Trump Org taps Newmark to sell DC hotel

JLL was marketing the property but cut ties with Trump after the Capitol riot

Howard Lutnick and Newmark CEO Barry Gosin with Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. (Getty, Trump Hotels)
Howard Lutnick and Newmark CEO Barry Gosin with Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. (Getty, Trump Hotels)

If at first you don’t succeed, try again — with a new broker.

The Trump Organization is again trying to sell the ground lease on the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., this time turning to Newmark to market it, Bloomberg News reported.

JLL had been marketing the property until it cut ties with the Trump Organization following the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Newmark, which is part of billionaire Howard Lutnick’s financial empire, is looking for offers worth more than $400 million, sources familiar with the matter told the publication.

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The Trump Organization has been trying to sell the property since October 2019, at first asking $500 million, the publication reported. The marketing process was put on hold in November 2020 when bids came in lower than expected — and the pandemic didn’t help matters.

The latest sale attempt is happening at a time when the lodging industry is showing early signs of life, though it may take some time before the corporate travel and group events that keep the D.C. hotel industry afloat return.

The average occupancy rate at Washington hotels was 44 percent in April, the publication reported. By comparison, the rate was 72 percent in Miami and 52 percent in New York.

[Bloomberg News] — Cordilia James