The Property Brokers by Sandi Lynn
Chapter 21
Bella
As Grant and I were in the middle of what was about to become a heated discussion, my phone rang.
“Hey, Ricky,” I answered and put it on speaker.
“Hi, Bella. My client wants to make an offer.”
“Music to my ears. What are they offering?”
“$4.2 million. That’s their best and final offer.”
I let out a roaring laugh.
“You’re kidding, right? That’s a million under asking price.”
“They want to do some remodeling.”
“That is not my seller’s problem, and he shouldn’t take a hit on the asking price because your clients want to remodel.”
“They love the apartment and the location, but they feel the apartment is choppy and they want to knock out some walls to open it up. Plus, they want to replace a lot of the fixtures and redo the bathrooms. And you know as well as I do, Bella, it’s overpriced.”
“Actually, it’s a fair price for today’s market. Let me give my client a call and tell him the offer. I’ll call you back.”
I took in a long deep breath before dialing my client’s number and putting it on speaker.
“Bella. What’s up?”
“Hi, Tim. I have an offer for you.”
“And?” he asked.
“$4.3 best and final offer.”
“That’s an insult, Bella, and you know it. Why the hell would you even present that to me?”
“Because I have to.”
“$5.2 and not a penny less. Don’t waste my time again.”
“I’ll try not to, Tim. Have a great day.”
I looked over at Grant who was staring at me.
“What?”
“Nothing.” The corners of his mouth curved upward.
Rolling my eyes, I called Ricky.
“Hey, Bella.”
“My client came back with a firm $5.2 million and not a penny less.”
“My clients won’t do it. They were very adamant.”
“Okay then. I have another property I’d love for your clients to see. It’s only a few blocks from the other place. Give them a call and let me know what time. But you have to act fast because I already have someone interested.”
“I’ll give them a call now and I’ll text you.”
“Thanks, Ricky. Talk to you soon.”
“What are you showing them?” I heard Grant ask.
Turning around, I gave him a smile.
“One of the apartments at West 21.”
“Isn’t that out of their price range? They already offered a million less for the other apartment, and you are not to sell below asking price on any of the West 21 building. I want to make that very clear.”
“Yes, sir!” I saluted him and he shot me a dirty look.
“You’re wasting your time when you could be finding buyers who are in the price range.”
My phone dinged with a text message. When I looked at it, Ricky said he and his client could meet me in a half hour. Sending him the address of the building, I grabbed my purse and walked over to Grant’s desk.
“You don’t tell me how to do my job, and I won’t tell you how to do yours. Deal?”
“I mean it, Bella,” he spoke in an authoritative tone.
I stared into his sexy brown eyes. He was even hotter when he was angry.
“I need the building key.” I held out my hand.
His eyes narrowed at me for a minute before he stood up and put his phone in the pocket of his dress pants.
“I’m coming with you.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because I have the key and I can. Good enough reason?”
“Whatever.” I sighed as I walked out of his office.
We climbed into the back of my car and Samuel gave me a smile.
“Where to, gorgeous.”
“The West 21 building in Chelsea,” I answered.
The ride to Chelsea was silent as Grant focused on his phone. The fact that he insisted he come, irritated me. All he had to do was give me the key. When Samuel pulled up to the curb, Grant and I climbed out and headed inside the building where we stood in the beautifully modernized lobby and waited for Ricky and his client.
“Hey, Bella. Grant,” Ricky spoke as he extended his hand to us, and we greeted him.
“Mr. & Mrs. Mathers. It’s good to see you again.” I smiled. “This is Grant Roman, my boss. If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you one of the apartments.”
“Is this building empty?” Mr. Mathers asked as he looked around the lobby.
“For now, it is. The building was just renovated, but we have a huge waitlist. People are banging down the door to get in here. Now, I know you and Mrs. Mathers won’t settle for anything less than the fifth floor and up. And the last apartment you looked was on the tenth floor, so, I want to show you Apartment 10A through the private key-locked elevator.” I grinned as I gestured for them to step inside. “That’s right. Your own elevator to your apartment.”
When the door opened, the five of us stepped into the thirty-five-foot-long foyer.
“This is the foyer/gallery. It’s a perfect spot to place a collection of artwork, a collage of photos, or anything you want. But here’s where the real magic begins,” I said as we stepped into the great room.
“Wow. Look at this space,” Mrs. Mathers said as her eyes lit up.
