A Los Angeles county millionaire real estate developer who complained about property taxes, which fund the county’s Fire District, was lambasted for offering to pay “private firefighters” to protect his home while neighbors’ houses burned.
“Does anyone have access to private firefighters to protect our home in Pacific Palisades? Need to act fast here. All neighbors houses burning. Will pay any amount. Thank you,” Keith Wasserman wrote in an X post shared to 70,000 followers on Wednesday.
His post accumulated nearly 1 million views within hours, with users slamming Wasserman for his tone deaf tweet. He eventually deleted his post but not before it accumulated thousands of reactions.
One X user shared screenshots of Wasserman’s past tweets advocating for “real estate professionals” to pay $0 in federal taxes. He also responded to a tweet in which Donald Trump promised to cut automobile insurance in half, writing, “Property taxes too please.”
“lol get f–ked a——e,” X user @DealinRugs wrote.
Wasserman is a co-founder and managing partner at Gelt Venture Partners, which boasts an estimated $1.59 billion portfolio. The real estate developer reportedly has a personal net worth of $100 million.
“Incredible nerve… His family is evacuated and he’s trying to hire private firefighters to risk their lives to save a home he most certainly has insured. Incredibly tone deaf,” X user @samvance wrote with a screenshot of Wasserman’s X profile in which he dubbed himself a “contrarian” and “optimist.”
Incredible nerve… His family is evacuated and he’s trying to hire private firefighters to risk their lives to save a home he most certainly has insured.
Incredibly tone deaf. pic.twitter.com/uNvOYbk4RN
— Sam Vance (@samvance) January 8, 2025
Wasserman made light of the criticism, writing in a follow-up tweet, “Mama I’m going viral!” In a second, he wrote, “So here are all the trolls! Hello trolls!” before ultimately deleting the post.
His plea came as multiple wildfires ravage through Los Angeles County, damaging more than 1,000 structures and killing two, CBS News reported. In Wasserman’s Pacific Palisades neighborhood, approximately 30,000 residents have been evacuated.
Originally published by Latin Times
