President-elect Donald Trump has made clear that he will reward loyalty, and he’s looked to longtime friends and supporters in the real estate industry to fill cabinet positions and other roles.
His appointees will be tasked with implementing key parts of his agenda, including tariffs on Chinese and other imports, and potentially implementing a revived Opportunity Zone program, which provides tax incentives to developers who invest in historically distressed communities.
Since defeating Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump has announced appointments at a rapid clip. Here are the real estate-related appointees at press time:
Steve Witkoff
Special envoy to the Middle East
In a press release announcing the appointment, Trump called Witkoff a “Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” and said the developer has made every project and community he has been involved with “stronger and more prosperous.”
Witkoff’s expertise lies in luxury condo and hotel development in Miami and New York City, not diplomacy. He, alongside Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries, took over the troubled High Line condo project, formerly known as the XI, from HFZ Capital in 2021. The partners landed a $1 billion loan to refinance the project, now called One High Line, in August. He and Monroe Capital are also redeveloping the Shore Club, a luxury condo and resort in Miami Beach designed by New York-based Robert A.M. Stern.
He has made his support for Israel clear. When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in July, Witkoff was also in attendance, though he wouldn’t discuss the meeting with TRD at the time. On the social media platform X, however, he described Netanyahu’s remarks as “epic and deeply moving” and called Trump the “strongest and most vocal supporter of Israel in generations.”
Witkoff and Trump have been friends since the 1980s, meeting when the former was an attorney for Dreyer & Traub. The two apparently first bonded over an early-morning ham and Swiss sandwich. Witkoff paid, and Trump never forgot it, as Witkoff described while testifying as an expert witness for the defense in Trump’s civil fraud trial last year.
“I would say that he has been a really good friend to me and my family, particularly after the death of my son,” Witkoff testified, referring to the death of his son Andrew in 2011. “I am a good friend of his right on back.”
Witkoff has stood by Trump through his various legal issues, recently providing moral support during Trump’s criminal hush money trial in Manhattan. He was also golfing with Trump in September when the Secret Service intercepted what officials believe was a second attempt on Trump’s life.
Trump credited Witkoff with brokering peace between him and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who Trump referred to as “Meatball Ron” and “Ron DeSanctimonious” during the Republican presidential primary. Witkoff arranged a meeting between the two at his Shell Bay Club, a private club in Hollywood, Fla., in April.
In July, he told TRD that his support for Trump’s re-election went “well beyond real estate,” saying he was confident Trump would fight off inflation and bring “strength” to foreign policy.
Trump’s last Middle East special envoy, Justin Greenblatt, was also from the world of New York City real estate, having worked at the Trump Organization for two decades. Witkoff’s mandate in the role is not immediately clear. The Biden administration’s last two envoys focused on providing humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Howard Lutnick
Secretary of Commerce
Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald and chair of Newmark, was vying for the Department of Treasury role, facing off with Key Square Capital Management founder Scott Bessent for the job.
The treasury secretary, in addition to overseeing the Department of Treasury, advises the president on economic policy, and with various elements of the 2017 tax law expiring at the end of next year, several key provisions (including the cap on state and local tax deductions) will be on the table.
But according to the New York Times, Lutnick’s persistence began to irk Trump, and he decided to look elsewhere to fill the role. The president elect was also considering Apollo Global Management Chief Executive Marc Rowan and Kevin Warsh, who previously served on the Federal Reserve’s board of governors, according to the Wall Street Journal. He ultimately selected hedge fund manager Bessent, who he said would “reinvigorate the Private Sector,” and “support my Policies that will drive U.S. Competitiveness, and stop unfair Trade imbalances.”
In a press release, Trump said Lutnick will lead the administration’s trade and tariff agenda. Lutnick will also have “direct responsibility” for the Office of the United States Trade Representative, which advises the president on trade issues.
The Department of Commerce is described as the “voice of business” in the federal government and is tasked with promoting “trade and commercial agreements that bring new opportunity to U.S. businesses and maintain national security.”
The department played a key role in tariffs applied during the first Trump administration. In 2018, it concluded that the high level of imports of steel and aluminum impaired national security, which paved the way for the president to impose a tariff on those materials.
Trump has called for much steeper tariffs this time — 60 percent on goods imported from China and at least 10 percent on all other imports.
Lutnick, who is co-chairing Trump’s transition team, was one of Trump’s biggest supporters on Wall Street, and gave millions of dollars to his super PAC, Make America Great Again.
At TRD’s New York forum in May, Lutnick predicted that more regional banks would fail over the following two years. That would create opportunities for Newmark, which handled the sale of Signature Bank’s remaining $60 billion in loans.
“You’re going to start seeing that in ’25 and ’26. Every single weekend a regional bank is going to go bye bye,” he said at the time.
In helping to shape the next Trump administration, Lutnick has consulted with other industry players. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who runs investment firm Affinity Partners and has a 20 percent stake in Kushner Companies, has reportedly ruled out a role in the second Trump administration. He may still advise on Middle East policy, according to the Financial Times.
Kushner has also advised Lutnick on potential hires, as has Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Charles Kushner
United States ambassador to France
Taking to his social media platform, Trump announced that “Charles Kushner, of New Jersey,” would serve as ambassador to France.
Kushner founded Kushner Companies in 1985, and currently serves as the firm’s chair.
The Kushner family’s ties to the Trump administration have been a source of tension in the blue states and cities where the company builds, including Jersey City. The company went on building there and mended its relationship with the city’s mayor. Ultimately, the Kushners benefited from having family in the White House.
At the end of his first administration, Trump pardoned Charles, who spent more than a year in prison on charges that he falsified tax records, made illegal campaign donations and retaliated against a witness. The charges were related to a scheme in which he hired a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law, secretly videotaping the encounter and sending the footage to his sister. At the time, Kushner was angry that his brother-in-law had cooperated with federal officials in their investigation of him.
In the eight years since Trump’s first election, Kushner Companies’ worth has nearly tripled — from $1 billion to $2.9 billion — according to Forbes, a time period that included Jared Kushner’s time as senior White House advisor.
Trump praised Charles as a “a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, & dealmaker, who will be a strong advocate representing our Country & its interests.”
Scott Turner
Secretary of Department of Housing and Urban Development
To head the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Trump tapped Scott Turner, a former cornerback with the Washington Commanders (formerly Redskins) who served in the Texas House of Representatives from 2013 and 2014. He also worked in the first Trump administration, leading a council that worked with federal agencies to find ways to promote Opportunity Zones. His potential appointment perhaps further signals Trump’s eagerness to reboot the program.
Trump also considered Bill Pulte, who runs Pulte Capital, a private firm focused on acquiring homebuilding and construction businesses, for the job, according to the New York Post. Pulte is the grandson of William Pulte, founder of Atlanta, Ga.-based homebuilder the PulteGroup.