President Biden is worth an estimated $9 million according to Forbes. Biden has been in public service for almost half a century (1973 - 2017; 2020 - to date). Yet, he made the bulk of his net worth during the four years he spent out of office (2017- 2021).
Biden is the oldest child of Joseph Biden sr. He grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania. His father experienced several business failures and struggled to find a stable job during the recession.
Young Joe and his family stayed with his mother’s parents for some years before leaving for Delaware. 10-year-old Biden lived in a 3-bed, one-and-a-half-bath tract house with his family in Wilmington, Delaware.
As a child, he battled with an embarrassing stutter. Biden studied at St. Paul's Catholic Elementary School. He also attended Archmere Academy, a Roman Catholic College Preparatory School. Inspired by John F. Kennedy’s election, he entered the University of Delaware to study political science and history in 1961. By 1965, he began studying at the University of Syracuse Law School.
Joe Biden later became the 5th youngest Senator, the 47th Vice President, and the 46th and current President-elect of the United States. After over 4 decades of a political career, the bulk of Biden’s net worth is from book royalties, speaking fees, and his landed assets.
What is Joe Biden's net worth?
President Biden has an estimated net worth of $9 million based on his tax returns.
In 2017, President Biden left Washington DC. Then, he had an estimated net worth of $2.5 million. Being a public servant for most of his life, his moderate fortune came from his pensions and real estate. He had a life insurance policy and some retirement accounts. Biden’s Delaware home and his $160,000 annual pension accounted for most of his net worth then.
By the last quarter of 2017, Biden and his wife, Jill had grossed $11.1 million. They earned $4.6 million in 2018, $1 million in 2019, and $630,000 in 2020. In total, they earned $17.3 million.
How did Biden end up with an estimated $9 million net worth by 2022 if he grossed $17.3 million two years earlier?
$7 million went to taxes, $1.3 million was spent on philanthropy, $180,000 covered domestic staff, and approximately $80,000 paid mortgage interests. There is no specific information on how Biden spent the rest of his fortune.
Biden’s spending on domestic labor grew to $95,250 by 2020 from $8,600 in 2017. They also settled one mortgage and 2 lines of credit. They donated to organizations like the Beau Biden Foundation. These might have also reduced their net worth.
According to Forbes, Joe Biden’s two houses are worth 4 million (net debt). He also maintains a minimum of $950,000 in cash accounts.
How did Joe Biden make his money?
Though Biden made his first million from selling a piece of property in Delaware Greenville, the bulk of his current net worth comes from his speaking charges, book royalties, and the appreciating value of his properties.
Biden won the U.S. Senate elections under the Delaware Democratic Party in 1972. He was 29 years old and went on to serve in congress for six consecutive terms. One month later, Neila, his wife, and one-year-old Naomi died in a collision with a tractor-trailer. His two sons were injured.
He almost paused his political career because he had to care for his sons. He later took the oath of office in the hospital chapel and served as a congressman for 30 years.
According to the Senate’s historical records, Joe Biden earned $42,000 as a senator in 1979. When he left the Senate 30 years later, his salary was $174,000. He earned about $230,700 as vice president and is currently receiving $400,000 compensation as president.
His first book, Promises To Keep, published in 2007, was not in high demand until Barack Obama declared Biden as his running mate. He made about $71,000 from book sales and $9,500 from audiobook rights in 2008.
In 2017, Joe Biden and his wife Jill, signed a multi-book deal with Flatiron Books, a division of Macmillan Publishers, rumored to be worth $8 million. His book examined the political drama at the White House in 2015. It described his son’s death and his decision not to run for president. He also made $1.8 million from book tours and $2.4 million from speaking engagements.
Biden made money from his gig at Pennsylvania University. In February 2017, he was named the Benjamin Franklin Presidential Practice Professor at Pennsylvania University. He has earned about $777,000 from this position.
Also, his two properties in Delaware are worth about $4 million combined.
What are some of Joe Biden's investments?
Joe Biden invested in real estate. He bought a property in Wilmington for $185,000 and sold it for $1.2 million in 1966. He purchased land afterwards and built a property now valued at almost $2 million. In 2017, he bought the Rehoboth Beach property for $2.7 million. It later appreciated by 25% during the Pandemic.
