Russian novels, poetry and ballet put the country squarely in the European family of cultures and yet there is something different about this country, especially in terms of its political culture. What makes Russia different? Maxim Trudolyubov uses private property as a lens to highlight the most important features that distinguish Russia as a political culture. In many Western societies, private property has acted as the private individual's bulwark against the state; in Russia, by contrast, it has mostly been used by the authorities as a governance tool. Nineteenth-century Russian liberals did not consider property rights to be one of the civil causes worthy of defending. Property was associated with serfdom, and even after the emancipation of the serfs the institution of property was still seen as an attribute of retrograde aristocracy and oppressive government. It was something to be destroyed - and indeed it was, in 1917. Ironically, it was the Soviet Union that, with the arrival of mass housing in the 1960s, gave the concept of private ownership a good name. After forced collectivization and mass urbanization, people were yearning for a space of their own. The collapse of the Soviet ideology allowed property to be called property, but not all properties were equal. You could own a flat but not an oil company, which could be property on paper but not in reality. This is why most Russian entrepreneurs register their businesses in offshore jurisdictions and park their money abroad. This fresh and highly original perspective on Russian history will be of great interest to anyone who wants to understand Russia today.

Real Estate

"A declining market is the best market in which to make money."

---Donald J. Trump

With rising foreclosure rates, it's easy to find discount properties--especially in the abandoned property market. But how do you choose the best ones with the most profit potential? And how do you deal with the complexities and problems associated with abandoned properties?

The Abandoned Property Investor's Kit gives you all the practical, effective tools you need to break into this lucrative real estate niche. Reggie Brooks, the #1 abandoned property specialist in North America, shows you how to find abandoned properties, locate the owners, negotiate a cheap sale, get the financing you need, and turn your investment into big bucks. Brooks also explains the tricky aspects of abandoned property investing and offers proven solutions for dealing with them.

Inside, you'll discover how to:

Start investing in your spare time, with little or no money down

Find great properties in your market

Use creative financing techniques like wraparound mortgages and subject-to deals

Rehabilitate properties for increased curb appeal and higher rents or resale prices

Negotiate to win with lenders and owners

Understand purchase agreements and other documents

Even without cash on hand or a massive line of credit, savvy investors can still make a bundle. This comprehensive guide shows you how.

REGGIE BROOKS is known as "Mr. Abandoned Properties" and is America's leading speaker on the subject. Starting with very little money, he began investing in abandoned rental properties in Los Angeles and went from making $36,000 per year at the local telephone company to making over$40,000 per month in his real estate business. He remains an active investor.

A global look at the reasons behind the recent economic collapse, and the responses to it

The speculative bubble in the housing market began to burst in the United States in 2007, and has been followed by ruptures in virtually every asset market in almost every country in the world. Each country proposed a range of policy initiatives to deal with its crisis. Policies that focused upon stabilizing the housing market formed the cornerstone of many of these proposals. This internationally focused book evaluates the genesis of the housing market bubble, the global viral contagion of the crisis, and the policy initiatives undertaken in some of the major economies of the world to counteract its disastrous affects.

Unlike other books on the global crisis, this guide deals with the housing sector in addition to the financial sector of individual economies. Countries in many parts of the world were players in either the financial bubble or the housing bubble, or both, but the degree of impact, outcome, and responses varied widely. This is an appropriate time to pull together the lessons from these various experiences.Reveals the housing crisis in the United States as the core of the meltdownDescribes the evolution of housing markets and policies in the run-up to the crisis, their impacts, and the responses in European and Asian countriesCompares experiences and linkages across countries and points to policy implications and research lessons drawn from these experiences

Filled with the insights of well-known contributors with strong contacts in practice and academia, this timely guide discusses the history and evolution of the recent crisis as local to each contributor's part of the world, and examines its distinctive and common features with that of the U.S., the trajectory of its evolution, and the similarities and differences in policy response.

