UNAUDITED QUARTERLY FINANCIAL DATA (Consolidated Balance Sheets) (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Sep. 30, 2012	Sep. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Sep. 30, 2010	Jun. 30, 2010	Mar. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2009	Sep. 30, 2009
ASSETS
Cash	$ 19,393	$ 24,455	$ 28,553	$ 16,495	$ 14,530	$ 11,243	$ 9,164	$ 7,324	$ 8,409	$ 26,197
Restricted cash		20,257
Receivables from managed entities and related parties, net	34,418	52,117
Investments in real estate, net	19,149	19,942
Marketable Securities	7,030	2,732
Investments In Affiliates Subsidiaries Associates And Joint Ventures Excluding Advances	12,993	12,710
Total assets of consolidated VIE - RSO	727	944
Property and equipment, net	2,732	6,998
Total assets	2,644,263	2,636,985	2,499,477	2,289,368	2,143,064	234,253
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Due to Related Parties	4,349	1,010
Borrowings	21,343	214,054
Total liabilities of consolidated VIE - RSO	189	300	1,962,603	1,751,483
Total liabilities	1,907,007	2,108,287	1,962,603	1,751,483	1,603,461
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding	0	0	0	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively	294	281	281	281	274
Additional paid-in capital	285,844	281,686	281,372	280,906	282,062
Accumulated deficit	(25,857)	(49,054)	(44,892)	(43,805)	(34,298)
Treasury Stock, Value	(102,457)	(98,954)	(98,874)	(99,085)	(99,245)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(2,226)	(2,369)	(1,709)	(1,653)	(1,773)	(2,599)
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent	155,598	131,590	136,178	136,644	147,020
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest	737,256	528,698	536,874	537,885	539,603	461,193				140,141
Liabilities and Equity	2,644,263	2,636,985	2,499,477	2,289,368	2,143,064
Investments in commercial finance, net		192,012			0
Preferred stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 1.00	$ 1.00	$ 1.00	$ 1.00	$ 1.00	$ 1.00
Preferred stock, shares authorized (in shares)	1,000,000	1,000,000	1,000,000	1,000,000	1,000,000	1,000,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	0	0	0	0	0	0
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)	49,000,000	49,000,000	49,000,000	49,000,000	49,000,000	49,000,000
Common stock, shares issued (in shares)	29,866,664	28,779,998	28,760,970	28,740,931	28,171,720	28,167,909
Common stock restricted shares (in shares)	403,195	649,007	641,496	645,708	732,308	741,086
Treasury stock shares (in shares)	9,756,955	9,126,966	9,089,723	9,108,440	9,118,549	9,125,253
As Previously Reported [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	19,393	24,455	28,553	16,495	14,530	11,243
Total assets	196,743	422,506	393,205	374,404	233,174	234,253	234,253
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Total liabilities of consolidated VIE - RSO			229,993	215,760
Total liabilities	50,442	264,778			102,664	105,169	105,169
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding			0	0	0	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively			281	281	274	274	274
Additional paid-in capital			281,372	280,906	282,062	281,378	281,378
Accumulated deficit			(44,477)	(43,496)	(38,676)	(37,558)	(37,558)
Treasury Stock, Value			(98,874)	(99,085)	(99,245)	(99,330)	(99,330)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss			(11,940)	(11,504)	(10,431)	(12,807)	(12,807)
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent			126,362	127,102	133,984	131,957	131,957
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest			163,212	158,644	130,510	129,084	129,084
Liabilities and Equity			393,205	374,404	233,174	234,253	234,253
Restatement Adjustments - RSO [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total assets	2,478,251	2,284,724	2,170,242	1,972,634	1,937,635
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Total liabilities of consolidated VIE - RSO			1,736,978	1,539,254
Total liabilities	1,864,906	1,855,034			1,510,432
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding			0	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively			0	0	0
Additional paid-in capital			0	0	0
Accumulated deficit			0	0	0
Treasury Stock, Value			0	0	0
Accumulated other comprehensive loss			0	0	0
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent			0	0	0
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest			433,264	433,380	427,203
Liabilities and Equity			2,170,242	1,972,634	1,937,635
Restatement Adjustment - Elimination [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total assets	(30,731)	(70,245)	(63,970)	(57,670)	(27,745)
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Total liabilities of consolidated VIE - RSO			(4,368)	(3,531)
Total liabilities	(8,341)	(11,525)			(9,635)
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding			0	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively			0	0	0
Additional paid-in capital			0	0	0
