As I've been idly following the Trump trial, I've realized a few things that convince me that this trial is more of a political stunt than anything else.
As I understand the issues, the state's biggest claim is that Trump inflated the values of real estate he used for collateral for loans. I'll point out a few problems with this.
1. Real estate value isn't static. It changes regularly.
2. Everyone who's ever taken out a mortgage hopes that the appraiser "over values" the property. There are things that can be done to influence the appraiser (in a legal and ethical way) to value the property higher rather than lower. In this case, it sounds like the Trump folks listed values that were higher than the state believes are accurate.
3. The only accurate way to establish a value on a piece of real estate is to sell it. A piece of real estate is only worth what someone will pay for it. Zillow lost huge amounts of money because they failed miserably at accurately valuing real estate. Any other valuation of real estate, a CMA or an appraisal, is an estimate.
4. If the lender was concerned about the valuation that the Trump folks put on the buildings, they had every right to hire an appraiser to give their opinion on a more correct valuation.
5. Finally, and most importantly, Trump paid of the loans. When a lender loans money, their primary goal is that the loan plus the interest are paid in full at or before the end of the loan term. Nothing else matters. In this case, regardless of the value of the property in question, the loans were paid. The only potential problem could have been if the loans went into default and the collateral buildings would have needed to be sold to pay off the loans. But even if the buildings sold for less than the estimated value when the loans were written that's still not fraud, it's the reality of the real estate market.
6. For the last 50 years, real estate, has appreciated at roughly 4%/year. Even after the crash of 2006-8, real estate was back on (actually briefly above) that 4%/year trend. Therefore even if the real estate was "over valued" at the time of the origination of the loan, it's likely that normal appreciation would have taken care of ant discrepancy during the term of the loan.
7. At this level of real estate investing and lending, personal relationships are key. It's likely that the lenders had a track record of business with Trump and weighed that more heavily than anything else.
8. Oh, yeah. The loans were paid off.
3 comments:
" A banking expert testified Wednesday that Donald Trump and his company benefited more than $168 million by obtaining favorable loan terms on transactions where the former president personally guaranteed the loans.
The New York Attorney General’s office called Michiel McCarty to testify about his assessment of the $168 million in ill-gotten gains.
McCarty analyzed the lending documents related to transactions at issue in this case for the following Trump Organization properties: 40 Wall Street in New York, The Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Florida, Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago, and the Old Post Office project in Washington DC.
McCarty calculated the difference in interest payments that Trump might have paid with a commercial real estate loan that would have had a much higher interest rate than the rate he obtained by personally guaranteeing the loans on the basis of financial statements that inflated his net worth..."
https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/01/politics/trump-fraud-168-million/index.html
If you and I were to "benefit" by getting hundreds of millions of dollars by lying, they would arrest us. Corruption is corruption, even if it is the rich doing it.
That they (the rich) have convinced useful idiots to ignore their corruption and the way they steal from our common wealth is just pathetic. We, as a nation, need to not let useful idiots let extremely corrupt criminals get away with it.
Conservatives used to be at least a little bit aware of money and how it operates. Not so much any more.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/judge-rules-trump-defrauded-banks-insurers-as-he-built-his-real-estate-empire
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/new-york-judge-rules-trump-committed-fraud-lied-net-years-rcna117504
Don't be a useful idiot in service to the abusers Jesus the Christ denounced.
"If you and I were to "benefit" by getting hundreds of millions of dollars by lying, they would arrest us. Corruption is corruption, even if it is the rich doing it."
It's always special when you miss the point and buy the narrative hook line and sinker. One salient point is that when real estate is part of one's portfolio, the value is not static. One other point is that virtually every single person who sells real estate over values it. One final point is that part of this alleged "benefit" was that trump personally guaranteed the loans, and that the banks had long standing relationships with Trump. One more point, the lenders had the opportunity to appraise any real estate being used as collateral, if they chose not to do so, that's not fraud on Trump. Finally, the fact that not everyone pays the same interest rate isn't fraud, it's how the market works.
"That they (the rich) have convinced useful idiots to ignore their corruption and the way they steal from our common wealth is just pathetic. We, as a nation, need to not let useful idiots let extremely corrupt criminals get away with it."
Bullshit.
"Conservatives used to be at least a little bit aware of money and how it operates. Not so much any more."
I'm quite aware of how this works, I'm in it daily. But thanks for doing what you claim you never do and throwing out some bullshit "conservatives" and including me in your generalization.
"Don't be a useful idiot in service to the abusers Jesus the Christ denounced."
I'm simply pointing out reality.
Oh, by the way, Trump paid the loans in full according to the terms agreed to in the contract. If the lenders felt that they were defrauded this would be a suit in civil court, not a bullshit trial in criminal court.
But I do appreciate you reinforcing the stereotype that (many) liberals are clueless when it comes to money and how it operates. Hey, y'all and Biden think that printing billions of dollars is helping the economy.
Aside from Dan's many unsupported claims...which would get us deleted from his own blog's comment section...the blatant bias in reporting is par for the course and why Trump rightly referred to media like CNN to be what they are..."enemies of the people". Who are they to use the term "ill gotten gains"? That's not objective reporting even if his gains were "ill gotten"...which hasn't been proven simply because some Trump-haters say it has.
It's also ignore that these charges have NEVER been used to go after any other developer, all of whom play the same way. It's being used now because Trump had the audacity to run for and win the presidency as a Republican, open lots more eyes to the reality of the Swamp...the DC Establishment cesspool...and then get things done for the benefit of the American people despite all attempts to obstruct his agenda to Make American Great Again.
And as Craig points out, the typical but nonsensical "if we did it" angle is absurd. All people seek to get the most favorable terms in buying and selling or in attaining a loan. That's not fraud in the least. Even if I felt my car wasn't worth a plug nickel, but I managed to sell it for $50,000 dollars to someone who is ostensibly intelligent enough to determine for himself whether it is or not, I've not defrauded him if he agreed to the asking price. Indeed, he could be someone who sees in my junker that which he could use to generate far more than my asking price...something I never saw in the car myself. Is he defrauding me by not saying, "Oh no, sir! I can't let you sell it to me for so little!"
Like all the other trials set up by lefties to destroy Trump in any way they can, the real fraud is the trial itself. Morons believe Trump's a bad guy when those who are attacking him are the true bad guys. And abject morons like Dan support the true corrupt people all the time. Never forget: Dan actually promoted Joe Biden as president because he claimed Biden's the better person...a person of character. Trump's a freaking Apostle of Christ by comparison and Dan dares condescend to call US the "useful idiots". What a stupid child he is!
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