Charlie Rangel Sells Punta Cana Vacation Home, Makes Profit

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) has finally unloaded the Punta Cana vacation villa that caused him so much trouble with ethics investigators -- and he made a nice profit.

According to financial disclosure forms made public Wednesday, the congressman, who was censured by his colleagues for numerous ethics failings, sold the property for between $250,000 to $500,000, netting a profit of between $100,000 to $1 million.

Incomes on disclosure forms are listed in ranges, obscuring the exact sale price of the home.

According to the forms, Rangel sold the property on Dec. 29 last year, and a footnote says that between $100,001 to $250,000 of the proceeds were "in transit." It was unclear if that amount was in addition to amounts listed elsewhere. Rangel's office did not immediately return a request for comment.

The House Ethics Committee censured Rangel for failing to pay taxes on rental income from the Punta Cana property for 17 years. He paid the back taxes and penalties over the course of his ethics investigation. The case cost Rangel's campaign some $2 million in legal expenses.

Still, the purchase of the three-bedroom villa appears to have paid off. Rangel bought it in 1988 for $82,750, but he only put down $29,000. The rest was paid for with what amounted to an interest-free loan, paid back through the rental income generated by the unit.

Rangel's latest financial filing suggests he cleared at least $220,000, and perhaps more.

Depending on the ranges of his holdings, Rangel's assets are worth between about $600,000 and $2 million.