Accumulated deficit			(415)	(309)	4,378
Treasury Stock, Value			0	0	0
Accumulated other comprehensive loss			10,231	9,851	8,658
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent			9,816	9,542	13,036
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest			(59,602)	(54,139)	(18,110)
Liabilities and Equity			(63,970)	(57,670)	(27,745)
RAI [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	19,393	24,455	28,553	16,495	14,530
Restricted cash	642	20,257	17,767	21,446	5,401
Receivables	3,554	1,981	1,115	1,138	622
Receivables from managed entities and related parties, net	34,418	52,117	54,485	57,833	60,401
Investments in real estate, net	19,149	19,942	18,307	28,555	28,502
Marketable Securities	7,030	2,732	3,159	3,332	3,678
Investments in unconsolidated loan manager (see Notes 1 and 9)	36,356	0	12,256	12,861
Investments In Affiliates Subsidiaries Associates And Joint Ventures Excluding Advances	12,993	12,710	12,256	12,861	14,387
Property and equipment, net	2,732	6,998	7,104	7,304	8,324
Deferred tax assets, net	27,770	43,915	39,784	39,989	36,625
Goodwill	0	7,969	7,969	7,969	7,969
Other assets	3,776	14,662	13,386	7,594	5,411
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	23,042	40,887	39,545	34,409	30,348
Due to Related Parties	4,349	1,010	0	136	184
Borrowings	21,343	214,054	188,128	178,938	63,701
Deferred Tax Liabilities, Net, Noncurrent			411	411	411
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively	294	281
Additional paid-in capital	285,844	281,686
Accumulated deficit	(25,857)	(49,054)
Treasury Stock, Value	(102,457)	(98,954)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(2,226)	(2,369)
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent	155,598	131,590
Noncontrolling interests	208	(1,269)	(870)	(335)	(3,474)
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest	737,256	528,698
Liabilities and Equity	2,644,263	2,636,985
Investments in commercial finance, net	0	192,012	164,977	145,961	22,286
RAI [Member] | As Previously Reported [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	19,393	24,455	28,553	16,495	14,530	11,243	11,243
Restricted cash	642	20,257	17,767	21,446	5,401	12,018	12,018
Receivables	3,554	1,981	1,115	1,138	622	1,671	1,671
Receivables from managed entities and related parties, net	41,051	54,815	56,946	59,498	62,016	66,416	66,416
Investments in real estate, net	19,149	19,942	17,331	27,547	27,462	27,114	27,114
Marketable Securities	22,532	15,124	18,635	19,469	21,716	22,358	22,358
Investments in unconsolidated loan manager (see Notes 1 and 9)	36,356		12,256	12,861
Investments In Affiliates Subsidiaries Associates And Joint Ventures Excluding Advances	12,993	12,710			14,387	13,825	13,825
Property and equipment, net	2,732	6,998	8,080	8,312	9,364	9,984	9,984
Deferred tax assets, net	34,565	51,581	46,190	46,114	42,010	43,703	43,703
Goodwill		7,969	7,969	7,969	7,969	7,969	7,969
Other assets	3,776	14,662	13,386	7,594	5,411	5,776	5,776
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	23,042	40,887	39,545	34,409	35,661	38,492	38,492
Due to Related Parties	4,380	1,232	204	297	952	156	156
Borrowings	23,020	222,659	189,833	180,643	65,640	66,110	66,110
Deferred Tax Liabilities, Net, Noncurrent			411	411	411	411	411
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively	294	281
Additional paid-in capital	285,844	281,686
Accumulated deficit	(24,508)	(48,032)
Treasury Stock, Value	(102,457)	(98,954)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(13,080)	(14,613)
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent	146,093	120,368
Noncontrolling interests	208	37,360	36,850	31,542	(3,474)	(2,873)	(2,873)
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest	146,301	157,728
Liabilities and Equity	196,743	422,506
Investments in commercial finance, net		192,012	164,977	145,961		12,176	12,176
RAI [Member] | Restatement Adjustments - RSO [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	0	0	0	0	0
Restricted cash	0	0	0	0	0
Receivables	0	0	0	0	0
Receivables from managed entities and related parties, net	0	0	0	0	0
Investments in real estate, net	0	0	0	0	0
Marketable Securities	0	0	0	0	0
Investments in unconsolidated loan manager (see Notes 1 and 9)	0		0	0
Investments In Affiliates Subsidiaries Associates And Joint Ventures Excluding Advances	0	0			0
Property and equipment, net	0	0	0	0	0
Deferred tax assets, net	0	0	0	0	0
Goodwill		0	0	0	0
Other assets	0	0	0	0	0
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	0	0	0	0	0
Due to Related Parties	0	0	0	0	0
Borrowings	0	0	0	0	0
Deferred Tax Liabilities, Net, Noncurrent			0	0	0
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively	0	0
Additional paid-in capital	0	0
Accumulated deficit	0	0
Treasury Stock, Value	0	0
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	0	0
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent	0	0
Noncontrolling interests	0	0	0	0	0
