Real estate is sold as a much safer investment than the constantly fluctuating stock market. Share price volatility is compared unfavorably with the steadier and impressive gains made from real estate which is, we are told, 'as safe as houses'. This book details the cyclical nature of real estate.

Journalist Julie Satow's thrilling, unforgettable history of how one illustrious hotel has defined our understanding of money and glamour, from the Gilded Age to the Go-Go Eighties to today's Billionaire Row. From the moment in 1907 when New York millionaire Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt strode through the Plaza Hotel's revolving doors to become its first guest, to the afternoon in 2007 when a mysterious Russian oligarch paid a record price for the hotel's largest penthouse, the eighteen-story white marble edifice at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 59th Street has radiated wealth and luxury. For some, the hotel evokes images of F. Scott Fitzgerald frolicking in the Pulitzer Fountain, or Eloise, the impish young guest who pours water down the mail chute. But the true stories captured in THE PLAZA also include dark, hidden secrets: the cold-blooded murder perpetrated by the construction workers in charge of building the hotel, how Donald J. Trump came to be the only owner to ever bankrupt the Plaza, and the tale of the disgraced Indian tycoon who ran the hotel from a maximum-security prison cell, 7,000 miles away in Delhi. In this definitive history, award-winning journalist Julie Satow not only pulls back the curtain on Truman Capote's Black and White Ball and The Beatles' first stateside visit-she also follows the money trail. THE PLAZA reveals how a handful of rich, dowager widows were the financial lifeline that saved the hotel during the Great Depression, and how, today, foreign money and anonymous shell companies have transformed iconic guest rooms into condominiums that shield ill-gotten gains-hollowing out parts of the hotel as well as the city around it. THE PLAZA is the account of one vaunted New York City address that has become synonymous with wealth and scandal, opportunity and tragedy. With glamour on the surface and strife behind the scenes, it is the story of how one hotel became a mirror reflecting New York's place at the center of the country's cultural narrative for over a century.

AN INVESTIGATION OF EPIC FINANCIAL INTRIGUE, RENDER UNTO ROME EXPOSES THE SECRECY AND DECEIT THAT RUN COUNTER TO THE VALUES OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. The Sunday collection in every Catholic church throughout the world is as familiar a part of the Mass as the homily and even Communion. There is no doubt that historically the Catholic Church has been one of the great engines of charity in history. But once a dollar is dropped in that basket, where does it go? How are weekly cash contributions that can amount to tens of thousands of dollars accounted for? Where does the money go when a diocese sells a church property for tens of millions of dollars? And what happens when hundreds of millions of dollars are turned over to officials at the highest ranks, no questions asked, for their discretionary use? The Roman Catholic Church is the largest organization in the world. The Vatican has never revealed its net worth, but the value of its works of art, great churches, property in Rome, and stocks held through its bank easily run into the tens of billions. Yet the Holy See as a sovereign state covers a mere 108 acres and has a small annual budget of about $280 million. No major book has examined the church’s financial underpinnings and practices with such journalistic force. Today the church bears scrutiny by virtue of the vast amounts of money (nearly $2 billion in the United States alone) paid out to victims of clergy abuse. Amid mounting diocesan bankruptcies, bishops have been selling off whole pieces of the infrastructure—churches, schools, commercial properties—while the nephew of one of the Vatican’s most powerful cardinals engaged in a lucrative scheme to profiteer off the enormous downsizing of American church wealth.

Home staging strategies needed to succeed in a down market Whether a buyer, seller, or real estate agent, the home selling and purchasing process is fraught with potholes that can usually be overcome. But in this weakened housing market, everyone involved in the selling process must increase their efforts. In order to sell homes at top dollar, houses must be "prepared for sales." That’s where Staging comes in. The real estate mantra is no longer location, location, location. It is now Staging, Staging, Staging! It’s all about presentation. In Staging to Sell, Barb Schwarz, The Creator of Home Staging®, offers her winning tactics, secrets, and strategies for selling a home at top dollar during these challenging times. In addition to offering specific tips on how to Stage a home, Schwarz, a sought-after speaker and Real Estate broker who has Staged and sold over 5,000 homes, provides readers, sellers, Realtors® and Stagers, with useful advice on correctly pricing properties, marketing properties so that they sell, addressing objections early on, having the seller handle the Staging before the house is viewed, and much more. Written with today’s turbulent real estate market in mind, Staging to Sell contains the information readers need to get their homes Sold in the market quickly for top dollar.

Buy real estate overseas to earn cash flow to fund your dream retirement In Buying Real Estate Overseas For Cash Flow (And A Better Life): Get Started With As Little As $50,000, Kathleen Peddicord and Lief Simon explain how to incorporate an investment in foreign real estate into your portfolio for as little as $50,000. With a lifetime of experience on the subjects of living, retiring, and investing overseas, the authors delve deep into this complex topic. Simply put, this book is a practical guide to buying property overseas as a strategy for earning cash flow to fund your dream retirement. In the book, the authors cover topics as wide-ranging as: How to build the cash flow you need to fund the retirement you want 8 markets offering the best current cash-flow opportunities How to move money across borders in today’s post-FATCA world Plus: How to run the numbers to evaluate a potential cash-flow investment Buying Real Estate Overseas includes a breadth and depth of information on the world’s best markets for investing in real estate for cash flow. Its up-to-date information about this investment category puts to bed much of the outdated advice and guidance currently available in published materials. The authors identify several hot, new markets where currency valuations and market conditions make the purchase of real estate an extremely wise investment decision in today’s volatile investment climate.

Take your real estate career to the highest level! "Whether you are just getting started or a veteran in the business, The Millionaire Real Estate Agent is the step-by-step handbook for seeking excellence in your profession and in your life." --Mark Victor Hansen, cocreator, #1 New York Times bestselling series Chicken Soup for the Soul "This book presents a new paradigm for real estate and should be required reading for real estate professionals everywhere." --Robert T. Kiyosaki, New York Times bestselling author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad The Millionaire Real Estate Agent explains: Three concepts that drive production Economic, organizational, and lead generation models that are the foundations of any high-achiever's business How to "Earn a Million," "Net a Million," and "Receive a Million" in annual income

Over the many years that we've been serving real estate investors, one of the most asked questions on our site has been, "How Do I Get Started in Real Estate Investing?" New investors will love the fundamentals and even experienced investors will appreciate the high-level view of strategies they may have never even considered. Don't let some guru tell you what the right path is for you. Read How to Invest in Real Estate and see all the paths in one place, so you can make the best choice for you, your family, and your financial future. This book will help new investors get a firm foundation to build their investing business upon. With topics ranging from how to gain a solid real estate education, real estate niches, financing, marketing, and more, this book is truly the definitive guide for helping new investors learn the ropes.