Acknowledgement sections customarily contain expressions of gratitude to those who helped the author write the book. These expressions are more warranted here than is ordinarily the case. As the book itself will make clear, I did not depend as heavily as is typical on traditional doctrinal legal resources, such as cases, statutes, and treatises. This is true for the simple reason that sources such as these are only beginning to be written in the field of Chinese real estate law. My research instead relies extensively on interviews with dozens of Chinese and Western experts on Chinese real estate law. Without their kindness, generosity, and willingness to speak to an inquisitive stranger, I could not have written this book. Nearly everyone I met was willing to share their views on the Chinese real estate business and Chinese real estate law. They were quite forthright and generally were more than willing to offer criticisms of Chinese law, government, and business practices. Sadly, I cannot thank many of these people by name. In some cases, the people I interviewed expressly asked that I not identify them. Others indicated that I could do so, but I have opted to disregard this suggestion. Rather than naming these people individually, I want to express my deepest thanks to the many people who met with me and shared their insights in an environment in which doing so may create considerable personal and professional risk. This group also includes people who provided me with introductions to other experts and Chinese friends who were willing to serve as translators. Fortunately, there are others who supported me in various ways to whom I can offer my thanks more personally. The University of Tennessee and its College of Law have been enormously supportive of my teaching and research in China. Deans Tom Galligan, John Sobieski, and Doug Blaze provided moral and financial support. My work was also supported by the W. Allen Separk Faculty Scholarship Fund and the Ben R. Winick Legal Research Fund. My law school colleagues provided many useful suggestions at a series of faculty forums, as did colleagues from the Southeastern Association of Law Schools at its annual meeting in Palm Beach, Florida; the Asian Real Estate Society at its annual meeting in Macau; the University of Missouri; and the Association for Law, Property, and Society, jointly sponsored by the law schools at Georgetown and Syracuse Universities, at its annual meeting at Georgetown Law School.