Does Donald Trump Jr. share his dad's bad timing?

Last month I wrote about the Clown Prince of Nepotism Donald Trump Jr.'s grandiose announcement of plans to raise $1 billion to invest in India's booming real estate market.

Now BusinessWeek's HotProperty column is expressing some skepticism. After noting that Trump got the idea back in November after speaking at a real estate conference in Mumbai, Prashant Gopal notes that "The market has changed quite a bit since then. Inflation and interest rates are climbing and shares of Indian builders, home price appreciation, and demand for land are slowing. [...] Of course, this might be a good time to jump in and pick up land at distressed-sale prices. But he will be competing against established players."

Still: the fact that Trump Jr. appears to have struck upon this idea at the height of the market is indicative of something.

But I wouldn't worry too much: the "announcement" of a $1 billion fund struck me as a more of grandiose publicity ploy/plea for credibility from a reality TV bit-player than a ground floor opportunity to get in with real estate development's next big star. I'll believe otherwise when Trump announces he's raised the money, and I won't be holding my breath.