President Donald Trump started transferring 71 of his real estate properties in New York City into the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust on Dec. 31, 2016, and Jan. 1, The Real Deal reported, citing an analysis of city property records.
The holdings transferred into the trust as of Jan. 30 included stakes in Trump Tower, Trump International Hotel and Tower, Trump Park Avenue and Trump World Tower. Trump's ground lease on 40 Wall St. and interest in properties such as the 1290 Avenue of the Americas office building that he jointly owns with Vornado Realty Trust have not yet officially transferred, the publication noted.
The New York-registered trust, which Trump has vowed would not be controlled by him, already holds many of his other ownership entities for properties outside of New York, including the LLC for the lease at the Trump Organization's new hotel in Washington, D.C.
Trump has been under pressure to divest from all his assets in order to avoid conflicts of interest, and critics have called for a complete divestment, not just a transfer to company associates or family members. Trump said the trust will be operated by his eldest sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., and Allen Weisselberg of the Trump Organization.
Meanwhile, Thompson Reuters' IFR reported, citing a Kushner Cos. spokesperson, that Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, sold his stake in the office and retail property at 666 Fifth Ave. in Manhattan, N.Y. The price of the stake was not disclosed, and it is unclear whom Kushner sold or transferred the equity stake to.
The 39-story building, which was last appraised in 2011 at $820 million, is jointly owned by Kushner Cos. and Vornado. Noting that the property was 20% vacant as of July 2016, Kroll Bond Rating Agency had pegged the property's value at $982.1 million, IFR noted.
IFR reported, citing an emailed statement from a Kushner Cos. spokesperson, that Kushner also is not involved in the operations or management of the property. After being named a senior White House adviser to his father-in-law, Kushner said he would resign as CEO of Kushner Cos. and start divesting himself of substantial assets.
Representatives for Trump and the Trump Organization did not immediately respond to requests for comment, The Real Deal said. A response from Vornado was not immediately available, according to IFR.