Donald Trump has touted the multimillion-dollar values of his golf course resorts across the country while his attorneys argue for lower tax bills – and the difference between the two is huuuge.
Now, officials in South Florida are disputing those lowered assessments.
In his May filing with the Federal Election Commission, Trump claimed consistently higher values on eight of his 10 golf courses while his attorneys continue to petition for slashed values, the Washington Post reported. The combined value of the 10 courses he pays taxes is roughly 60 percent of Trump’s estimated value of $385 million.
At Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, the Republican presidential nominee valued the property at more than $50 million when months earlier, his attorney argued it was worth “no more than $5 million.”
And at Trump National Doral, Trump’s attorneys brought the value down to $75 million from roughly $100 million in 2012. He bought the property for $150 million in 2012 and completed a $250 million in renovations earlier this year. Trump’s FEC filing, meanwhile, said it’s worth at least $50 million.
The Doral resort’s tax assessment will come before a Doral council meeting on Tuesday night. Doral Councilwoman Sandra Ruiz is sponsoring a resolution that would have Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser Pedro Garcia inspect and update its assessment of Trump National Doral Resort and Spa, according to the South Florida Business Journal.
Since Trump bought the 800-acre site in 2012, his lawyers have challenged the assessments every year. In 2016, the property’s market value is about $96 million while the assessed value was about $72 million due to a 10-percent cap that’s put in place once a property’s value is lowered.
Trump could also redevelop the golf course in the future, as golf courses across the country and South Florida continue to close.
“I could convert Doral [in Miami] into thousands and thousands of [housing] units, but that is a different value as golf,” Trump told Fortune in May. “It was always very important to me to have the land. I always want to have the option.” [Washington Post] [SFBJ] – Katherine Kallergis