Former Washington Commanders Owner Donates $35 Million Maryland Estate to Charity
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Back in 2000, Dan Snyder paid Jordan’s King Hussein and Queen Noor $8.6 million for a hilltop property in the Rockville area of Maryland. The former owner of the NFL’s Washington Commanders—who sold the team to a group led by private-equity billionaire Josh Harris last summer for a record $6.05 billion—subsequently spent millions more to acquire six adjacent parcels and completely transform an existing structure into a French chateau-inspired estate nestled amid 13.5 acres bordered by protected parkland and overlooking the banks of the Potomac River.
After quietly trying to find an off-market buyer since 2018, Snyder hoisted the spread on the open market in February 2023 with a whopping $49 million ask. Despite a drop in price to just under $35 million, however, the estate continued to languish on the market. Now, though it wasn’t quite the blockbuster sale he and his wife Tanya originally wanted, the couple has nonetheless finally managed to unload their palatial home. But they didn’t sell it; they donated it to the American Cancer Society in what is the largest gift in the organization’s 110-year history.
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Per The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the transaction, the ACS hopes to sell “The Estate at River’s Edge” themselves at the last listing price, with proceeds from the transaction going to help advance the nonprofit’s mission of improving the lives of cancer patients and their families. Tanya, former co-CEO of the Commanders, is a cancer survivor and a former national spokeswoman for the NFL’s “Crucial Catch” breast cancer awareness campaign. She was previously recognized by the ACS as “Mother of the Year” for her community efforts.
Designed by architect John Ike and completed in 2004 by Horizon Builders, the estate is hidden away behind double gates and a lengthy cobblestone driveway lined with trees that empties out at a French limestone and mansard-roof mansion spanning four stories. Featured are five bedrooms and 12 bathrooms dispersed across a little more than 25,000 square feet of living space, all of it accessible via an elevator and adorned throughout with intricate mahogany moldings, honed marble, and imported stone accents. Vast expanses of glass spill out to covered terraces and balconies framing water views.
Custom wrought-iron front doors open into a grand entry vestibule that flows to a double-height reception hall resting beneath a coffered ceiling and boasting a curving staircase. A 24-foot limestone fireplace connects on the other side to a living room sporting two interior balconies, and other highlights include a handsome library warmed by a veined-marble fireplace, a formal dining room, two octagon-shaped sunrooms, a family room, and a commercial-grade kitchen.
Particularly standing out on the top floor is a sumptuous primary suite, which is decked out with a private balcony, a separate sitting area, dual baths, “automated” dressing rooms with a built-in watch winder and a grooming station, and an adjoining library flaunting built-in bookcases and a marble fireplace. Elsewhere is a lower level with a bar-equipped club room, a movie theater, a wine cellar, and access to garden-laced grounds hosting a waterfall-enhanced pool and spa flanked by a loggia, as well as a sports court and a helipad.
Additional buildings include a three-level guesthouse housing a showroom-style garage with a catering kitchen that can be transformed into an indoor/outdoor event space, plus a guard house and a manager’s house.
The donation has substantial tax benefits for Snyder, who also owns homes in England, Mount Vernon, and Aspen, Colo. According to The Washington Post, donating the property was “a more practical solution than sitting on it and paying taxes,” especially with an assessed value that was close to $18 million in 2022. By donating the real estate to a charity, Snyder can claim an income-tax deduction that’s equal to the appraised value. For instance, if the property were appraised at $45 million, he would receive a tax deduction of $45 million and would not pay taxes on the gain, which he would have if he had sold it to a private buyer.
The listing is held by Cara Pearlman and Han Peruzzi of Compass.
Click here for more photos of Dan Snyder’s house.
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