Trump’s Troubles
The election wasn’t the only thing Donald Trump lost last year. Across his businesses, more than $100 million of revenue vanished.
The election wasn’t the only thing Donald Trump lost last year.
The final year of Trump’s presidency was also the hardest. On top of the impeachment, the pandemic and the election, Trump’s business empire took a beating, with key properties losing more than 50% of their revenue.
And that was before the insurrection and second impeachment. Immediately following the riot, Shopify reportedly cut off the president’s online store, the PGA fled his club, New York City announced it would cancel his contracts and tenants looked to get out of their leases. What’s next? With an estimated $900 million in loans coming due over the next four years, Trump will probably have to sell some assets—not that he’s had much luck with that recently either. In 2020, he sold just $435,000 of real estate, down from roughly $30 million in a more typical year.
Trump National Doral | Miami 2020 REVENUE: Est. $44 million CHANGE FROM 2019: –$33 million
The ex-president’s most important golf property—more a massive hotel than a traditional club—fired or furloughed about 560 employees, including 123 waiters and waitresses, 43 housekeepers and 25 cooks. If Trump wants to keep it afloat, he’ll have to scrounge up some cash: He has $125 million of Deutsche Bank debt maturing on the property in 2023.
Trump International Hotel | Las Vegas 2020 REVENUE: Est. $9 million CHANGE FROM 2019: –$14 million
The golden tower just off the Las Vegas Strip consistently generated about $23 million in annual sales throughout Trump’s presidency— until the coronavirus upended the economy last March. By April 3, the Vegas property, which Trump owns in a 50/50 partnership alongside fellow billionaire Phil Ruffin, had laid off about 550 employees.
Trump International Hotel | Washington, D.C. 2020 REVENUE: Est. $20 million CHANGE FROM 2019: –$33 million
Even before Covid-19, Trump’s hotel in the nation’s capital didn’t seem to be making enough money to cover the interest on its $170 million Deutsche Bank loan. With revenue down an estimated 63% last year and the president leaving town, there is little reason for optimism. The debt comes due in 2024. Expect this one to get ugly.
U.S. Golf Courses 2020 REVENUE: Est. $99 million CHANGE FROM 2019: –$10 million
Trump owns 10 golf clubs across the country. To know how they performed in 2020, just look at the electoral map. The properties in states that Trump won (Florida and North Carolina) lost almost no revenue. In places President Biden won (New York, New Jersey, Virginia and California), sales fell an estimated 14% on average.
Trump Turnberry | Turnberry, Scotland 2020 REVENUE: Est. $10 million CHANGE FROM 2019: –$16 million
Trump’s most famous property in Europe lost $61 million from 2014 to 2019. But 2020 looks like its most challenging year. The golf resort shut down from March to July, then again in November and December. Revenue also plunged more than 60% at Trump’s other two European golf resorts.
Mar-a-Lago | Palm Beach, Florida 2020 REVENUE: Est. $24 million CHANGE FROM 2019: +$3 million
Many of Trump’s most loyal supporters are also members of his exclusive Florida club. They stuck with him through the pandemic, making Mar-a-Lago a rare bright spot in the Trump portfolio. The business actually managed to increase sales an estimated 13% in 2020. No surprise that Trump decided to make Palm Beach his post-presidential home.