Commitments and Contingencies (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012
Guarantor Obligations [Line Items]
Number of non-cancelable ground leases	6
Total minimum lease commitments under land leases and operating leases for next five years	$ 1,600,000
Number of communities with indemnification agreements from third parties for potential environmental clean-up costs	3
Comprehensive liabilities insurance, deductible per incident	100,000
Property casualty insurance, deductible per incident	1,000,000
Loan and Construction Completion Guarantee [Member] | Construction Contracts [Member]
Guarantor Obligations [Line Items]
Mortgage loan, maturity date	Jul. 01, 2014
Debt instrument, number of extensions	2
Debt instrument, term of extensions options (in years)	1Y
Maximum exposure of the guarantee	79,100,000
Payment Guarantee [Member] | Total Return Swaps for Fountain at La Brea [Member]
Guarantor Obligations [Line Items]
Total return swaps, maturity date	Sep. 30, 2016
Payment Guarantee [Member] | Total Return Swaps for Santa Monica at La Brea [Member]
Guarantor Obligations [Line Items]
Total return swaps, maturity date	Dec. 31, 2016
Payment Guarantee [Member] | Total Return Swaps [Member]
Guarantor Obligations [Line Items]
Maximum exposure of the guarantee	$ 31,300,000