Former NFL owner just donated his $35 million mansion to charity: Here’s what the charity plans to do with it

It turns out that selling a football team is a lot easier than selling a mansion, at least if you’re Dan Snyder. 

The former Washington Commanders owner had no problem selling the team back in July 2023 when NFL owners unanimously approved a $6 billion sale to Josh Harris. At the same time that Snyder was trying to sell the Commanders, he was also trying to sell his Maryland-area mansion, and things definitely didn’t go as smoothly. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, Snyder put his mansion up for sale in February 2023 with an asking price of $49 million. If you’re wondering how much house you get for $49 million, you can scroll through the photos below. 

After the house went unsold for nearly six months, Snyder reduced the asking price by more than $14 million, knocking the cost of the house down to $34.9 million. 

Even with the reduced asking price, Snyder still didn’t have any takers, so he decided to take the house off the market and GIVE IT AWAY. Instead of selling the mansion, Snyder simply donated it to the American Cancer Society, according to The Washington Post. 

The charity won’t be using the mansion as a new headquarters, though. As a matter of fact, they won’t be using it at all. A charity spokesperson told The Washington Post that the ACS plans to sell the mansion and then use the money “to advance our mission of improving the lives of cancer patients and their families.”

“ACS is grateful for support and commitment — in the form of time, service, and financial contributions — from individuals and families like the Snyders, which will allow us to accelerate progress against cancer and to improve the lives of cancer patients and their families,” ACS said in a statement. 

Snyder didn’t have a great reputation as an owner, but helping the ACS almost certainly means a lot to him. His wife, Tanya, was once diagnosed with breast cancer. Also, she was a major supporter of the NFL’s “THINK-PINK®” campaign, which she helped get off the ground when it started in 2013. 

Although it’s a fantastic donation, Snyder will get to reap at least one benefit here: The former NFL owner will be able to use the appraised value of the house as a tax deduction. If the appraised value is $40 million, then he’ll get a $40 million deduction, so donating the house will help his bottom line. 

Snyder owned the Commanders for just over 24 years before he was forced to sell the team following a series of controversies that ended with him getting fined $60 million, a fine that was announced on the same day as the sale of the team back on July 21, 2023.