He did not invest in individual stocks. A 2019 financial report revealed that the Bidens had mutual funds worth less than $200,000 in a variable annuity.
What are some of Joe Biden's homes?
Joe Biden was attracted to real estate. He's had an interest in real estate since his teenage years.
“My idea of Saturday fun was to jump in the Corvette with Neilia [his first wife, who died in 1972] and drive around the Wilmington area scouting open houses, houses for sale, land where we could build,” - Joe Biden's Promises To Keep (2007).
He began buying homes priced far beyond his earnings but the properties later appreciated. He purchased his first home for $185,000 in 1975. At that time, his annual income was $42,000. Joe later sold this house for $1.2 million in 1996 after he renovated it.
He reportedly rented out a smaller cottage on the Wilmington property to the secret service for about $26,400 per year between 2010 and 2016. He netted $17,000 yearly from this property.
However, his waterfront home in Delaware surged in price over the years and contributed to Biden's net worth.
Joe Biden's beach home
In June 2017, the former vice president invested part of his fortune into purchasing a $2.7 million vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Close to the Atlantic Ocean, the four-story mini-paradise has a marina, three fireplaces, a gourmet kitchen, a six-bedroom tennis court, and a private beach.
The luxury home’s value appreciated by about $700,000 during the Pandemic lockdown. Families were looking for homes with larger spaces where they could work and where their kids could play.
Its current value is about $3.4 million.
Joe Biden's Delaware home
Biden's family residence is a 6,850-square-foot mansion in Wilmington, Delaware. It is on a plot of land with an artificial lake. According to Zillow, he bought it for $350,000 in 1996.
He built a three-bedroom house with four-and-a-half bathrooms. The property is now estimated to be worth about $2 million or more according to real estate experts. He wanted to sell the house to pay for Beau’s treatment, but President Obama offered to lend him the money.
FAQs
How much is Joe Biden's net worth?
Joe Biden is worth an estimated $9 million.
What is Joe Biden's net worth compared to Donald Trump's net worth?
Per Forbes’ September 2022 tally, Trump’s controversial net worth is an estimated $3.2 billion. Though he said in a press release in 2016 that it was $10 billion. Trump’s net worth is about 355 times Joe Biden’s net wealth, valued at about $9 million.
Trump and Biden both invested in real estate. Though real estate accounts for about $4 million of Biden's net worth, he didn't invest in real estate as a business like former president Trump did. Trump’s investments in real estate are worth about $1.6 billion, almost half of his net worth.
Trump’s first big project was the Commodore Hotels, later renamed the Hyatt Hotel. He continued to invest in and develop monumental New York buildings, including buying the former Bank of Manhattan building and the Plaza Hotel. The most popular structure is the 58-floor Trump Tower where the Trump Organization’s headquarters is.
Many of Trump's properties were valued at $50 million in 2021 but these estimates were not audited and are different from the numbers The Trump Organization reported to state and local authorities.
Biden’s real estate investments are his Wilmington, Delaware home and the Rehoboth Beach vacation house. The pandemic favored owners of vacation residences like Biden as the value of the Beach house rose by 25% during that period. Trump’s net worth plummeted by about $1 billion as the pandemic hit commercial real estate properties hard.
Forbes reported that Trump’s New York City real estate is valued at about $880 million as of September 2022. Some of his Golf Clubs and resort investments include the Mar-a-Lago worth $325 million (net value), U.S. golf clubs, valued at $226 million, and Three European Gulf Properties worth $87 million. All of Trump's Gulf Clubs and Resorts investments amount to $740 million.
Trump’s social media and brand businesses are worth a whopping $790 million.
Biden’s net worth stands out from the average American but it dims in light of Trump's $3.2 billion fortune.
Where does Joe Biden's net worth come from?
President Biden’s estimated $9 million net worth comes from his 2 Delaware homes worth about $4 million, cash and investments also worth about $4 million, and a federal pension valued at more than 1 million.
What are some of Joe Biden's homes?