The reliable, classic guide to INCOME PROPERTY BROKERAGE--now updated for the 21st century
For more than thirty-five years, this guide has been the most reliable, trustworthy resource for real estate brokers and agents who want to increase their commissions and start selling income property. Now in a new Fourth Edition, A Master Guide to Income Property Brokerage is back and better than ever. With significant new material on the Internet and powerful, up-to-date tactics, brokers and agents alike will find in these pages all of the high-quality information they need to succeed. Sixteen power-packed chapters feature step-by-step income-building information that will help you:
* Profit from five quick ways to find property owners who will sell
* Turn your leads into listings that sell
* Nail down sales using today's new and ingenious ways to finance income properties
* Price income property to sell quickly
* Set up operating statements that promote sales
* Present the unique benefits of income property
* Access thirteen immediate sources of buyers
* Easily qualify buyers
* Advertise income property--and make it pay off big
* Show income properties for fast-action sales
* Master the fine points of selling income properties
* Work on condominium conversions: an exciting new wealth-builder
* Sell like a giant using online tools
* Make a final presentation that clinches the sale
* And much more

Mining is a capital-intensive industry, and involves long lead times to develop projects that demand a structured approach, from mine exploration to exit. This book provides mine developers, investors, owners, shareholders, and mineral policymakers a comprehensive game plan to raise capital for the development of new mining projects or to bolster operational mines. The author, an experienced mining capital consultant, shows how mine developers and mine owners can secure capital in any phase of the commodity price cycle, at any site, and at any project stage. The book follows a proven and structured approach that enables mine developers and owners to successfully raise capital for their projects. With the aid of case studies and practical methods, the reader will learn the essentials on topics ranging from developing and marketing a business case for investment, to the types and sources of mining capital for different project stages, as well as the structure and significance of due diligence. The author presents actual mining projects and their funding plans, transaction structures and term sheets for capital. The mining projects discussed represent various project stages, commodities, and parts of the globe, offering a comprehensive reference guide for mine developers, investors and promoters alike.

Emotions in the workplace have until recently been seen simply as a distraction. We often think of work as rational, logical and non-emotional. But organisations are waking up to the key role of emotions and affect at work. Emotions influence how we make decisions, how we relate with one another and how we make sense of our surroundings. Whilst organisations are slowly embracing the pivotal role of emotions, designers and managers of workplaces have been struggling to keep up. New insights from hard sciences such as neuropsychology are presenting a radically different interpretation of emotions. Yet workplace designers and facilities managers still rely on measuring non-specific states such as satisfaction and stress. In this book we attempt to capture modern-day interpretations of emotion, looking at emotion in terms of transactions and processes rather than simple cause and effect. We entertain the idea of an 'emotionally intelligent building' as an alternative to the much-hyped intelligent building. The assertion is that we should create environments that are emotionally intelligent. Rather than focusing on the aptitudes or shortcomings of individuals at work, we should place closer attention on the office environment. It's not that we are emotionally disabled - it's the environment that disables us! The ability of you and me to interpret, control and express emotions may not simply be a result of our own make-up. A radically different outlook considers how our workspace and workplace debilitates or enables our emotional understanding. In the modern workplace there are many innovations that can undermine our emotional intelligence, such poorly implemented hot-desking or lean environments. Contrariwise there are key innovations such as Activity Based Working (ABW) that have the potential to enhance our emotional state. Through a series of unique case studies from around the world, we investigate key concepts that can be used by designers and facilities managers alike. No longer should designers be asked to incorporate emotional elements as intangible un-costed 'add-ons'. This book provides a shot in the arm for workplace design professionals, pointing to a new way of thinking based on the emotional intelligence of the workplace.

How real estate investors and speculators can take their business global
The real estate boom has gone global, and those successful investors who want to keep up their profits are starting to look at emerging markets on other continents. Markets in South America, Eastern Europe, India, and Asia are currently experiencing the rapid growth that mature domestic markets experienced a few years ago. Based on the author's personal experience buying and selling dozens of overseas properties, this book provides all the relevant data investors need to evaluate properties and markets anywhere in the world.
Colin Barrow (Hayle, Cornwall, UK) is a non-executive director of two venture capital funds and serves on the UK Government Task Force for Business.

