They must be rich

Quote: Evenbob

But often enough. It doesn't take 1000 acres in
places like NYC and Chicago. A 70 story building
can sit on 4 acres. The city block in NYC between
7th and 8th and 42nd and 43rd is a little less
than 4 acres, which is pretty typical. 100 acres in
Manhattan would make you very happy.

But they rarely have that in Manhattan, either. Sorry, I just don't buy the 'secret old money" thing.

Quote: Evenbob

But often enough. It doesn't take 1000 acres in
places like NYC and Chicago. A 70 story building
can sit on 4 acres. The city block in NYC between
7th and 8th and 42nd and 43rd is a little less
than 4 acres, which is pretty typical. 100 acres in
Manhattan would make you very happy.

Is true, it is vertically enhanced property.

But I do think family members (especially young) can really be tempted to cash out on long held property, at least some of it, as soon as they get their hands on some of it. I think that's why trusts are often set up for them, so they can't squander assets when they aren't thinking for the long term.

Quote: AZDuffman

This doesn't often happen. Most large land plots seldom survive the third generation. Most of the land grants from 1780-1830 were sold off fast then the new owners end up chopping it up to the kids at their death.

They are been better about keeping it together in Europe. Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster still has most of the property that his ancestors assembled after the Great Fire in London in 1666. He is worth about $13 billion and is the richest peer in Britain.

Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor is 10 generations from Sir Richard Grosvenor, 1st Baronet (9 January 1585 – 14 September 1645).

There's a super docu on the Spencers on Netflix, Princess
Diana's family. They have had the same 13,000 acre estate
for 300 years and the house is incredible. Really worth
a watch. Just to see the paintings. 100,000 sq ft with 31
bedrooms and 88 fireplaces. The library goes on and
on and there used to be 6 libraries in the house.

Conspiracy type, but once on Coast to coast a man was talking about secret trillionaires whom really control the world. They would have to disguise ownership somehow with many layers. Sounds too crazy, but what if it were true?

Quote: 1nickelmiracle

Conspiracy type, but once on Coast to coast a man was talking about secret trillionaires whom really control the world. They would have to disguise ownership somehow with many layers. Sounds too crazy, but what if it were true?

That's what the article I read mentioned, that these
families have owned these properties for so long
that real ownership is impossible to prove. It's
buried in layer upon layer of lawyers and trusts
and corporations. Its not a conspiracy, it's a privacy
issue.

Quote: Evenbob

And some of it isn't. We're talking the old
money that laughed at the Rockefellers
and the Vanderbilts. Most of it came from
land ownership and some came from Europe.
Imagine your family bought huge chunks
of Manhattan 300 years ago and still owns
it and leases it to skyscrapers. Or owns them.
They can weather every financial downturn
and still be uber rich.

I amazed at how real estate turns into wealth. It really is probably the best way to accrue wealth. My grandfather bought some properties in suburban Cleveland, Ohio back in the 60's, my dad still manages them and they still perform well. The neighborhood has stayed desirable for decades, which is amazing.

Most old EU wealth comes from land. You
charge the peasants to live there and take
a % of the crops they grow and sell them.
That's why they swarmed to the US, you
could never own land in a lot of EU countries
and here you could own as much as you
wanted for almost nothing.

Quote: 1nickelmiracle

Conspiracy type, but once on Coast to coast a man was talking about secret trillionaires whom really control the world. They would have to disguise ownership somehow with many layers. Sounds too crazy, but what if it were true?

The Forbes list is 1,645 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of $6.4 trillion, with 172 women on the list. No one person is over $80 billion.

Why do you need trillionaires? They are a fantasy. These 1645 control enough.

Quote: theodores

I amazed at how real estate turns into wealth. It really is probably the best way to accrue wealth. My grandfather bought some properties in suburban Cleveland, Ohio back in the 60's, my dad still manages them and they still perform well. The neighborhood has stayed desirable for decades, which is amazing.

Actually, once you are no longer talking about your main residence, real estate is a terrible investment, some exceptions notwithstanding; my source below is just one of many. Yet I agree it has made more multimillionaires than any other investment [though I have also seen people get ruined]

It's a paradox explained by the fact that you can get enormous leverage borrowing for it, like no other investment. You are even legally protected against margin calls.

a source:

Quote: link

when you get into second homes, vacation houses, rental properties, commercial buildings, and raw land held for potential appreciation, you are playing a whole new ball game. That’s because over long periods of time, the real returns (net of inflation) offered by common stocks has crushed those available by real estate ownership.

http://beginnersinvest.about.com/od/realestate/a/aa022407a.htm