Debt (Details)	12 Months Ended													12 Months Ended						12 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2013 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Northstar	Dec. 31, 2013 Construction Loans Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 Construction Loans Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Construction Loans for Working Capital Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 Construction Loans for Working Capital Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Agribusiness Debt USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 Agribusiness Debt USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Swiss Bank Loan Facility loan	Dec. 31, 2013 Swiss Bank Loan Facility Subsidiaries USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Swiss Bank Loan Facility Subsidiaries CHF	Dec. 31, 2013 Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 Line of Credit Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Line of Credit Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 3.7% Loan Due in 2014 Swiss Bank Loan Facility Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 3.7% Loan Due in 2014 Swiss Bank Loan Facility Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 3.8% Loan Due in 2014 Swiss Bank Loan Facility Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 3.8% Loan Due in 2014 Swiss Bank Loan Facility Northstar USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 4% to 4.50% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 4% to 4.50% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 5% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 5% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 6% to 6.50% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 6% to 6.50% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 8% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 8% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 10% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 10% Loan Mortgages USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Real Estate Operations USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 Agribusiness Operations USD ($)
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Remaining borrowing capacity																														$ 25,400,000	$ 22,300,000
Number of loan facilities										3
Line of credit facility, maximum borrowing capacity						27,000,000					23,000,000	20,500,000			89,500,000
Weighted average interest rate											3.70%	3.70%	4.70%
Total mortgage debt	136,767,000	141,008,000											31,000,000							5,551,000	17,307,000	425,000	11,491,000	548,000	15,531,000		464,000	1,604,000	7,605,000
Debt covenant terms, allowable deposit to prevent default															5,000,000
Deposit potentially required by lender for covenant noncompliance, percentage of unused line of credit															105.00%
Loan Amount Converted to Preferred Capital														10,500,000
Debt to adjusted capitalization ratio required for compliance															0.60
Debt covenant compliance, actual debt to adjusted capitalization ratio, actual															0.59
Debt service coverage ratio			1.82												1.75
Minimum net worth required for compliance															60,000,000
Actual net worth															60,400,000
Interest costs capitalized related to construction and real estate development costs	2,900,000	4,400,000
Amount outstanding				83,533,000	89,500,000	4,750,000	5,000,000	159,000								14,012,000	13,655,000	3,363,000	3,277,000
Interest rate					4.75%		6.00%	4.99%									3.70%		3.80%								8.00%		10.00%
Interest rate, minimum		6.00%																		3.90%		5.00%
Interest rate, maximum		6.50%																		4.50%		5.50%
Long-term Debt, Fiscal Year Maturity [Abstract]
2014	46,147,000
2015	13,745,000
2016	5,979,000
2017	70,397,000
2018	15,000
Thereafter	484,000
Total	$ 136,767,000