation—have been cited in profiles as formative influences on his character and business philosophy. The experience of migration and starting anew in a foreign country reportedly instilled in him a strong work ethic and an acute awareness of the value of real property as a source of security and wealth.

Education

After arriving in Australia, Triguboff attended Scots College in Sydney, one of the city's established private schools. He subsequently pursued higher education overseas, enrolling at the University of Leeds in England, where he studied textile engineering. His choice of field reflected the commercial interests common among emigrant business families of his background. However, upon returning to Australia, Triguboff did not pursue a career in textiles. Instead, he turned his attention to the property industry, a decision that would prove transformative both for himself and for Australia's built environment.

Career

Early ventures and the founding of Meriton

Triguboff's entry into the property business came in 1963, when he began developing residential properties in Sydney. His initial projects were modest, but he quickly identified a growing demand for apartment living in Australia's largest city, at a time when the suburban house-and-garden model still dominated the national imagination. He founded Meriton, which would become Australia's largest apartment developer.

From the outset, Triguboff's approach was characterised by a focus on volume, efficiency, and vertical integration. He sought to control as many aspects of the development process as possible—from land acquisition and planning approvals through to construction and, ultimately, sales. This model allowed Meriton to achieve economies of scale that competitors, many of whom operated on a project-by-project basis, could not match. Triguboff's insistence on maintaining ownership and control of the company, rather than listing it on the stock exchange, gave him the freedom to make rapid decisions and to ride out downturns in the property cycle without the pressure of quarterly earnings reports or shareholder activism.

Growth and dominance in Australian apartment development

Over the subsequent decades, Meriton expanded from small-scale projects to become the dominant force in Australian apartment construction. By the early 2000s, the company was regularly topping national rankings for residential building starts. Data from the Housing Industry Association (HIA) confirmed Meriton's position at the top of the building starts table, reflecting the sheer volume of apartments the company was delivering to market.

Triguboff became a prominent advocate for higher-density living in Australian cities, arguing that population growth and immigration made the traditional suburban model unsustainable. He frequently called on state and local governments to relax planning restrictions and height limits to allow for more apartment construction, particularly in Sydney's inner suburbs and along transport corridors. His advocacy earned him the nickname "High-Rise Harry," a moniker that became virtually inseparable from his public identity.

Major projects under the Meriton banner have included some of Sydney's most prominent residential towers. Among the most notable is World Tower, a skyscraper in Sydney's central business district that was, at the time of its completion, one of the tallest residential buildings in the Southern Hemisphere. Triguboff himself maintained a penthouse apartment in the building. Meriton also expanded its operations beyond Sydney, undertaking significant developments on the Gold Coast in Queensland and in Brisbane, capitalising on population growth and lifestyle demand in those markets.

Business philosophy and controversies

Triguboff has maintained a hands-on management style throughout his career, reportedly involving himself directly in design decisions, site inspections, and negotiations with government authorities. His philosophy has been described as pragmatic and relentless, driven by a conviction that Australia needs far more housing supply than its planning systems typically allow.

However, Meriton's rapid growth and high-volume approach have not been without controversy. The company has faced legal disputes and complaints regarding building defects in some of its developments. In one notable case, a claim exceeding $1 million was lodged over defects at the World Square site in Sydney. Separately, disputes arose involving owners' corporations at World Tower, with tensions between Meriton and apartment owners over building management and maintenance issues becoming the subject of media reporting.

In addition, Meriton has been the subject of regulatory attention. Media reports have detailed instances in which the company faced fines or enforcement actions related to compliance issues at its developments.

Despite these controversies, Meriton's overall output has remained prolific. Triguboff has argued that complaints about individual projects must be weighed against the tens of thousands of apartments the company has delivered, and that the scale of Meriton's operations inevitably means it will encounter more disputes than smaller developers.

Expansion into serviced apartments and rental income

In addition to its core business of building and selling apartments, Meriton expanded into the serviced apartment and hotel sector, operating Meriton Suites across multiple Australian cities. This diversification provided the company with an ongoing income stream beyond one-off sales, and positioned it as a significant player in the short-stay accommodation market.

