How The Kushners Built A Real Estate Portfolio Worth More Than Trump’s

Today on Forbes, the Kushner's real estate empire is now worth more than Trump's. In 2018, the Kushner family was at a turning point. One year into Jared Kushner's tenure as senior advisor at the White House to his father-in-law Donald Trump, the family's real estate business, Kushner Companies, was facing battles on multiple fronts. Rumors swirled about possible investigations into influence from Chinese and Qatari investors, which the firm strenuously denied. In its home state of New Jersey, its high-profile luxury apartment development in Journal Square was stalled, with the company filing a lawsuit against Jersey City and its mayor alleging that they were putting the project in default due to, quote, political animus. The greatest immediate threat lay in Manhattan, where it faced a looming wall of debt, $1.2 billion, coming due by February 2019, on its marquee asset, a 50.5% stake in 666 Fifth Avenue, a 41-story office tower in Midtown. Six years later, the Kushners have turned things around. One of two 64-story towers at the Jersey City complex topped out this summer. A 30-story, 420-unit apartment tower in the heart of Miami, their second development in Florida, was completed in early October. A few days later, OpenAI leased more than half of the office space at the historic Puck Building in Lower Manhattan. The Chatt GPT Maker will pay $140 per square foot, a massive jump from the $31 paid by the previous tenant, New York University, according to a person familiar with the lease. Meanwhile, the firm sold a 99-year lease on 666 Fifth Avenue, now called 660 Fifth Avenue, later in 2018, resolving its debt problems. As for possible investigations, none went anywhere. All of this has helped the Kushners revitalize their New Jersey real estate company. Forbes dug into dozens of debt filings, property deeds, and financial disclosures, and spoke with 15 real estate experts and brokers to value the family's fortune for the first time since 2016. Forbes now estimates Kushner Companies to be worth $2.9 billion, nearly triple the $1 billion it was worth at the time Trump was elected. It's also more valuable than Trump's $2.2 billion real estate portfolio. As a whole, the Kushners are worth an estimated $7.1 billion, up from $1.8 billion in 2016, a sum that includes Kushner Companies, stakes in eight personal properties worth at least $100 million, and Jared and Josh's investment firms. Family patriarch Charles and his wife Cyril, together, own 20% of the nearly $3 billion-in-market-value real estate firm, with the rest split between their four kids, Jared, Josh, Dara, and Nicole. In addition to his 20% stake in Kushner Companies, Jared owns nascent private equity firm Affinity Partners, which is backed by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, enough to be worth at least $900 million, according to Forbes estimates. His brother Josh, who refused to vote for Trump and is married to model Karlie Kloss, has meanwhile made his own fortune as a well-regarded venture investor. Forbes values his stake in his venture capital firm Thrive Capital, which scored with early investments in Instagram, Spotify, and OpenAI at an estimated $3.5 billion. He also owns a $40 million penthouse in the family's Puck building, where Thrive is headquartered and where OpenAI just signed its lease, plus homes in Malibu and Miami. Not only is he by far the wealthiest Kushner, but he's also one of America's 400 richest people. While the two sons have captured plenty of headlines, the rebound of the family real estate business has gone largely under the radar. After Jared left the company to join Trump's administration in 2017, his father Charles, who is 70 years old and still consults on projects but has no title, handed the reins to non-family member and former investment banker Laurent Morali and later to his younger daughter Nicole, who is 41 years old. They now run the company together as CEO and President, respectively. For full coverage, check out Monica Hunter-Hart and Giacomo Tognini's piece on Forbes.com. This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes. Thanks for tuning in.