Donald Trump has unclaimed property and abandoned money in at least 16 states
What do Trump University and Trump Taj Mahal have in common — other than being among the failed businesses of former president Donald Trump?
They still have unclaimed assets in New York and New Jersey, according to online public databases.
That’s just for starters.
A Raw Story analysis showed Trump, the putative 2024 Republican presidential nominee, having unclaimed assets in at least 16 states plus the District of Columbia. In Florida alone, the state’s chief financial officer earlier this month informed Trump that he has $54,000 in unclaimed property.
This might not seem like much relative to Trump’s wealth. But Trump is leaving money on the table — potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars or more — while running up staggering legal expenses to defend himself against 88 felony counts across four criminal trials.
Donors are meanwhile contributing millions of dollars to pay Trump’s legal bills. Trump also trails substantially in fundraising for his presidential campaign against President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee.
ALSO READ: What Trump's weird WWE Hall of Fame speech tells us about his presidential debate strategy
A conservative count from online records showed at least 137 instances in New York of Trump having unclaimed property — for his current and former businesses as well as himself, individually.
That includes four potential claims for the defunct Trump University, which paid a $25 million settlement in 2018 to students who said they were defrauded. The unclaimed money comes from companies such as eBay for “undelivered goods/services” and Amazon for “outstanding checks issued to vendors.”
Trump University, the defunct education company that paid out a massive settlement to students who accused it of fraud, has failed to claim money that's owed to it. (Source: Office of the New York State Comptroller)
In New Jersey, Trump has at least 40 instances of unclaimed property.
That includes the Trump Taj Mahal hotel and casino, which closed in 2016 after Trump proclaimed it the “eighth wonder of the world” when it opened in 1990. It sold for pennies on the dollar, but it has still has money to its name at the New Jersey Treasury.
There are at least 10 instances of unclaimed property for Trump Taj Mahal. New Jersey does not list the source or reason for the unclaimed money.
New York and New Jersey do not publicly disclose the value of unclaimed property until a request for payment has been approved.
Trump’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Among the lost assets Donald Trump has failed to recoup in New Jersey: money owed to the defunct Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City, N.J. (Source: New Jersey Unclaimed Property Administration)
As an individual, Trump has an unspecified amount of money to claim from NBC Universal Media LLC for “wages/payroll/salaries.” NBC televised the Apprentice, the reality show that starred Trump.
Almost all of Trump’s unclaimed money across the country is for one of his former or current businesses or political campaigns, including Trump Corporation, Trump for President, Trump International Hotels, Trump Marks Fine Foods, Trump Model Management, Trump National Golf Club, Trump Organization and Trump SoHo Hotel.
Trump Marks Mattress has money available from Tempur Sealy International for “outstanding checks issued to vendors.”
Trump’s available money in New York and New Jersey is likely substantially higher than other states where Trump has had businesses or campaigns, and where Trump has far fewer potential claims.
In Washington, D.C., a listing for “D Trump” — address: “The White House” — indicates unclaimed property worth “under $50” that’s tied to Amazon.com. It’s one of more than a dozen listings that appeared tied to the former president, including three items of unclaimed property from the former Trump International Hotel DC, each worth “over $50.”
ALSO READ: 8 ways Trump doesn’t become president
Trump has a total of at least $2,914 in unclaimed property across Connecticut, Virginia, California, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina and Texas. As some of those states list values of unclaimed property in broad ranges, the dollar figure is likely much higher.
Meanwhile in Illinois, Trump International Hotel has three potential claims for “over $100” and two for “under $100.”
In Nevada, the Trump campaign and exploratory committee have four potential claims of “under $500.” The Trump Organization has at least six unclaimed cashiers checks from 2013 — five worth “under $1,000” and one worth “$1,000 and above.”
In Massachusetts, the Trump for President campaign has failed to recoup “vendor checks” reported to the state by the city of Doral, Mass.
In Colorado, Donald Trump for President could make a claim on “over $250” in abandoned assets — the reason unstated.
In Pennsylvania, the Trump for President campaign is due two refunds or rebates from Comcast, both under $100.
States promote their unclaimed property databases, but Trump, who’s on trial for allegedly falsifying business records in New York, has other things on his mind.
“Every day New York State returns $1.5 million to those who file claims here,” it says on the state’s database page. “Is any yours?”