Trump in Trouble in Mexico and Las Vegas

The Donald is in the dumps. One Trump development project in Baja California, Mexico has gone belly up. Investors there who paid up to $150,000 to reserve a condo in a condo hotel there that was using his rightfully licensed name have been told that there's no way to get their money back. The local developer, PB Impulsores, has not built anything yet. Trump has told the angry buyers that because he is not the developer, he's not liable.

Meanwhile, a joint project -- Trump International Hotel & Tower Las Vegas-- involving Trump and casino tycoon Phil Ruffin is foundering. Word is that the three-quarters of the buyers of its condo hotel rooms have failed to close on their deals. That leaves the project $200 million short in paying off the its construction loan, which comes due this summer, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Owners of Las Vegas Property Cannot Rent Out Their Units

Is there any end to the ugly real estate news out of Las Vegas? The website Halogen Guides forwards this awful glitch:

"Condominium owners at the Meridian Luxury Suites, just off the Strip, have been ordered to stop renting out their units to short-term renters, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal.

"It seems that the property was never licensed to operate as a condo-hotel, and by renting out units for stays of less than one month, the development was effectively running an illegal hotel operation, according to the County. Of the 678 condominiums, ranging from studios to two-bedrooms, only 12 were occupied by full-time residents, while the vast majority of the other units were placed into a rental pool and marketed to short-term guests...."
If you can't sell... and you can't rent short-term... you are left with unpalatable alternatives, such as trying to find a long-term renter (in market awash in rental alternatives), occupying the space yourself, sucking up the cost, or walking away and accepting foreclosure.