The TSC Streetside Chat: Christopher Edmonds Interviews Sam Zell

Ask anyone in the real estate investment world to name the most influential icon in the business and you'll likely hear the same name: Sam Zell. As chairman of two of the largest real estate investment trusts -- Equity Office Properties Trust (EOP Quote) and Equity Residential Properties Trust (EQR Quote), his actions and those of his companies are closely watched. And as chairman of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, or NAREIT, his stamp is on recent legislative changes to REIT regulations as well as the continuing attempt to standardize the often confusing accounting standards of REITs.

But Zell's multibillion dollar empire transcends the real estate world, with interests as diverse as Chart House Enterprises (CHT Quote), a chain of seafood restaurants across the U.S., to American Classic Voyages (AMCV Quote), the leading purveyor of passenger cruises along the Mississippi River and throughout Hawaii. And his eclectic holdings reveal plenty about his personality.

Getting It REIT
Sam Zell has seen the turnaround in REIT investing.
Source: Equity Office

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