After our recent investigations exposed New York Attorney General Letitia James’ pattern of luxury campaign spending and creative accounting, a deeper examination of her personal financial disclosures reveals troubling new questions about her property holdings and financial reporting.
The same pattern of obscured luxury that characterized her campaign spending now emerges in her personal financial statements, starting with a Virginia investment property that seems to defy financial logic. Purchased in August 2020, James values the single-family home at “$100,000 to under $150,000” in her 2023 financial disclosure. Yet somehow, this same property carries mortgages totaling up to $400,000 – potentially more than twice its declared value.
This loan-to-value ratio appears to be extraordinarily high. Standard lending practices typically limit total financing to no more than 80-90% of a property’s value for investment properties. Here, the mortgages potentially exceed 250% of the property’s declared value, raising serious questions about either the accuracy of the reported value or how such financing was obtained.
Even more puzzling: despite being explicitly listed as an “Investment” property, James reported no income from it in 2023. This marks a change from 2020, when she disclosed earning $1,000 to $5,000 from the same property.
Brooklyn Property: Calendar Year Disclosures vs. Fiscal Year Assessments
The Virginia property isn’t the only real estate holding raising eyebrows. James’ Lafayette Avenue property in Brooklyn presents an even more striking set of contradictions when comparing her calendar year financial disclosures against the city’s fiscal year assessments.
According to her calendar year disclosures, the property’s value surged by 42% between 2021 and 2022, jumping from “$2.25M – $2.5M” to “$3.25M – $3.5M.” During roughly the same period, however, the city’s fiscal year assessments tell a dramatically different story – showing a 7.58% decrease in the property’s market value from FY2021-22 to FY2022-23, dropping from $1,055,000 to $975,000.
The property also carries a complex web of financing, with three separate mortgages totaling between $725,000 and $1.1 million: Wells Fargo ($500,000 to $750,000), First Savings Bank ($75,000 to $100,000), and Citizens Bank ($150,000 to $250,000). While multiple mortgages on investment properties aren’t unusual, the layered structure adds another element requiring clarity given the property’s valuation issues.
A Pattern of Opacity
These personal financial disclosure irregularities take on added significance when viewed alongside our previous findings about James’ campaign spending patterns. The same opacity we uncovered in campaign expenses – where luxury travel was obscured through creative categorization – now appears to extend into her personal financial reporting.
As the state’s top prosecutor pursuing cases about financial disclosure accuracy, James’ own disclosures warrant particular scrutiny. The irregularities identified in her property portfolio and financial statements demand clear explanation.
The Attorney General’s office has maintained silence in response to detailed questions about these disclosures. As scrutiny intensifies, that silence grows louder by the day.
One thing is certain: for a public official who sued and obtained a $355 million judgment against Donald Trump, based on similar allegations: these murky property dealings demand answers. New Yorkers deserve to know whether their top law enforcement officer is holding herself to the same standards she enforces on others.
© Copyright by Sam Antar. All rights reserved.