Trump Yanks Name From Defunct Beach Tower In F'closure; Says He's Not The Developer - He Only Licensed Out His Name As Stiffed Buyers Demand Deposits

In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports:

• Real estate mogul Donald J. Trump said he's no longer affiliated with the unfinished luxury condo-hotel tower on Fort Lauderdale beach that was to carry his name and now faces foreclosure.

• "We have nothing to do with the building. We had a licensing deal, and we terminated the licensing deal a long time ago," Trump told the Sun Sentinel late Tuesday. "We're not involved with the foreclosure."

• The statement comes nearly eight months after the new loan holder filed to foreclose on what was to be the Trump International Hotel & Tower, a $200 million project that was supposed to bring cachet to Fort Lauderdale as one of the area's most glamorous addresses.

• More than 100 people plunked down 20 percent deposits to buy condos in the 24-story tower, with studios and one- and two-bedroom units priced from about $500,000 to more than $3 million each. Now, most of those buyers are suing, trying to get their deposits back or place liens on the 298-unit project that was to be finished by 2009.

• Many buyers charge that developers misrepresented Trump's involvement. Some suits name Trump personally and charge deceptive advertising. They point to promotional literature that states "Trump is committed to personal and direct involvement in everything his name represents" and describe the project as a "signature Trump development."

• "To come and say now 'I only had a licensing agreement and wasn't the developer' is a fraud on the public," attorney Jo Altschul of Fort Lauderdale, who represents buyers of about 50 condo units, said Wednesday. "That's not what the developers said to potential purchasers to buy units at inflated prices because of Donald Trump being actively engaged in the development."

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• The Fort Lauderdale case is not the only headache for Donald Trump and his New York-based Trump Organization. Similar lawsuits are under way over Trump condo projects that stalled in Tampa and Mexico, with Trump claiming he only licensed his name and buyers alleging that sales materials suggested a greater role for Trump in the developments.

For more, see Trump says his name is off Fort Lauderdale condo hotel (Real estate mogul's claim of lessened role called 'fraud on the public').