Donald Trump earned approximately $2.4bn in revenue while he was in office, says a new report.
According to documents, many of which have only just become public, the former president’s $400k salary was “pocket change” compared to the money his businesses made.
Mr Trump’s property records, ethics disclosures, debt documents and securities filings between January 2017 and December 2020 were analysed to reach the final figure - which would have been higher still if not for the pandemic, reports Forbes.
Mr Trump’s businesses – primarily his golf clubs and resort properties – generated about $650m annually during the first three years of his presidency. But as Covid-19 hit home in 2020, revenues dropped.
“It’s hurting me, and it’s hurting Hilton, and it’s hurting all of the great hotel chains all over the world,” Mr Trump told reporters in a March 2020 press conference at the White House. “It’s hurting everybody. I mean there are very few businesses that are doing well now.”
According to the report, The Trump Organization tried to sell his Washington, DC hotel and other assets that were performing poorly, but without much luck.
That said, Mr Trump’s commercial real estate holdings continued to boost his income. Rent increased at a San Francisco office building in which the former president holds a 30% stake, rising from $42m to $43m. At a New York City block, the same thing happened, bringing Mr Trump’s earnings up from roughly $55m to $58m.
In 2020, he sold $435,000 worth of condos in Las Vegas, which was far less than he’d sold in previous years. This was one reason for his 2020 income to end up about 25 per cent less than before. It dropped to an estimated $450m – still more than 1,000 times his annual presidential salary.
