WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 18: The Waldof Astoria, the former Trump International Hotel at the Old Post Office Building on Thursday, Aug. 18, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON – One of D.C.’s most luxurious hotels is set to switch owners for the second time since 2021.
The Waldorf Astoria is set to be sold at a trustee’s sale next month, according to The Washington Business Journal.
The news comes after a previously planned sale was called off just last month.
The federal government leased the property to CGI Merchant Group, a Miami-based investment company, for $375 million. The company currently has an outstanding balance of approximately $256 million on the loan it took out to purchase the property back in 2021.
This will be the third time ownership has switched hands during the hotel’s brief history.
Former President Donald Trump turned the old federal office building into a luxury hotel after winning a 100-year lease from the federal government back in 2012. The hotel functioned as a hub for visiting Republican politicians and Trump supporters until the end of Trump’s presidency in 2021.
WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 12: The former Trump International Hotel at the Old Post Office Building is seen on May 12, 2022 in Washington, DC. The Trump family completed the hotel’s sale Wednesday and the hotel will reopen as a Waldorf Astoria. (Photo by K
The hotel was the site of controversy after the House Oversight Committee determined that the then-president failed to properly disclose the $3.7 million that the hotel received from foreign governments.
The hotel, which started as the Old Post Office, was built between 1892 and 1899 and functioned as a federal office building throughout the 20th century.
The building faced the threat of demolition many times during its storied history but survived due to preservationists’ efforts.
The hotel’s clock tower makes it the third-tallest building in Washington D.C.
The sale is set to take place Aug. 5.
