Document and Entity Information - shares	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2016	May. 06, 2016
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2016
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1
Trading Symbol	RAS
Entity Registrant Name	RAIT FINANCIAL TRUST
Entity Central Index Key	0001045425
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		91,870,571