Ivana Trump Net Worth

What Was Ivana Trump's Net Worth?

Ivana Trump was a Czech-American businesswoman, entrepreneur, author, socialite, former competitive skier, and model who had a net worth of $34 million at the time of her death in 2022.

Ivana Trump was best known for her marriage to Donald Trump, but she also developed a substantial business career of her own. During their marriage, she became an executive within the Trump Organization, working on the interiors of Trump Tower, managing casino operations in Atlantic City, and serving as president of the Plaza Hotel. The couple had three children: Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump. After their highly publicized divorce, Ivana built an independent career around fashion, jewelry, beauty products, books, licensing, television, and real estate. Probate records disclosed after her death provided an unusually clear picture of her finances, placing the assets she left behind at approximately $34 million.

$34 Million Estate and Will

Following Ivana Trump's death, probate records revealed that she left behind approximately $34 million worth of assets. The disclosure provides a much firmer picture of her wealth than the significantly higher figures that circulated during her lifetime.

Ivana's most prominent asset was her Manhattan townhouse at 10 East 64th Street, just off Fifth Avenue and about half a block from Central Park. She purchased the property in 1992 for approximately $2.5 million and spent decades decorating it in her famously lavish style. After her death, her children initially listed the townhouse for $26.5 million.

Her estate also included real estate in Miami Beach, St. Tropez, and the Czech Republic, as well as jewelry, furnishings, clothing, furs, financial assets, and other personal property. Her will divided the estate among her children and several people who had remained close to her.

• Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump: The three children received the bulk of Ivana's estate in equal shares. They were specifically left her jewelry, the proceeds from the sale of her furs, and her remaining tangible personal property. They were also the beneficiaries of her residuary estate, which included the proceeds from assets not specifically left to someone else.
• Manhattan townhouse: The will specifically identified 10 East 64th Street as property Ivana expected her estate to sell. Proceeds remaining after expenses and taxes ultimately flowed through the residuary estate to her children.
• Miami Beach condo: Ivana left her condominium at the Murano at Portofino development in Miami Beach to Dorothy Curry, the longtime Trump family nanny who later became Ivana's assistant and close friend. The condo was valued at more than $1 million around the time of Ivana's death.
• Tiger Trump: Curry also inherited Ivana's Yorkshire terrier, Tiger Trump.
• St. Tropez properties: Ivana owned multiple properties in St. Tropez, France. One was left to her friend Evelyne Galet. Another was intended for Ivana's former husband Rossano Rubicondi, but because Rubicondi died in 2021, before Ivana, that bequest lapsed and the property became part of the remaining estate.
• Czech Republic property: Ivana's will identified a property in Zlín, Czech Republic, where her mother was permitted to live for the remainder of her life. The will instructed that it not be sold while her mother was alive.
• Clothing and charity: Ivana directed that her clothing be divided equally between the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army. Her furs were excluded from that donation and instead ordered sold, with the proceeds divided among her children.

Ivana named Eric Trump as the personal representative responsible for administering the estate. Her accountant, Andrew Watkin, was designated as the successor if Eric could not serve.

One particularly notable detail was who did not inherit anything: Donald Trump. Ivana's former husband received nothing under her will.

The estate was also responsible for paying Ivana's debts, final expenses, and estate taxes before distributions were completed. Because her assets exceeded the federal estate-tax exemption that applied when she died, the final amount ultimately distributed to her heirs would have been lower than the $34 million gross value of the assets identified in probate records.

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Early Life

Ivana Marie Zelníčková was born on February 20, 1949, in Gottwaldov, Czechoslovakia, the city now known as Zlín in the Czech Republic. Her father, Miloš Zelníček, was an electrical engineer who encouraged her athletic development from an early age. Ivana became an accomplished competitive skier.

For years, biographies described Ivana as a member or alternate of the Czechoslovak Olympic ski team. Ivana herself said she had been an alternate, although Czech Olympic officials later said they had no record of her competing on an Olympic team. What is clear is that skiing was a serious part of her early life and helped expose her to opportunities beyond her hometown.

Ivana attended Charles University in Prague, studying physical education while continuing her athletic training. Her university years coincided with the Prague Spring of 1968 and the subsequent Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia. She graduated in 1972.

In 1971, she married Austrian ski instructor Alfred Winklmayr. Ivana later characterized the relationship as a practical "Cold War marriage" that helped her obtain an Austrian passport and leave Communist Czechoslovakia legally. The marriage ended in 1973.

Canada and Modeling

Ivana relocated to Canada, where she lived in Montreal and worked as a ski instructor while pursuing modeling opportunities. She appeared in advertisements for department stores and fur companies and participated in promotional work surrounding the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

Her modeling career brought her regularly to New York City. During a trip to Manhattan in 1976, she met Donald Trump, then a young real estate developer attempting to expand his family's business into Manhattan.

They married in 1977.

Marriage to Donald Trump

Ivana and Donald Trump became one of New York City's most recognizable couples during the 1980s. Their real estate projects, lavish lifestyle, parties, clothing, and frequent appearances in newspapers and magazines helped turn the Trump name into a national celebrity brand.

They welcomed Donald Trump Jr. in 1977, Ivanka in 1981, and Eric in 1984. Ivana simultaneously became increasingly involved in the family's business operations and developed a reputation as an intense, detail-oriented manager.