How to plan for the commercial real estate collapse

Encompassing apartment, office, retail, hospitality, warehouse, manufacturing, and flex or R & D buildings, commercial real estate (CRE) investment in the U.S. totaled $6.4 trillion at the end of 2008. As noted in the February 2010 Congressional Oversight Panel Report, $1.4 trillion of CRE debt is coming due by 2014 and half of the CRE projects securing such debt are underwater. "Commercial Real Estate Restructuring Revolution: Strategies, Tranche Warfare, and Prospects for Recovery" looks at how we got into this mess-impacts of the housing crisis, debt structures, lender-borrower collusion, and bankruptcy abuses-and offers possible solutions to the CRE crisis. Along the way, author Stephen Meister: - Discusses how CRE value losses are being driven by investors' risk adjusted cap rates, not just poorer market fundamentals- Discusses strategies and emerging trends in CRE foreclosures, including forced lender fundings, lender attempts to chill bids and UCC foreclosure tactics and pitfalls- Proposes legislative solutions and explains how any rebound will require federal spending cuts, a vast deleveraging and a market clearing processWith a crashing CRE debt market and the hundreds of CRE-heavy regional banks destined for failure, getting out ahead of the curve is essential. "Commercial Real Estate Restructuring Revolution" addresses how we got here and how you can plan for the impending crash.

Questions about the mortgage process seem so complex and intimidating, yet they must be worked through achieve the American Dream of home ownership. Thankfully, this guide eliminates the confusion and stress with clear-cut answers to all your questions. How much house can you afford (or not afford)? Is every mortgage loan the same, or are there specifics to look for that meet your individual needs? How can you increase your chances of getting those almost unbelievable rates you see banks advertising? Is there any end to the paperwork? Because unless you're sitting on a pile of cash, chances are you'll need to take out a mortgage when you're ready to buy your next home. In Mortgages 101, you will find the latest information on: Application procedures Online lenders New loan and government programs Qualifying requirements Zero-down options Guidelines for self-employed borrowers In this one-stop reference, find everything you need to know from a wide range of mortgage topics. From negotiating the best deal to saving on closing costs, Mortgages 101 supplies the answers and assistance for everything you need until the day you walk through your new front door!

A step-by-step guide to attracting all the investment funds you will ever need for your next real estate transaction

As the sales of "Real Estate Investing in Canada" have proven, Canadians are looking to real estate investing to build wealth. In his bestselling book "Real Estate Investing in Canada," Don R. Campbell introduces the Authentic Canadian Real Estate (ACRE) system, the first system of its kind to show ordinary Canadians how to profit from investing in residential real estate. Told as a narrative, a typical Canadian couple named Richard and Emma successfully buy their first properties and now are ready to leverage their equity into more properties. In order to achieve their goals, they are introduced to a joint-venture specialist and, with his guidance, they learn how joint-venture partnerships work and secrets and strategies for acquiring new properties that only the pros know.

Richard and Emma build their portfolio -- and their confidence -- and so they leave their jobs to focus on real estate investing full-time. Following a proven 7-step system, Richard and Emma are equipped with the information, strategies and motivation they need to go to the next level by explaining: What are joint-venture partnerships and how do they work to create win-win relationshipsWealth attraction principles-how to become a money magnetHow and where to find joint-venture partners-marketing and lead generation--and separate the wheat from the chaffStructuring a joint venture deal-building a team of experts and the due diligence processLegal structures and agreements, including tax implications19 landmines to avoid in joint venture partnershipsFollowing up with current joint venture partners and duplicating success

The appendices offer valuable time-saving checklists, forms and worksheets, as well as advice on paper flow and time management.

