Happy President's Day!
Today we remember some of the most remarkable men to ever live. Although people may disagree on who becomes president, almost everyone respects the position and prestige of the title, President of the United States of America.
Many U.S. Presidents were wealthy but what is most remarkable is that many were large land owners.
Here is a list of a few wealthy presidents, and their net worth (figures are estimated in 2010 dollars). Notice that more than half of all the U.S. Presidents were large land owners.
Many U.S. Presidents were wealthy but what is most remarkable is that many were large land owners.
Here is a list of a few wealthy presidents, and their net worth (figures are estimated in 2010 dollars). Notice that more than half of all the U.S. Presidents were large land owners.
| | George Washington 1st President (1789 – 1797) Net Worth: $525 million Land Holdings: ±65,000 Acres Between 1747 and 1799 Washington surveyed over two hundred tracts of land and held title to more than 65,000 acres in thirty-seven different locations. “Land is the most permanent estate and the most likely to increase in value,” wrote a youthful Washington. |
| | Thomas Jefferson 3rd President (1801 – 1809) Net Worth: $212 million Land Holdings: ±5,000 Acres Jefferson inherited 3,000 acres of land. Jefferson accumulated over 5,000 acres in Albemarle County, Virginia, including his home, called Monticello. |
| | James Madison 4th President (1809 – 1817) Net Worth: $101 million Land Holdings: ±5,000 Acres With over 5,000 acres of land, Madison became the largest landowner in Orange County, Virginia. Yes, the $5,000 bill is real. They were intended for large cash transactions between banks and not for general circulation. |
| | Andrew Jackson 7th President (1829 – 1837) Net Worth: $119 million Land Holdings: ±1,050 Acres Jackson’s home in Nashville, TN, The Hermitage, included 1,050 acres of prime real estate. |
William Henry Harrison
9th President (1841)
Net Worth: $5 million
Land Holdings: ±3,000 Acres
Harrison inherited 3,000 acres near Charles City, Virginia. He was the oldest man (then 67) ever to assume office of the President and the first President to die in office.
9th President (1841)
Net Worth: $5 million
Land Holdings: ±3,000 Acres
Harrison inherited 3,000 acres near Charles City, Virginia. He was the oldest man (then 67) ever to assume office of the President and the first President to die in office.
| | Stephen “Grover” Cleveland 24th President (1885 - 1889, 1893 – 1897) Net Worth: $25 million Land Holdings: N/A “No investment on Earth is so safe, so certain to enrich its owner, as undeveloped realty. I always advise my friends to place their savings in real estate near some growing city.” –Grover Cleveland |
Yes, the $1,000 bill is real. They were intended for large cash transactions between banks not for general circulation.
Theodore Roosevelt
26th President (1901 – 1909)
Net Worth: $125 million
Land Holdings: N/A
The Roosevelt family had a long, distinguished history in New York City and had earned its way into affluent social circles. More than seven generations of Roosevelts had been born in Manhattan, nearly all of them following the family profession to become businessmen and merchants. Most of the Roosevelt wealth, however, came from land holdings in and around New York City.
President Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest man (then 42) ever to assume the office of the President. During his term, he conserved more land than any other president. The land holdings of the United States went from approximately 43,000,000 acres to about 194,000,000 acres (a 400% increase).
“Every person who invests in well-selected real estate in a growing section of a prosperous community adopts the surest and safest method of becoming independent. For real estate is the basis of all wealth." - Theodore Roosevelt
26th President (1901 – 1909)
Net Worth: $125 million
Land Holdings: N/A
The Roosevelt family had a long, distinguished history in New York City and had earned its way into affluent social circles. More than seven generations of Roosevelts had been born in Manhattan, nearly all of them following the family profession to become businessmen and merchants. Most of the Roosevelt wealth, however, came from land holdings in and around New York City.
President Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest man (then 42) ever to assume the office of the President. During his term, he conserved more land than any other president. The land holdings of the United States went from approximately 43,000,000 acres to about 194,000,000 acres (a 400% increase).
