Alan Casden

Studied accounting at U. of Southern California; traded bean counting for real estate 1975 with $1,000 savings. Now owns 209,000 square feet of office space, 3,100 luxury apartments across the U.S. Majority of Casden Properties bought by Aimco in 2002 for $2.4 billion. Recently completed high-end mixed-use development featuring 350 luxury rental homes in Westwood Village in Los Angeles. Claims to have reaped more than $400 million in net profits. Partners with Cerberus Real Estate in other California projects. Recently contributed to Museum of Tolerance in L.A.; proceeds were used to build a re-creation of Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal's office. Developing 400-foot White City Tower in Tel Aviv.