Over the course of Trump’s presidency from 2017-2020, his fortune fell drastically from $3.5 billion to $2.4 billion — putting him down 298 spots in the billionaire rankings. The numbers, reported by Forbes, come largely from the fact that Trump decided not to divest his assets when he moved into the White House.
According to Forbes, if Trump “had sold everything on Day 1, paid the maximum capital-gains taxes on the sales, then put the proceeds into a conflict-free fund tracking the S&P 500, Trump would have ended his presidency an estimated $1.6 billion richer than he is today.”
During his time in office, Trump New York properties such as Trump Tower at 6 East 57th Street lost close to $217 million and the Trump Building at 40 Wall Street, valued at $304 million lost close to $195 million. In Miami, Trump’s golf resort didn’t fare that well either. Revenue was already bad due to the pandemic and took a further dive, dropping $160 million. His hotel branding also took a hit, with Forbes reporting that licensees have dropped Trump’s name from their properties. Real estate analyst Kevin Brown tells Forbes, “he has done permanent damage to the Trump name and image, at least for two to three decades.”
In California, however, the Goldman Sachs and Bank of America — where Trump owns a 30% stake in the complex — buildings rose $102 million. And the one place Trump saw massive gains during his presidency? Surprising no one, that would be Mar-A-Lago. People flocked to Florida when the pandemic started to get out of cities and to go towards warmer weather, and over the past few years, the establishment became a welcome place for both residents and those who were already accustomed to coming to Trump’s businesses. (And Trump returning there so much when he wasn’t in Washington probably didn’t hurt, either.)
Since leaving the White House, the world has seen little of Trump aside from a short speech at the CPAC earlier this year and some rumblings that he may consider running for the 2024 presidency.
Maybe he should work on recovering his wealth first, though.