Monday, July 03, 2017

Trump takes over his condo board.

Trump Foot Soldier Sidelined Under Glare of Russia Inquiry - The New York Times

"Just over a decade ago, Donald J. Trump was locked in conflict with a group of apartment owners who had taken control of the condominium board at his new glass tower across from the United Nations. Faced with accusations of financial impropriety and an affront to his authority, Mr. Trump turned to Michael D. Cohen, a former personal injury lawyer who helped run a taxi fleet. Mr. Cohen did not seem to have extensive expertise in the arcana of New York City condo rules. But he had something Mr. Trump seemed to value more: devotion to the Trump brand. He had already purchased a number of Trump properties and had persuaded his parents, in-laws and a business partner to buy apartments in Mr. Trump’s flashy new development, Trump World Tower. Plus, he had read Mr. Trump’s book “The Art of the Deal.” Twice. With Mr. Cohen’s help, Mr. Trump regained control of the board, orchestrating a coup that culminated in a standoff between his security detail and private guards hired by the disgruntled owners, according to people who were there. Details of the dispute’s resolution are secret because of a confidentiality agreement, but Mr. Cohen said that his task was “masterfully accomplished.”

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I'll just leave this right here for those who (a) think condos are awful and the people who develop and run them are monsters, and (b) nonetheless voted for a real estate developer who builds condos and has a long record of leaving a trail of misery and destruction in his wake.


1 comment:

robert @ colorado hoa . com said...

Donald Trump Is In The Condominium Business But He Does Not Trust Owner Associations

by John Colby Cowherd
August 19,2015

. . . Jacqueline Goldberg is a Certified Public Accountant who has invested over $10 million in real estate rental properties. A Trump-controlled developer made condominiums available in the Trump Tower in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago Trump Tower’s 92 stories enclosed 486 residential units and 339 hotel condominium units. In 2006, Ms. Goldberg signed contracts to purchase two hotel condominium units as investments. Their prices were over $1.2 million and over $971,000, respectively. . . .

. . . While the hotel condominium units in the Trump Tower were more expensive than most detached single family dwellings, Ms. Goldberg’s purchase contracts had some language that would make many real estate people nauseous. The agreements provided that the, “[s]eller reserves the right, its sole and absolute discretion, to modify the Condominium Documents.” The Condominium Documents include the declaration, bylaws and floor plans. The purchase contract only required Ms. Goldberg’s approval to change the Condominium Documents when specifically required by law. Her risk was that the contract language gave Trump the unilateral authority to change the material terms of the deal.

After signing the purchase agreements, Ms. Goldberg learned that the Trump Organization made subsequent changes to the Declaration, . . .

. . . read the whole thing at http://wordsofconveyance.com/donald-trump-is-in-the-condominium-business-but-he-does-not-trust-owner-associations/