The crown of Washington DC, the highest-rated luxury hotel in the capital, and the prized possession of Donald Trump will continue to be known as a luxury hotel sans the Trump name! The sale of the Trump International Hotel was turning into a saga of sorts fitted with too many ifs and buts, twists, and turns. But the property that was touted as one of the world’s most lavish hotels’ by the former President himself has finally gone out of his hands, leaving a couple of extra millions in his vault. The topic that ensued in 2019 has concluded with Donald Trump selling his Washington Trump International Hotel for $375 million.
Trump International Hotel has always been the cynosure of attention with news of horrible business on one end owing to Trump’s disastrous stint as the President of the United States (the hotel reportedly suffered losses of roughly $70 million), and garnering accolades, as many as 1,600 5 Star ratings on Tripadvisor, on the other end. While Donald Trump always boasted that the hotel netted more than $150 million during his Presidency, the Democrat-run House Committee on Oversight and Reform said the former President concealed that his hotel incurred $70 million in net losses.
All that conjecture is now a thing of the past as CGI Merchant Group, a Miami-based investment firm, is in contract to acquire the hotel lease for the Trump International Hotel, a stone’s throw away from the White House. According to Market Watch, CGI will rebrand the property, remove Trump’s name, and strike a deal with Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. to manage the property. The sale is expected to be finalized early next year, and from a Trump hotel, the iconic five-star, located in a 122-year-old former Post Office building, will be turned into a Hilton Waldorf Astoria.
Trump reportedly paid a monthly base rent of $250,000 for the iconic landmark and put in almost $210 million to renovate the property into a hotel that became synonymous with Trump’s tenure as President. During his Presidency, it was a central location for events and other discussions, bustling with lobbyists and supporters. According to Forbes, his children Ivanka, Jared and Eric, each appear to have a 7.5% ownership stake in the lease to the hotel. This deal will advance their personal fortunes by $15 million once Trump gets his hands on the neat $375 million for his beloved and iconic hotel.
If the world never faced a pandemic or Trump’s Presidency, would this hotel tell a different story? It did, after all, gain the Forbes Five Star Award, the most prestigious hospitality award there is. From seeing raving reviews, the political glitterati, the hustle and bustle of Donald Trump’s Presidency, and in general being an epitome of luxury and grandness in the heart of Washington D.C, the $700 a night Trump International Hotel indeed witnessed a lot since September 2016. As for Trump, the organization splurged about $210 million to renovate the property into a hotel, making a hefty $165 million profit once the sale goes through. Unsurprisingly, Donald Trump’s smug smile won’t leave his face.
