Trump’s new book[Updated 11:55 a.m. on Dec. 6, 2011] The Donald has a lot to say in his latest book, out today. In between moderating debates for Fox News, taking gold bars as a deposit at 40 Wall Street, mulling a run for office and meeting with Republican presidential nominee hopefuls (as he did today with Newt Gingrich), Trump penned another political book: “Time to Get Tough: Making America #1 Again.”

In the latest advice volume, the developer of real estate from Israel to Florida, suggests that America’s problems are the result of President Barack Obama not loving America enough, that the only way to fix the deficit is to take Iraqi oil by force, and that Trump himself is worth a total of $7 billion, a disputed figure. [more]

Orthodox Jewish activists plan to turn up the pressure on developer Aby Rosen, whose planned $600 million hotel development in Jaffa, Israel will destroy an ancient grave site, they said, according to the New York Daily News. The Central Rabbinical Congress of USA and Canada said its group, Save the Graves, will picket some of Rosen’s high-profile NYC developments, including the Gramercy Park Hotel and the Core Club. [more]

[Updated 9:50 p.m. with statement from RFR] Orthodox Jews protest Aby Rosen’s RFR Holding’s construction of a $60 million hotel in Jaffa, Israel, on what protesters say is a cemetery that is home to ancient graves of holy Jewish sages. The demonstrators are in front of the developer’s Manhattan headquarters at 390 Park Avenue, at the corner 54th Street. Rosen wasn’t immediately reachable for comment. RFR directed inquiries to its public relations representatives, who were not immediately available for comment. In response to the protest, RFR released the following statement: “Every stage of the RFR hotel development in Israel has been reviewed and approved by the applicable government agencies of the State of Israel. We have worked with the Antiquities Authority, the government agency that oversees developments in areas of known archeological significance. The Antiquities Authority oversaw all excavation work at the site. The human remains that were discovered during the Antiquities Authority’s excavations were determined to be of Pagan origin, not Hebrew, and were removed from the site and transferred to the Ministry of Religious Services for reburial in accordance with established procedures.” (Photo credit: Jennifer Watson)

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According to the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate, the United States is still the most attractive country to invest in for real estate. The top three cities, as rated by AFIRE, are Washington D.C, New York City and San Francisco. Based upon investment sales this year, it looks like Israeli investors who have invested in the Bi [more]

At left: Gaia managing partners Amir Yerushalmi and Danny Friedman and Park River Properties’ Lenny Sporn and Mickey Roth at their new office opening. At right: Lenny Sporn with Rabbi Yishayahu Yosef Pinto at the office.

It’s been less than three months since Prudential Douglas Elliman powerbrokers Mickey Roth and Lenny Sporn departed the firm to start their own venture, but the Roth-Sporn brand appears to be holding strong, even under their new company name, Park River Properties.

The freshly-minted firm, which organizes foreign buyers into purchase groups for bulk deals in new development condominiums in New York City, is planning a slew of international outposts for its forthcoming expansion. In addition to the existing Park River office in Tel Aviv, Israel, a branch is coming to Rome next month, Sporn said. He is hoping to open a total of five new overseas offices over the course of the year, and is eyeing Japan and India for two of them.

Park River, which launched in December as part of one-year-old Gaia Real Estate, a distressed investment firm, also moved into a permanent U.S. headquarters this week with Gaia and Gaia’s latest acquisition, Vision Property Management, at the Carnegie Hall Tower at 152 West 57th Street. Park River currently employs 15 agents in New York and also has plans to open two more Manhattan branches over the next six months. [more]