Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2018	Mar. 29, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018
Document And Entity Information
Entity Registrant Name	AMERICAN REALTY INVESTORS INC
Entity Central Index Key	0001102238
Document Type	10-K
Trading Symbol	ARL
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2018
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Season Issuer	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity's Reporting Status Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Non-accelerated Filer
Entity Public Float			$ 31,925,560
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		15,997,076
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2018
Entity Small Business	true
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Shell Company	false