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How a $300 tax deduction proves Donald Trump makes less than half a million dollars
Crain's ^ | 03/08/2016 | Aaron Elstein

Posted on 03/08/2016 11:54:52 AM PST by GIdget2004

One of the enduring mysteries of Donald Trump is just how much wealth he has. Forbes pegs his net worth at $4.5 billion, while Bloomberg News puts it at $2.9 billion. The GOP front-runner himself has said he's "really rich."

Maybe, but Trump's income is low enough to qualify for a New York state property-tax break that most high-rollers don't get.

It's called the STAR program, which stands for the New York State School Tax Relief Program and has been around since 1997. It offers an approximately $300 annual benefit for those who qualify. Hundreds of thousands of New York homeowners get it.

Here's where it gets interesting for Trump: To be eligible for STAR, a married couple must have annual income of $500,000 or less. One wouldn't think a guy as rich as Trump claims to be would qualify, but records filed with the city's Department of Finance show he received a $302 STAR benefit on his latest property-tax bill for his Trump Tower penthouse on Fifth Avenue.

That means whatever his annual income is, it's less than $500,000. (The state defines income for STAR purposes as federal adjusted gross income minus the taxable amount of total distributions from annuities or individual retirement accounts.) And Trump would have to have declared his New York apartment as his permanent residence and sent the state a copy of his federal income-tax return in order to qualify for the $302 tax break.

"It's strange that a billionaire would apply for a $302 tax benefit and, moreover, that he would take it," said Martha Stark, a property-tax expert and former New York City finance commissioner who is now a lecturer at Baruch College. A Trump spokeswoman had no immediate comment.

(Excerpt) Read more at crainsnewyork.com ...


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1 posted on 03/08/2016 11:54:52 AM PST by GIdget2004
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To: GIdget2004

I guess I’ll wait for Ted’s people to tell me what it means.


2 posted on 03/08/2016 11:56:54 AM PST by TheConservativeBanker
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To: GIdget2004

Income has little to no reflection on wealth...especially after tax income.


3 posted on 03/08/2016 11:57:26 AM PST by Wpin ("I Have Sworn Upon the Altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny...")
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To: GIdget2004

Utter BS taken out of context with incomplete information and fact fragments stretched to seeing Jesus on a piece of burnt toast.


4 posted on 03/08/2016 11:57:36 AM PST by Hostage (ARTICLE V)
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To: TheConservativeBanker

Larry Page of Google makes $1 a year as do other CEOs lol..what a crock


5 posted on 03/08/2016 11:57:49 AM PST by ground_fog
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To: GIdget2004
It's dumb to structure your finances such that you show you earning high rates of income.

A person's total wealth has little to do with annual income.

6 posted on 03/08/2016 11:58:16 AM PST by The Iceman Cometh (With Cruz You Get Rubio)
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To: GIdget2004

Lets put it this way.
He is richer than Cruz, Rubio or Little Jebbie.
Does it make a difference?
Not really.


7 posted on 03/08/2016 11:58:52 AM PST by Zathras
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To: GIdget2004

BS but please continue, it keeps the low information types entertained


8 posted on 03/08/2016 11:58:55 AM PST by bigbob ("Victorious warriors win first and then go to war" Sun Tzu.)
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To: GIdget2004

Net worth and income are two different things. Unless your stupid, of course.


9 posted on 03/08/2016 11:59:05 AM PST by PJammers (Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?)
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To: GIdget2004
If Trump's annual income is less than $500k then kudos to him! It means he must have a crap-ton of income shelters set up to protect himself against taxes. This should be APPLAUDED.

It also has zero bearing on his net worth.

10 posted on 03/08/2016 11:59:05 AM PST by Solson (Trump plays to win. Deal with it.)
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To: GIdget2004

Care to explain how you keep a 737 in the air on half a million a year, My Dad really wants to know.


11 posted on 03/08/2016 11:59:27 AM PST by The_Republic_Of_Maine (politicians beware)
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To: GIdget2004

Curiouser and curiouser... Many sources have made the case that he exaggerates his wealth, but very hard to imagine how he’s netting under $500K per year. Maybe he improperly applied for this tax break? Or perhaps everything is funneled into “The Trump Organization” and he only pays himself a nominal salary?


12 posted on 03/08/2016 12:00:14 PM PST by irishjuggler
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To: Zathras

Zathras wrote:
Lets put it this way.
He is richer than Cruz, Rubio or Little Jebbie.

All combined with Jebbie standing on his Tippy Toes.


13 posted on 03/08/2016 12:00:53 PM PST by Hang'emAll (If guns kill people, do pencils misspell words?)
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To: GIdget2004

Business returns versus personal returns.


14 posted on 03/08/2016 12:00:55 PM PST by Mensius
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To: TheConservativeBanker

Probably land he bought to bury people killed by the mafia


15 posted on 03/08/2016 12:01:16 PM PST by Donglalinger
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To: The_Republic_Of_Maine

Trump sends all his expenses through his company. He obviously lives the lifestyle of someone making tens of millions of dollars per year. If he is taking less than $500K per year in income, living like he does, that probably explains why he has been audited 12 years in a row and why audits are ongoing.


16 posted on 03/08/2016 12:02:24 PM PST by mcjordansc
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To: The_Republic_Of_Maine

His company owns and operates the plane.


17 posted on 03/08/2016 12:03:27 PM PST by Anitius Severinus Boethius (www.wilsonharpbooks.com - Sign up for my new release e-mail and get my first novel for free)
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To: The_Republic_Of_Maine

corporate expense vs salary. Corporation can hold billions and pay a salary of 20 bucks if they want to.


18 posted on 03/08/2016 12:03:50 PM PST by Rodm
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To: GIdget2004
Income laws are created to trip people up in its labyrinth of insanity.

On the other hand some get off scot-free. The Clinton's deducted underwear donations as a charitable deduction, which shows what a joke it is. What somebody has on their income tax return is at the bottom of my list of voting priorities.

19 posted on 03/08/2016 12:03:54 PM PST by CaptainK (...please make it stop. Shake a can of pennies at it.)
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To: GIdget2004

The fact that Trump’s taxable income is low is a reflection on the tax code not on Trump.

Stop this dishonest innuendo.

You only make yourself look dumb.


20 posted on 03/08/2016 12:04:53 PM PST by detective
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