Trump dodges questions about a middle-class property tax break and his income

Donald Trump is eager to talk about any number of things these days. But questions about his taxes remain most unwelcome.

In a telephone interview Tuesday, I asked the self-proclaimed billionaire how he's managed for the past three years to receive a property tax credit for New Yorkers whose household income is $500,000 or less. Trump is the only New York billionaire on the Forbes 400 to receive the credit, according to Crain's research, raising questions about just how wealthy he really is.

"I wouldn't know, I wouldn't know," Trump said when I asked how he'd received the middle-class tax break known as the STAR credit. "I had heard the city made a mistake."

When I reminded the presumptive GOP presidential nominee that the city at first thought it had mistakenly granted him the credit but later decided it wasn't so sure, Trump said his income has been listed at more than $500 million in a filing with the Federal Election Commission, though Fortune determined that the figure was actually revenue, not income.

I asked: Don't you know how much money you make in a given year. "I do know what my personal income is," Trump said, "but it's none of your business."

Reminded that he's running for president and his finances are of public interest, he repeated, "It's none of your business." Then he noted he has levers to reduce his income. "There are many deductions that you're entitled to. There are many other things."

What sort of deductions do you take? "You'll figure that out, all you have to do is look. You'll figure it out."

"Take care of yourself," he said, and then he hung up.