Trump’s net worth falls $100m as asset value dips

Donald Trump’s net worth has fallen by $100m (€90m), to $2.9bn, as his office properties aren’t bringing in as much cash as banks that loaned him money had expected.

That’s the biggest finding in an updated assessment of the US President’s net worth, which has slipped from $3bn a year ago, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The calculation, five months after Mr Trump’s inauguration, relies on figures compiled from lenders, mortgage documents, annual reports, market data, and a new financial disclosure released last week.

The decrease is driven mostly by a drop in the value of three office properties in Manhattan, where financial data compiled by Mr Trump’s lenders offer a consistent picture: They’re underperforming appraisals conducted when Mr Trump was issued loans.

The buildings — 40 Wall Street, Trump Tower, and 1290 Avenue of the Americas, a tower in which Mr Trump holds a 30% stake — are victims of a changing New York office market, where gleaming new skyscrapers are attracting tenants and demand for space in vintage properties is falling.

The Bloomberg calculation, which previously relied in part on banks’ estimates and appraisals, is now based solely on the three properties’ actual financial results disclosed by managers of mortgage-security trusts that hold Trump debt.

The present value of the three properties has been revised down by a combined $380m.

However, the decrease in the value of the three towers was almost offset by successes in other corners of Mr Trump’s empire.

His portfolio of liquid assets, including cash, has jumped to $230m from $170m following condo sales and other payouts from the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas, as well as the sale of a Manhattan penthouse apartment. He sold most of his stock portfolio last summer, a spokesman said in December.

Mr Trump’s companies received new licensing fees for branded projects in Vancouver and Kolkata, the financial disclosure shows.

On an annualised basis, revenue at his 16 golf and resort properties rose 3%. Mar-a-Lago, which he has visited frequently since being elected, saw a 25% jump in sales.

The properties now have a combined value of $720m, up from $710m, according to the index, an increase damped by declining multiples for golf course properties.

At the same time, Mr Trump’s debt load has shrunk to at least $550m from about $630m last year, according to lender data and repayment schedules.

Bloomberg