More recently, Triguboff has shifted an increasing proportion of Meriton's business model toward retaining completed apartments as rental properties rather than selling them outright. This strategy has seen the company's rental income grow substantially. In the 2025 financial year, Meriton Properties recorded an after-tax profit of $222 million, with the company noting that while apartment sales had declined, rental income had risen significantly, more than offsetting the reduction in sales revenue. This pivot toward a build-to-rent model has been described in the Australian Financial Review and other outlets as a strategic response to both market conditions—particularly the tightening of apartment sales in some markets—and Triguboff's long-held belief in the enduring value of property ownership.

Wealth and rankings

Triguboff's wealth has made him a fixture on Australian and global rich lists. He topped the BRW Rich 200 list in 2016, displacing mining magnate Gina Rinehart, with an estimated fortune at the time that made him Australia's richest person. He has appeared on the Forbes list of Australia's billionaires on numerous occasions. In 2015, Forbes listed him among Australia's wealthiest individuals, noting the significant property profits underpinning his fortune. The Australian Financial Review Rich List for 2017 also placed him among the top-ranked Australians by net worth. Even in the early era of Australian wealth tracking, Triguboff appeared on the Crikey Rich List in 2000.

As of 2025, Triguboff remained among Australia's wealthiest individuals, with recent media reports describing him as the country's richest person following strategic moves to retain rather than sell completed apartment stock.

Personal Life

Triguboff has two children. He has maintained a relatively private personal life compared to some of his contemporaries on Australian wealth rankings, though he has been a frequent subject of media profiles due to his prominence in the property industry and his outspoken views on planning, housing, and immigration policy.

Triguboff is a member of Australia's Jewish community and has spoken publicly about issues affecting Jewish Australians. In early 2026, he made prominent public statements urging the Australian federal government to take stronger action against rising antisemitism in the country. He warned that the failure to address the issue could deter foreign investors and damage Australia's international reputation. His public intervention on the topic received significant media coverage in both Australian and international outlets.

He has resided for many years in Sydney, where his penthouse apartment in World Tower became one of his most publicly associated residences. In 2025, he listed a Gold Coast penthouse for auction after it failed to sell at its initial asking price.

Recognition

Triguboff has been the recipient of several honours recognising his contributions to the Australian property industry and to the broader community. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for his services to the construction and building industry.

His consistent presence at the top of Australian wealth rankings has itself become a form of public recognition, and his nickname "High-Rise Harry" has entered the Australian business lexicon. Media outlets including the Financial Times, Forbes, the Australian Financial Review, and The Australian have published extensive profiles of his career and influence on the Australian property market.

Jewish Business News noted his rise through Australian wealth rankings, describing how he had "climbed to the sixth" position among Australia's richest individuals at the time of that publication, and analysing the business strategies that underpinned his success.

The Australian newspaper reported in 2010 on Triguboff's involvement in debates about housing policy and homelessness, indicating that his views on housing supply were sought by policymakers and commentators beyond the commercial property sector.

Legacy

Harry Triguboff's impact on the Australian urban landscape is substantial and visible. Through Meriton, he has been responsible for the construction of more apartments than any other individual developer in Australian history, fundamentally altering the skylines of Sydney, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast. His career has coincided with—and in many ways driven—a significant shift in Australian housing patterns, away from a near-universal preference for detached suburban houses and toward higher-density apartment living in urban centres.

Triguboff has been a persistent and influential advocate for the view that Australia's housing supply crisis can only be addressed through large-scale apartment construction, and that government planning regulations represent the primary obstacle to achieving this. His arguments have placed him at the centre of policy debates over urban density, housing affordability, and the role of private developers in meeting public housing needs.

His business model—centred on vertical integration, private ownership, and sheer volume—has served as a case study in Australian business and property development. The more recent pivot toward retaining apartments as rental stock, rather than selling them, represents a significant evolution in Meriton's strategy and may influence the broader direction of Australia's emerging build-to-rent sector.

At the same time, Triguboff's legacy is a subject of debate. Critics have pointed to building quality issues in some Meriton developments and to the broader social implications of high-density living pushed by profit-driven developers. Supporters credit him with providing housing at scale in markets where supply has chronically lagged demand, and with demonstrating that apartment living can be a mainstream Australian housing choice.

A Bloomberg analysis in October 2025 noted that Triguboff "splits opinion" in Sydney, a city desperate for homes, capturing the dual nature of his legacy as both a provider of needed housing supply and a figure whose ambitions provoke debate about the future shape of Australian cities.

Now in his nineties, Triguboff remains active as managing director of Meriton, continuing to oversee new developments and to engage publicly on issues of housing policy, immigration, and, more recently, antisemitism in Australia.