The Station, Greenville, Delaware:
Biden bought a Greenville, Delaware Du Point Mansion for $185,000 in 1975. The house was in shambles and slated for demolition. He repaired the mansion and renamed it ‘the station’. It became the campaign headquarters from which he ran for the presidency in 1988. He sold it for $1.2 million in 1996.
Mansion in Wilmington Delaware:
The same year (1996), they bought 4 acres of lakefront land in Wilmington Delaware, for $350,000. He built a 6,850-square-foot home there. It is worth an estimated $1-2 million.
President Biden reportedly rented out a cottage on the Wilmington property to the secret service for $2,200 per month to protect his family in 2011. As of July 2011, the secret service had paid Biden $13,200 to use his cottage.
Rehoboth Beach House, Delaware:
Biden also bought a vacation beach house at Rehoboth Beach for $2.7 million. After the prices surged during the pandemic, it is worth an estimated $3.4 million.
The rented Mclean Virginia House:
The Bidens rented a Georgian-style house in 2017. They had just left the vice presidential residence after Biden’s tenure. They rented the house from Mark Ein, a venture capitalist. The five-bedroom mansion has a driveway big enough for 20 cars, a gym, floor-to-floor-ceiling windows, and a sauna. According to Zillow, the rent costs about $20,000 per month.
How much debt does Joe Biden have?
In 2019, Joe and Jill Biden declared $15,796 in mortgage interest as a deduction on their taxes.
Creditors consider mortgages as good debt. Wealthy people also take mortgages to purchase properties at an affordable rate without tying up so much cash. Biden’s mortgage has turned out to be a kind of investment. He made a whopping 750,000 (25% increase) on the Rehoboth Beach house when the value of vacation properties spiked during the Pandemic.
When Biden was younger, he got 3 properties including a residence on 80 acres of land in Maryland. He hoped to build a family residence for his parents and siblings there. Biden borrowed money from Neila’s dad and more banks to get it. He and his wife got tenants to occupy the properties but they were still in financial straits.
After Neila, Biden’s first wife died in 1972, he purchased a 10,000-square-foot DuPont mansion in Wilmington for $185,000. His salary was $42,000 then. He refinanced the home regularly and eventually sold it for $1.2 million then bought land worth $350,000, built a mansion on it, and regularly refinanced it also.
When Ashley Biden studied at Tulane University, in New Orleans, Louisiana, Biden had debt of about $700,000 in total. Biden owned real estate properties and borrowed against it to meet needs as they arose.
What is Joe Biden's salary?
President Joe Biden’s Salary is $400,000. He formerly earned $230,700 as the Vice president and $174,000 as a congressman in 2009. As a young congressman, his first remuneration was $42,000
What are Joe Biden's investments?
Biden pledged not to invest in individual stocks. He did this to avoid ethical conflicts in his job as the president of the United States. He also avoided investing in diversified mutual funds though they are ethically acceptable. A 2019 financial report revealed that the Bidens had mutual funds worth less than $200,000 in a variable annuity.
What are Joe Biden's speaking fees?
Joe Biden’s speaking engagements cost an average of $100,000. Some of his speaking fees were as low as $40,000. While others like his session at Drew University, New Jersey, cost about $190,000. In total, he has earned about $4.9 million from his speaking appearances.
How much does Joe Biden receive in book royalties?
Biden made about $71,000 from book sales and $9,500 from audiobook rights in 2008. He also reported about $15,001 to $50,000 in royalties for “Promise Me, Dad.” Joe wrote this memoir in 2018 when Beau, his late son, died.
He also had an $8 million multi-book deal with Flatiron Books 2017.
What are Joe Biden's assets?
Joe Biden has 5 luxury cars including
- a 1951 Studebaker Champion priced at $20,000,
- a 1952 Plymouth Cranbrook Convertible (priceless),
- Mercedes-Benz 190SL (priceless), and
- 1967 Corvette Stingray (priceless)
He also owns two mansions in Delaware.
Takeaway
The life of Joe Biden is the story of a fighter who never gave up. Despite suffering from stutter, career setbacks, and the death of two loved ones, Biden’s resilience eventually paid off. His many years of public service and hard work contributed to the value of his story. He pursued his dreams despite the challenges.
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