“Every person who invests in well-selected real estate in a growing section of a prosperous community adopts the surest and safest method of becoming independent. For real estate is the basis of all wealth." - Theodore Roosevelt
| | Franklin Delano Roosevelt 32nd President (1933 - 1945) Net Worth: $60 million Land Holdings: ±1,000 Acres Roosevelt owned properties in Georgia, Maine, New York, as well as the 800-acre Springwood estate in Hyde Park, New York. Franklin’s cousin, the 26th President, Theodore Roosevelt was a large advocate for land ownership as that is how Theodore’s family became wealthy. |
Franklin’s understanding of building wealth through land ownership had been passed down for many generations. “Real Estate cannot be lost or stolen. Purchased with common sense, it is about the safest investment in the world.” -Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Dwight David Eisenhower
34th President (1953 – 1961)
Net Worth: $8 million
Land Holdings: ±200 Acres
Eisenhower did not inherit wealth. He purchased 189 acres in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
34th President (1953 – 1961)
Net Worth: $8 million
Land Holdings: ±200 Acres
Eisenhower did not inherit wealth. He purchased 189 acres in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
| | John Fitzgerald Kennedy 35th President (1961 - 1963) Net Worth: $1 Billion Land Holdings: ±500 Acres John F. Kennedy’s father, Joe Kennedy, invested heavily in Manhattan real estate. Joe made over $100 million in New York real estate alone including the sale of some of the land where Lincoln Center, a 16.3 acre complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of |
Manhattan, now sits. Joe Kennedy created a trust for each of his children with various assets in each trust. Many of the assets are still owned to this day in the trusts.
Lyndon Baines Johnson
36th President (1963 - 1969)
Net Worth: $98 million
Land Holdings: ±2,700 Acres
Johnson created a 2,700 acre ranch including accumulating over 1,500 acres in Blanco County, Texas, which included his home, called the Texas White House.
36th President (1963 - 1969)
Net Worth: $98 million
Land Holdings: ±2,700 Acres
Johnson created a 2,700 acre ranch including accumulating over 1,500 acres in Blanco County, Texas, which included his home, called the Texas White House.
In addition to the presidents listed above there are countless other presidents that have been documented or known to have been large land owners including but not limited to:
- James Monroe, 5th President (1817 - 1825)
- John Quincy Adams, 6th President (1825 - 1829)
- Martin Van Buren, 8th President (1837 - 1841)
- John Tyler, 10th President (1841 - 1845)
- James Knox Polk, 11th President (1845 - 1849)
- Zachary Taylor, 12th President (1849 - 1850)
- James Earl Carter, 39th President (1977 - 1781)
- Ronald Wilson Reagan, 40th President (1981 - 1989)
- George Herbert Walker Bush, 41st President (1989 - 1993)
Today is not just a day to remember our Presidents but also what they stood for. The Presidents may have had opposing views but there is one thing they certainly agreed on and had in common...LAND OWNERSHIP!
There is no dispute that more millionaires have been made in real estate than in any other industry. However, most people only understand and invest in one type of real estate: Developed Real Estate (e.g. homes, condos, shopping centers, hotels, apartment buildings, etc.). The wealthy and ultra-affluent including some of the most powerful men to ever live, U.S. Presidents, have invested in land. In order to make greater returns with less risk, you have to do something the masses aren't doing, investing in land is just that!
Learn the Do's and Dont's of properly investing in land.
There is no dispute that more millionaires have been made in real estate than in any other industry. However, most people only understand and invest in one type of real estate: Developed Real Estate (e.g. homes, condos, shopping centers, hotels, apartment buildings, etc.). The wealthy and ultra-affluent including some of the most powerful men to ever live, U.S. Presidents, have invested in land. In order to make greater returns with less risk, you have to do something the masses aren't doing, investing in land is just that!
Learn the Do's and Dont's of properly investing in land.
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