Trump financial report shows mixed '18 revenue

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump's financial disclosure report Thursday showed revenue held steady last year at several of his key properties -- including his Washington hotel and Doral golf resort.

The disclosures, released Thursday afternoon by the Office of Government Ethics, revealed details about income and land sales for more than 20 parts of Trump's real estate and hospitality businesses. The disclosure covered 2018.

The overall result was mixed. Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club saw revenue drop 10% in 2018.

Revenue increased modestly at several places that Trump visits: At his hotel in downtown Washington, it increased 1% over 2017. Revenue increased at his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey, where Trump spends summer weekends, and at his golf club in northern Virginia, where Trump has played rounds with members of Congress and foreign leaders.

But at places where Trump rarely goes, there were declines. Revenue fell at eight of Trump's 12 U.S. golf courses.

At Trump's Doral resort -- which produces more revenue for him than any other hotel -- the documents showed that a sharp decline in revenue stopped in 2018, rising 1.6% over 2017.

At Trump's Chicago hotel, revenue was down 5%, continuing a long slide that began in 2016. Trump's company has blamed the decline on tourists' fears of gun violence in Chicago, though other Chicago luxury hotels have thrived.

In a statement earlier this week, Eric Trump -- the president's son who is running the Trump Organization day to day -- said the company had a great year.

"Our company had an exceptional 2018," Trump's son said in the statement. "Our iconic hotels, golf courses, commercial buildings, residential projects and other assets are the best in the world and unrivaled by anyone."

The company noted that its overall golf revenue increased from 2017 to 2018. The increase was about 1.4%, largely driven by increases at its golf courses in Scotland and Ireland. Those British Isles courses have lost money in past years; the Trump disclosures don't say if they turned a profit in 2018.

The report, released by the Office of Government Ethics, also showed that Trump's debt increased over the past year by $10 million, to at least $315 million. Trump's newest debt -- a mortgage loan of more than $25 million -- was for the purchase of an eight-bedroom Palm Beach home adjacent to Mar-a-Lago that had been owned by his sister, retired federal judge Maryanne Trump Barry.

The new mortgage was provided by Professional Bank, a Miami lender that specializes in construction and residential and commercial real estate.

Professional Bank's CEO, Abel Iglesias, was appointed in February 2018 to the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Miami branch. The appointment was made solely by the Atlanta board, said Jean Tate, a spokesman for the Atlanta Fed.

Trump's financial disclosures don't list the exact values of any of his assets, and they depict the income from many of his assets as a broad range. They also show only revenue, not the profit left over after expenses are paid.

The documents included some references to Trump businesses that have faded. The remains of Trump University produced no money at all, and Trump's former modeling agency produced $547 in residual income.

They also showed that a new effort to sell Trump-branded products over the Internet -- reaching Trump voters who might never visit a Trump property -- has paid off. The income from the Trump Store online outlet increased from $107,000 to $520,000 in a year.

The documents also show that the Trump Organization sold some of its noncore properties last year, including warehouses in South Carolina, housing developments in outer boroughs of New York and land in the Dominican Republic. Those sales brought in more than $20 million.

Information for this article was contributed by Bernard Condon and Stephen Braun of The Associated Press; and by David A. Fahrenthold and Jonathan O'Connell of The Washington Post.

A Section on 05/17/2019

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