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TR U M P STR A TEGI ES FO R R E A L ESTA TE

assume their obligation. That space was subsequently rented for $100
a square foot, proving our assessment of the rent potential was correct.
Other tenants of the building also desired to vacate early and, each
time, I agreed to assume their obligations since we were always well
paid to do so. Within a period of three years, we received over $14
million in payments from tenants for the right to vacate before their
leases expired. In each instance, we were able to rent the space to a
new tenant at rentals ranging from $85 a square foot to $115 a square
foot. Based on these results and the inability to get the requisite num-
ber of buyers necessary to declare the office condominium plan effec-
tive, I suggested to Trump and Conseco that they switch plans and
reconsider the building as a long-term investment until its full potential
could be achieved. Conseco agreed and based on its recognition of
Trump’s stellar performance agreed to lower the interest rate on their
investment. In preparation for a refinancing, I commissioned the inde-
pendent appraiser who did the original appraisal when the building
was purchased to do a revised appraisal based on the new rents we
were getting, and the new “Trump Touch” the building now had. He
reappraised the building at $1.2 billion—an increase of $400 million in
just four years! In 2003, Conseco was suffering financially and they in-
sisted that the building be sold at auction. The sale price was $1.4 bil-
lion dollars creating a profit of about $500 million dollars that was
shared by Trump and Conseco.

MAKE LENDERS WANT TO DO BUSINESS WITH YOU

It’s highly unlikely that any of my readers need to borrow $700 mil-
lion to buy the equivalent of the GM Building, but every real estate
investor needs financing of some kind. How do you go about finding
a lender willing to loan you money? If you have a good credit record,

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