How his father gave Donald Trump way more of his fortune than his siblings

During his lifetime, Fred Trump Sr transferred in total more than $1 billion in wealth to his kids, but a new report claims Donald Trump received much more than his siblings.

According to a years-long investigation by the New York Times, president Trump received at least $413 million in today’s dollars from his father’s real estate empire – $140 million of which was a loan. 

The Times reports that at the tender age of three, Trump was earning $200,000 a year in 2018 dollars from his dad’s business empire, becoming a millionaire by age eight. 

When Trump was in high school, his cut of his father’s profits was about $17,000 in today’s dollars. That number exceeded $300,000 a year soon after he graduated college.  

(L-R) Robert Trump, Fred Trump, Donald Trump, Ivana Trump, Elizabeth Trump, Mary Anne Trump. Fred Trump transferred more than $1 billion to his children 

Donald Trump, pictured with his father, received more of Fred Trump Sr's wealth than his siblings 

Donald Trump, pictured with his father, received more of Fred Trump Sr’s wealth than his siblings 

Fred Trump Sr reportedly didn't think Fred Trump Jr (pictured) was a viable heir to his empire because he drank too much and was too lazy, too nice and too soft 

Fred Trump Sr reportedly didn’t think Fred Trump Jr (pictured) was a viable heir to his empire because he drank too much and was too lazy, too nice and too soft 

Trump was also receiving the equivalent of $1 million a year from his wealthy father. That amount increased to $5 million a year annually in his 40s and 50s.  

According to the Times, Fred Sr did not see his eldest son Fred Trump Jr a viable heir for the family business. The outlet reports that Fred Jr went to work for his father after he finished college, but that turned out to be a bad decision. 

Family members and former employees told the Times that Fred Sr would publicly ridicule his son for drinking too much, being too lazy, too nice and too soft. Fred Sr was also not happy his eldest son didn’t take much of an interest in the family business. 

Witnessing his father’s disappointment in Fred Sr, Trump set out to become the opposite of his older brother and soon became known as a ‘brash tough guy with a killer instinct’. The Times reports that Trump was rewarded by inheriting his father’s fortunes.

Fred Sr not only gave Trump portions of his empire, but he made Trump a salaried employee, property manager, landlord, consultant and banker. He gave Trump money for his car, money for his employees and money to buy stocks, according to the Times. Fred Sr helped his son buy different offices in Manhattan and paid for their renovations. 

Trump received shares in multiple partnerships, $10,000 checks at Christmas and the laundry revenue from his father’s apartments.

A new report claims the Trump children helped Fred Trump Sr (pictured) and their mother avoid paying hundreds of millions in taxes 

A new report claims the Trump children helped Fred Trump Sr (pictured) and their mother avoid paying hundreds of millions in taxes 

EVERY KID GETS AN ALLOWANCE: Trump even received coin laundry revenue from apartment buildings that had been built by his father

EVERY KID GETS AN ALLOWANCE: Trump even received coin laundry revenue from apartment buildings that had been built by his father

Family affair: Donald Trump, left, with his brother, Fred Jr, brother Robert, sister Maryanne, and sister Elizabeth. Shortly after the picture was taken he was 'earning' $200,000 a year

Family affair: Donald Trump, left, with his brother, Fred Jr, brother Robert, sister Maryanne, and sister Elizabeth. Shortly after the picture was taken he was ‘earning’ $200,000 a year

SOME DAY THIS WILL ALL BE YOURS: Donald Trump and father Fred C. Trump on the roof of a Trump Village building in Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York

SOME DAY THIS WILL ALL BE YOURS: Donald Trump and father Fred C. Trump on the roof of a Trump Village building in Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York

YOU'RE HIRED!  Trump earned $200,000 a year at age three, and was a millionaire by eight

YOU’RE HIRED!  Trump earned $200,000 a year at age three, and was a millionaire by eight

Trump and his father also started businesses together, including a high-rise in East Orange, New Jersey for the elderly in 1972. The Times reports that they took out a nearly interest-free $7.8 million loan that covered nearly all construction costs. Whatever wasn’t covered, Fred Sr paid for out of pocket.

Trump, the Times reports, received most of the profits from the high-rise, including being paid to manage the building and receiving the money tenants paid to rent air conditioners. By 1975, three years after purchasing the building, Trump was earning today’s equivalent of $305,000 a year. In total, he had collected nearly $9 million from his father. 

Trump’s biggest payday from Fred Sr came in May 2004, years after his father’s 1999 death, when Trump and his siblings sold his empire. Trump’s share was $177.3 million, or $236.2 million in today’s dollars. 

Overall, the Times found 295 streams of revenue that Fred Sr created for Trump. In most instances the outlet found that all of the children benefited equally but Trump’s share gradually increased as he found himself in one financial disaster after another.  

  • Trump collected laundry revenue from apartment buildings in his dad’s portfolio;
  • His share was $177 million when the Fred Trump empire was sold off in 2004;
  • Fred Trump transferred eight buildings with 1,032 apartment units to his kids;
  • Fred and Mary Trump transferred more than $1 billion in current values in wealth to their kids, the Times found, which would have brought $550 million in taxes if they paid the full 55 per cent gift and inheritance tax at the time
  • Instead they paid a total tax of just $52.2 million;
  • Fred Trump gave his son three trust funds; 
  • In 1962 Fred transferred land in Queens to his children, then build an apartment building there and gave them the revenues and ownership;
  • Seven apartment buildings were transferred to children with no apparent gift taxes;
  • Donald Trump received air conditioner rental income from units in building his father and the government financed for seniors in East Orange, New Jersey – which Trump called a ‘philanthropy’;
  • Trump drew a salary from his dad into the 1980s of $260,000 in today’s dollars; and
  • Trump borrowed more than $2 million in 1979 from Fred Trump and his companies, according to New Jersey casino records. 

According to the outlet, between 1989 and 1992, Fred Sr paid his son $8.3 million in today’s dollars to help Trump out. The outlet also reports that Fred Sr took nearly $50 million out so he could have cash on hand in case Trump needed to be bailed out of a bad business deal.

One instance that money came in handy was in December 1990 when Trump could not afford to pay an $18.4 million bond payment for a Trump Casino. According to the outlet, Fred Sr gave checks to a trusted bookkeeper and sent him to Atlantic City to purchase $3.5 million in casino chips without placing a bet. Although illegal under New Jersey gaming laws, it helped Trump avoid defaulting on his loans. 

In the past, Trump has denied getting hefty payouts from his father insisting his father only gave him one loan for $1 million and he had to pay it back with interest. 

The Times, however, learned that Fred Sr loaned Trump $60.7 million, or $140 million in today’s dollars, much of which was never repaid. According to the outlet, Trump owed his father $10.3 million to his father when he died in 1999.

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk