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an excellent negotiator. It is impossible! All I want to do is open
your mind to the possibilities and the power of negotiating, and
some basic techniques. Then, when you run into a specific situation
you can go back to your notes, and say, how did George handle this?
Or, what did he suggest?” You already have some ideas about real
estate, but I’ve learned many things in my 25 years working with
Trump and 50 years in the real estate business, that I’d like to pass
along to you. If I am successful, this book will help you negotiate
far better deals, arrange better financing, make better investments,
and earn significantly more money in real estate.
I recall the day I first met Donald Trump in 1974. He entered my
office at the law firm of Dreyer and Traub beaming with enthusiasm
about a project he wanted to do with the old Commodore Hotel on
42d Street in New York City. He was just 27 years old at the time, and
I was a senior partner known for completing complex deals, but I
agreed to see him out of courtesy because I represented his father,
Fred Trump. Fred had spoken enthusiastically about Donald’s promise
as a future star in the real estate world.
Donald laid out his incredibly complex plan for buying the huge,
dumpy, rundown hotel next to Grand Central Station and turning it
into a first-class, state-of-the-art business hotel. I told him it was a
brilliant idea, but there was no way it would ever work, given the num-
ber of powerful people and governmental agencies he would have to
convince to grant him major concessions. Nevertheless, if he was will-
ing to pay the legal fees, I was willing to help him take a shot at it. We
spent the next two years negotiating with railroad executives, city and
state officials, lenders, and Hyatt executives making the deal happen.
During those tumultuous two years, Donald and I developed a great
working relationship and mutual respect. When he miraculously
pulled off the deal, I was so sure he would be a huge success in real es-
tate that I became his closest advisor and lawyer.

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