Aspiring international real estate investors--expand your portfolio today! The real estate world can be a particularly difficult place to do business, and this book helps aspiring international investors of all skill levels avoid some of the pitfalls first-timers often make. Expert author Nicholas Wallwork opens your eyes to how accessible international real estate can be and provides an excellent introduction to some of the main strategies and nuances when investing at home or away. Investing in International Real Estate For Dummies covers expert strategies for investing in international real estate, going beyond the more obvious tactics like buy-to-lease and flipping houses. It gives you a solid roadmap for successful property investing that actually works in any market. It lays out checklists of tasks and offers step-by-step guidance and advice based on over a decade of in-the-trenches experience working in the international real estate investment sector. Learn previously unseen expert strategies Find out how to choose which countries to invest in Easily navigate your way around lease options Build an in-country network of reliable contacts Manage your new assets with ease How to build the mindset of a top real estate investor Looking to start or expand your international real estate portfolio? Everything you need is at your fingertips!

This book explores the wide-ranging elements of property PR in the UK, with a strong emphasis on communications theory, strategy and technique. The editors begin with an introduction to the property cycle and the role of property PR within it; consideration of the changes and challenges facing the industry; various structures of property communications; and the need for a strategic approach. Subsequent chapters provide perspectives and lessons from contributors in a variety of property sectors including commercial property, estate agency, social housing, property consultancy, proptech, retail and homebuilding. The book concludes with insight into future change, both for the property industry and for the communication function within it. This book is recommended reading for all property PR teams, for students studying for property, PR or marketing degrees, and for anyone working in the built environment sector who needs to consider PR and marketing as part of their role.

How American colonists laid the foundations of American capitalism with an economy built on credit Even before the United States became a country, laws prioritizing access to credit set colonial America apart from the rest of the world. Credit Nation examines how the drive to expand credit shaped property laws and legal institutions in the colonial and founding eras of the republic. In this major new history of early America, Claire Priest describes how the British Parliament departed from the customary ways that English law protected land and inheritance, enacting laws for the colonies that privileged creditors by defining land and slaves as commodities available to satisfy debts. Colonial governments, in turn, created local legal institutions that enabled people to further leverage their assets to obtain credit. Priest shows how loans backed with slaves as property fueled slavery from the colonial era through the Civil War, and that increased access to credit was key to the explosive growth of capitalism in nineteenth-century America. Credit Nation presents a new vision of American economic history, one where credit markets and liquidity were prioritized from the outset, where property rights and slaves became commodities for creditors' claims, and where legal institutions played a critical role in the Stamp Act crisis and other political episodes of the founding period.

This book identifies, defines and explains in detail property-related environmental issues. It is written in an easy-to-follow style and presented in a lively format.

Issues are explained with reference to relevant background information, practical issues and problems posed.

The book is supported by current case studies, and there is learning material - with model answers - for students and lecturers to use for group work.

Each topic - e.g. law, economics, property development - is structured in the same way: headline - the big issues and important questions; background - historical, legislative, technical; practical problems and solutions; discussion points; case studies; sources of information/further study.

This book brings together politics, law, financial services regulation, economics and housing policy in the analysis of mortgage lending and macroprudential policy in the UK and US. The book addresses the relationship between housing policy, credit and financial instability in light of the recent global financial crisis, and proposes both short and long-term solutions. Although it is not known where the next crisis will come from, history suggests that it will have credit and property at its source. Thus, it is important that the UK and other countries look more broadly at what should be done in terms of policies, institutions and tools to make the housing market and mortgage lenders more resilient against a future crisis. This book sets out a number of workable proposals. Central to this work are questions relating to the quantitative macroprudential measures, such as loan-to-value (LTV) and debt-to-income (DTI) restrictions, and whether these can be used to any significant extent in western democracies and, if employed, whether they are likely to be effective. In particular, the book questions the political legitimacy of their use and the potential consequences for the institutions, such as central banks, promulgating such policies. Preserving financial stability in very uncertain market conditions is of key importance to central bankers and other regulators, and macroprudential policy is a rapidly growing subject for both legal and economics study. This book will therefore be of interest to financial professionals, policy-makers and academics.

The focus of this book is on how public policy - and especially the planning system - both shapes and reflects the essential characteristics of land and property markets. It challenges the common misconceptions that property markets operate in isolation from public policy and that planning permission is the only significant form of state intervention in the market.

