Sean Hannity's real estate empire has been revealed. The Fox News host owns shell companies that have spent close to $100 million to buy almost a thousand homes across the United States. This is something Hannity has not disclosed, even when interviewing Ben Carson.
Per The Guardian:
Hannity’s chosen investment strategy is confirmed by thousands of pages of public records reviewed by the Guardian, which detail a real estate portfolio of remarkable scale that has not previously been reported.
The records link Hannity to a group of shell companies that spent at least $90m on more than 870 homes in seven states over the past decade. The properties range from luxurious mansions to rentals for low-income families. Hannity is the hidden owner behind some of the shell companies and his attorney did not dispute that he owns all of them.
Dozens of the properties were bought at a discount in 2013, after banks foreclosed on their previous owners for defaulting on mortgages. Before and after then, Hannity sharply criticised Barack Obama for the US foreclosure rate. In January 2016, Hannity said there were “millions more Americans suffering under this president” partly because of foreclosures.
Hannity, 56, also amassed part of his property collection with support from the US Department for Housing and Urban Development (Hud), a fact he did not disclose when praising Ben Carson, the Hud secretary, on his television show last year.
Christopher Reeves, Hannity’s real estate attorney, said in an email he would “struggle to find any relevance” in Hannity’s property holdings, which he said were highly confidential.
“I doubt you would find it very surprising that most people prefer to keep their legal and personal financial issues private,” said Reeves. “Mr Hannity is no different.”
Spokespeople for Hud and Fox News declined to comment on the record.
Hannity receives a salary of $36 million per year from Fox News. He was under heavy scrutiny earlier this week when it was discovered that he defended Cohen and Trump on air without mentioning that he has consulted Cohen in the past for legal services.
Also, last year Hannity did not mention his financial interest when he had Ben Carson on his show for a discussion about HUD and housing. Hannity heaped praise on the privatization plans being pushed forward by Carson and President Trump.
Reactions from Twitter:
Oh no! Scandal! @seanhannity is an entrepreneur. Good for him. https://t.co/gSxUy8HUZm
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) April 23, 2018
Sean Hannity says he only spoke to Michael Cohen about buying property. @JonSwaine took a look at Hannity’s real estate portfolio, which is pretty interesting.https://t.co/eyJmsQyhEH pic.twitter.com/SfTyOTVI3d
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) April 22, 2018
Is this what Hannity paid Cohen $10 for in legal advice? (Sean Hannity revealed as secret owner behind shell companies that have spent $90m buying 870+ homes across the US – with help from HUD and foreclosures.) #TrumpRussia @TheSpyBrief https://t.co/Smup2zrxvg
— David Blaikie (@DavidWBlaikie) April 22, 2018
Leave a Reply