Ivana was also responsible for one of Donald Trump's most enduring nicknames. Her habit of referring to her husband as "the Donald" was picked up by journalists and became a fixture of tabloid coverage.

Trump Organization Career

Ivana became a vice president of the Trump Organization and took responsibility for interior design at several of its properties. She worked extensively on Trump Tower in Manhattan and helped establish the gold, marble, glass, and ornate aesthetic that became associated with the Trump brand.

She later managed Trump Castle in Atlantic City and became president of the Plaza Hotel after Donald acquired the property in 1988. Ivana oversaw renovations and day-to-day operations and earned a reputation as a demanding executive rather than a ceremonial figurehead.

Ivana became a naturalized American citizen in 1988.

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Divorce from Donald Trump

The Trump marriage unraveled amid Donald's relationship with Marla Maples. Their separation became one of the defining tabloid stories of the early 1990s, generating almost daily coverage in New York's newspapers.

During the divorce proceedings, Ivana gave a deposition in which she described a marital encounter using the word "rape." She later stated that she did not intend the term to be interpreted in a literal or criminal sense. Donald denied the allegation.

The divorce was granted in December 1990, although negotiations over their finances continued afterward.

Divorce Settlement

Ivana and Donald had entered into several marital agreements during their marriage as his business empire expanded. When the relationship collapsed, Ivana challenged the agreement governing their separation, setting off an extended financial battle.

The eventual settlement gave Ivana $10 million immediately and an additional $4 million housing payment. She also received the couple's enormous Greenwich, Connecticut, mansion, an apartment in Trump Plaza in Manhattan, and the right to use Mar-a-Lago for one month each year. Her annual alimony and child-support payments initially totaled approximately $650,000.

The frequently repeated claim that Ivana received $25 million in cash appears to stem from the terms of an earlier marital agreement rather than the final settlement itself.

The Greenwich estate became another major source of wealth for Ivana. She retained the property after the divorce and sold it in 1998 for $15 million.

Business Career After Divorce

Ivana turned the extraordinary publicity surrounding her divorce into an independent business career. She founded companies including Ivana, Inc. and developed clothing, costume jewelry, cosmetics, fragrances, and other products carrying her name.

Television shopping became an especially successful outlet. Ivana sold clothing and jewelry through networks including the Home Shopping Network, building a consumer-products business that allowed her to generate income independently of the Trump Organization.

Her transformation into a symbol of post-divorce reinvention led to a memorable cameo in the 1996 comedy "The First Wives Club," where she delivered the line, "Don't get mad, get everything."

Ivana also pursued international investments and real estate ventures. In 1998, she became involved with Croatia's "Slobodna Dalmacija" newspaper. Other ventures were less successful, including proposed real estate developments that never came to fruition.

Books and Media

Ivana wrote both fiction and nonfiction. Her books included the novels "For Love Alone" and "Free to Love," as well as "The Best Is Yet to Come: Coping With Divorce and Enjoying Life Again."

In 2017, she published "Raising Trump," which focused on her childhood, her experiences as a mother, and raising Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric.

She also wrote a long-running advice column called "Ask Ivana," launched the lifestyle magazine "Ivana's Living in Style," and appeared frequently on television. Her distinctive Czech accent, blond hair, fashion, and highly confident public persona made her immediately recognizable.

Later Marriages and Relationships

Ivana married Italian businessman Riccardo Mazzucchelli in 1995. The marriage ended in divorce in 1997.

She later began a long relationship with Italian actor and model Rossano Rubicondi. They married in 2008 during a ceremony at Mar-a-Lago. The marriage lasted less than a year, although Ivana and Rubicondi continued an on-and-off relationship afterward. Rubicondi died in 2021.

Despite the bitterness surrounding her divorce from Donald, Ivana and her former husband eventually developed a more cordial relationship and remained connected through their children.

Real Estate

One of Ivana's most important investments was the townhouse at 10 East 64th Street on Manhattan's Upper East Side. She purchased the property for approximately $2.5 million in 1992 and turned it into an elaborate expression of her personal aesthetic, with marble, gold accents, crystal chandeliers, dramatic staircases, and highly decorated rooms.

She also owned the Miami Beach condominium ultimately left to Dorothy Curry, multiple properties in St. Tropez, and property in her native Czech Republic.

Her Greenwich mansion was another major financial success. After receiving it through her divorce settlement, Ivana sold the estate in 1998 for $15 million.

Death and Legacy

Ivana Trump died on July 14, 2022, at age 73 in her Manhattan townhouse. She was discovered near a staircase, and the New York City medical examiner determined that she died from blunt-impact injuries to her torso caused by an accidental fall.

Although much of Ivana's fame came from her marriage, she spent decades constructing an identity and financial life separate from her former husband. She went from competitive skiing in Communist Czechoslovakia to modeling in Canada, executive positions in a major New York real estate empire, and finally an independent career spanning consumer products, publishing, television, licensing, and real estate.

The approximately $34 million estate she left behind provides a concrete final measure of that independent wealth. Her life was defined not just by the extraordinary marriage and divorce that made her famous, but by her ability to repeatedly reinvent herself afterward.

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