Planning, Public Policy & Property Markets contends that effective state-market relations in land and property are critical to a prosperous economy and a robust democracy, especially at a time when development aims to be sustainable and environmental protection needs to be matched by urban and rural regeneration.

The book thus reflects an increased realisation among academics and practitioners of the importance of theoretical integration and 'joined-up' policy-making. Its rounded perspective addresses a significant weakness in the academic literature and will encourage broader debate and a more pluralist agenda for property research.

Prominent contributors present important new research on different market sectors and policy arenas, including regeneration and renewal, housing growth, housing planning, transport and economic competitiveness, while the editors specifically draw out more general lessons on the dynamic nature of the state/property market relationship in a modern economy.

This book will encourage all those involved in property research who strive for theoretical and practical connectivity to demonstrate that, just as property market operations cannot be analysed without understanding state processes, policy decisions cannot be taken without an appreciation of howthe market operates.

The book explains why the real estate and construction industries are organized in the ways they are, relating those characteristics to long-term market behavior. Part One covers market dynamics: supply and demand; the interaction of property development, finance, and construction; and property cycles. Part Two examines institutions and market structures.

The real estate industry desperately needs new tools and ideas to stay relevant to the modern consumer. The modern consumer is more educated and has more choices than ever before. Counterintuitively, this has led to more confusion, doubt, and frustration in their real estate journey. Therein the opportunity lies. In Exactly What To Say for Real Estate Agents, Phil M. Jones, Chris Smith, and Jimmy Mackin provide 30 Magic Words to help with the most common, critical, and difficult conversations real estate agents have today. If you are open-minded to a better way of selling, this book is for you. Imagine what it is going to feel like knowing exactly what to say when it matters the most...

Inside the world of the real Great Gatsby of New York real estate

Harry Macklowe is one of the most notorious wheelers and dealers of the real estate world, and "The Liar's Ball" is the story of the gamblers and thieves who populate his world. Watch as Harry makes the gutsy bid for midtown Manhattan's famous GM building and put almost no money down, landing the billion-dollar transaction that made him the poster child for New York's real estate royalty. Listen in on the secret conversations, back-door deals, and blackmail that put Macklowe and his cronies on top--and set them up for an "enormous" fall.

"Vanity Fair" contributing editor Vicky Ward skillfully paints the often scandalous picture of the giants who owned the New York skyline until their empires came crumbling down in the 2008 financial crisis. Based on more than 200 interviews with real estate moguls like Donald Trump, William Zeckendorf, Mort Zuckerman, and David Simon, "The" "Liar's Ball" is the never-before-told story of the egomaniacal elites of New York City. Read about: The epic rise and fall of one of the richest American real estate baronsOutlandish greed and cravings for power, attention, and loveRelationships built and destroyed by vanity and gossipThe bursting of the real estate bubble and its aftermath

This is no fiction--this is a real life tale of extravagance, ambition, and power. Harry Macklowe ruthlessly clawed his way to the top with the help of his loyal followers, each grubbing for a piece of the real estate pie. "The" "Liar's Ball" reveals their secrets and tells the tale of business as usual for this group--lying, backstabbing, and moving in for the kill when things look patchy. From the bestselling author of "The Devil's Casino" comes an expose on the real estate elite that you'll hardly believe.

This book looks at how the physical environment of work shapes organizational behaviour, demonstrating that our physical surroundings at work can have a big influence on employee productivity, performance and wellbeing. Drawing upon the latest research, Organizational Behaviour and the Physical Environment provides comprehensive coverage of the different aspects of the physical environment at work - the buildings, furnishings, equipment, lighting, air quality and their configurations. From theories of psychological ownership and work design, to cultural issues and technology in the workplace, its international range of contributors provide voices from Australasia, North America, Europe and the Middle East. This book will be invaluable supplementary reading for advanced students, researchers and practitioners across the fields of organizational behaviour, HRM, organizational and environmental psychology, and workspace design.