Trump Plans Spending $377m On Executive Residence Renovations – And Wants $174m More

President Donald Trump plans to spend more than $377 million renovating the White House executive residence in fiscal 2026 — and is estimating another $174 million on top of it for the next year, according to the White House’s fiscal 2027 budget request.

The budget document, which proposes slashing domestic programs to help fund a $1.5 trillion bump to defense spending, estimates spending $377 million in fiscal 2026 under an account for repairs and renovations to the executive residence. That’s a mammoth 866 percent increase over the $39 million estimated to have been spent in fiscal 2025 on sprucing up the area of the White House where the president lives.

An Office of Management and Budget spokesperson told POLITICO that the totals reflect budgetary projections that include not only rehabbing the White House but also security spending costs. The person added that it's for a number of renovations, not just the executive residence. The spokesperson did not answer questions about what specific projects the money would go toward.

Though the budget doesn’t spell out exactly what the renovation funds are to be used for, Trump has repeatedly expressed his fixation on repairing the White House — publicly sharing upgrades to the living quarters, including bathrooms, to more ambitious projects like expanding entertainment space.

The budget is also asking that $350 million of the $377 million figure be counted as mandatory spending, a classification used for programs that Congress must fund by statute, such as Social Security or Medicare. Granting that spending such a designation would essentially force congressional appropriators to fund the renovations at no less than $350 million. However, the budget request is mostly a statement of priorities, which lawmakers can and routinely do simply ignore.

When asked why the budget requests the renovation spending be made mandatory, the spokesperson observed that private donations being used to fund Trump's new ballroom are being held at the National Park Service. The person refused to elaborate.

But in a filing made as part of a lawsuit brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation against the National Park Service related to the East Wing demolition and ballroom project, Joshua Fischer, director for White House Management and Administration, wrote that "donated funds received by NPS pursuant to NPS's gift authority are being transferred to the White House Repair and Restoration Account pursuant to the Economy Act ... to fund this project and supplement the Executive Mansion's annual allowance appropriated" pursuant to relevant statute.

The past year’s spending has coincided with a push toward more ambitious — and more visible — changes to the White House complex. At the center of that effort is the proposed new White House ballroom, a roughly $400 million project that would dramatically expand the complex’s capacity for large-scale events.

The plan envisions a sprawling addition capable of hosting hundreds of guests at once, replacing the current reliance on temporary tents on the South Lawn for state dinners and major receptions. The project has already run into legal and oversight challenges, but it underscores the administration’s interest in reshaping how the White House functions as both a residence and ceremonial space.