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest	613,345	429,690
Liabilities and Equity	2,478,251	2,284,724
Investments in commercial finance, net		0	0	0
RAI [Member] | Restatement Adjustment - Elimination [Member]
ASSETS
Cash	0	0	0	0	0
Restricted cash	0	0	0	0	0
Receivables	0	0	0	0	0
Receivables from managed entities and related parties, net	(6,633)	(2,698)	(2,461)	(1,665)	(1,615)
Investments in real estate, net		0	976	1,008	1,040
Marketable Securities	(15,502)	(12,392)	(15,476)	(16,137)	(18,038)
Investments in unconsolidated loan manager (see Notes 1 and 9)			0	0
Investments In Affiliates Subsidiaries Associates And Joint Ventures Excluding Advances		0			0
Property and equipment, net	0	0	(976)	(1,008)	(1,040)
Deferred tax assets, net	(6,795)	(7,666)	(6,406)	(6,125)	(5,385)
Goodwill		0	0	0	0
Other assets		0	0	0	0
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	0	0	0	0	(5,313)
Due to Related Parties	(31)	(222)	(204)	(161)	(768)
Borrowings	(1,677)	(8,605)	(1,705)	(1,705)	(1,939)
Deferred Tax Liabilities, Net, Noncurrent			0	0	0
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, $1.00 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; none outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par value, 49,000,000 shares authorized; 29,866,664 and 28,779,998 shares issued (including nonvested restricted stock of 403,195 and 649,007), respectively	0	0
Additional paid-in capital	0	0
Accumulated deficit	(1,349)	(1,022)
Treasury Stock, Value	0	0
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	10,854	12,244
Stockholders' Equity Attributable to Parent	9,505	11,222
Noncontrolling interests	0	(38,629)	(37,720)	(31,877)	0
Stockholders' Equity, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest	(22,390)	(58,720)
Liabilities and Equity	(30,731)	(70,245)
Investments in commercial finance, net		0	0	0
RSO [Member]
ASSETS
Marketable Securities	256,433	179,539	175,375	158,927	182,778
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Short-term Investments	179,390	185,922	177,412	235,795	221,138
Loans Receivable, Net	1,849,321	1,776,109	1,682,252	1,465,053	1,486,549
Real Estate Investments, Net	120,706	60,056	59,295	42,480	11,233
Other Assets	70,600	35,609	36,281	36,636	33,230
Total assets of consolidated VIE - RSO	2,476,450	2,237,235	2,130,615	1,938,891	1,934,928
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Borrowings	1,785,600	1,794,083	1,549,674	1,473,202	1,463,701
Other liabilities	72,673	58,253	184,845	64,387	45,116
Total liabilities of consolidated VIE - RSO	1,858,273	1,852,336
Total liabilities			1,734,519	1,537,589	1,508,817
Noncontrolling interests	581,450	398,377	401,566	401,576	396,057
RSO [Member] | As Previously Reported [Member]
ASSETS
Marketable Securities	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Short-term Investments	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Loans Receivable, Net	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Real Estate Investments, Net	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other Assets	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total assets of consolidated VIE - RSO	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Borrowings	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other liabilities	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total liabilities					0	0	0
Noncontrolling interests	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
RSO [Member] | Restatement Adjustments - RSO [Member]
ASSETS
Marketable Securities	256,433	179,539	211,649	190,069	182,778
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Short-term Investments	179,390	185,922	177,412	235,795	221,138
Loans Receivable, Net	1,850,998	1,784,714	1,683,957	1,466,758	1,488,488
Real Estate Investments, Net	120,799	98,906	59,295	42,480	11,233
Other Assets	70,631	35,643	37,929	37,532	33,998
Total assets of consolidated VIE - RSO	2,478,251	2,284,724	2,170,242	1,972,634	1,937,635
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Borrowings	1,785,600	1,794,083	1,549,674	1,473,202	1,463,701
Other liabilities	79,306	60,951	187,304	66,052	46,731
Total liabilities					1,510,432
Noncontrolling interests	613,345	429,690	433,264	433,380	427,203
RSO [Member] | Restatement Adjustment - Elimination [Member]
ASSETS
Marketable Securities	0	0	(36,274)	(31,142)	0
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Short-term Investments	0	0	0	0	0
Loans Receivable, Net	(1,677)	(8,605)	(1,705)	(1,705)	(1,939)
Real Estate Investments, Net	(93)	(38,850)	0	0	0
Other Assets	(31)	(34)	(1,648)	(896)	(768)
Total assets of consolidated VIE - RSO	(1,801)	(47,489)	(39,627)	(33,743)	(2,707)
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Borrowings	0	0	0	0	0
Other liabilities	(6,633)	(2,698)	(2,459)	(1,665)	(1,615)
Total liabilities					(1,615)
Noncontrolling interests	$ (31,895)	$ (31,313)	$ (31,698)	$ (31,804)	$ (31,146)