“Right?” I smiled. “It’s an open floor plan like you wanted. You have 3,016 square feet of open space throughout with an outdoor terrace of approximately eight hundred square feet.”
“The one we were interested in is 3,100 square feet,” Mr. Mathers spoke.
“You’re right. But it didn’t have an eight hundred square foot outdoor space.”
“What’s the price of this apartment?” Mr. Mathers asked.
$5.995 million.”
“That’s more than the other apartment,” Mrs. Mathers spoke.
“Isn’t your time and peace worth it?” I asked. “You offered $4.2 million because you want to remodel. Let’s be realistic here for a moment. You said you needed to be out of your apartment within sixty days. A remodel of any apartment could take up to a year. Do you really want to deal with all that disruption? Not to mention the dust everywhere. But this. This is a brand-new space no one has ever lived in before. It’s an open floor plan like you really want, a chef’s kitchen with top-of-the-line appliances, plus that amazing terrace which is great for entertaining. You could go out there in the morning and enjoy your coffee as the sun rises, put down a mat and do some yoga or meditating, or simply enjoy a nice glass of wine and stare out a the brightly lit city at night.”
“I do love this space,” Mrs. Mathers said. “And the master bedroom is huge.”
“Oh, and don’t forget the private elevator,” I said. “The other apartment didn’t have that. Plus, all the bedrooms are tucked away down the hall at the other end of the apartment for complete privacy.”
“When will it be ready for move in?” Mr. Mathers asked.
“Thirty days,” Grant spoke.
“I’m not thrilled with the view,” Mr. Mathers said. “I like the views of the other apartment better.”
“Well, you’re not getting that apartment unless you accept it for $5.2 million. This apartment has a great view and exceptional lighting during the day. It truly is a gem. But…Mr. Mathers, I know you’re a view kind of guy and I must show you the view from one of the other apartments. I’d hate for you to miss out on seeing it.”
“In this building?” Mr. Mathers asked.
“Yes.” I smiled as I looked at Grant and mouthed ‘Penthouse A.’
He stared at me for a moment and slowly shook his head.
“Why are you wasting both our time?” he whispered.
“You’re the one who wanted to come. Now let me do my job.”
We took the private elevator up to Penthouse A. The moment we stepped into the grand foyer, I took note of the look on Mrs. Mathers’s face.
“If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you that amazing view I was talking about.”
I led them through to the living room and over to the panoramic view of the Hudson River, visible through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
“Wow.” The corners of his mouth curved upward as he tucked his hands in his pants pockets.
“Right? It’s so special. I just wanted you to see it. I have a place in Tribeca with a view of the Hudson and I can’t even tell you how much peace it brings me every time I look out my window.”
“What’s the square footage of this place?” Mrs. Mathers asked.
“Four thousand one hundred and sixty square feet. It’s gorgeous. Isn’t it?”
“I’m obsessed with this kitchen.”
“Anyway, I just wanted to show you the amazing view from up here. We can go back down to the other apartment if you want to take one more look at it,” I spoke as I headed towards the elevator.”
“Wait. I want to see the rest of this apartment,” Mrs. Mathers said.
I stopped and looked at her.
“Oh. I apologize. Go ahead and have a look.” The corners of my mouth curved upward. “The view from the primary bedroom is just as spectacular. Imagine lying in bed at night after a long and busy day with that view staring back at you. Ugh. Such peace and tranquility.”
Grant looked at me and rolled his eyes.
Pulling out my phone, I sent a text message to Samuel.
“Call me.”
A moment later, my phone rang.
“Bella Marcus. Hi Samuel—” I paused. “That’s great. I’m showing the penthouse right now to another client. What time does your client want to come see it tomorrow? Excellent. I’ll see you at nine a.m.,” I spoke in front of the Mathers. I ended the call and placed my phone back inside my purse. “This penthouse is already getting a lot of attention.” I grinned.
“How much?” Mr. Mathers asked.
“For what?” I played dumb.
“This penthouse.”
“This penthouse is listed for $11.5 million. Did you want to go back down to the other apartment and take another look before we head out?”
“No. We’ve seen enough.”
The five of us stepped into the elevator and went down to the lobby.
“Thank you for showing us the apartments. We’ll talk it over and have Ricky get in touch with you,” Mr. Mathers said as he shook my hand.
“You’re welcome. Enjoy the rest of your day.”
“I see what you did there.” Grant’s lips gave way to a smirk.
“What did I do?”
“You planted the seed and created an urgency. Who called you?”
“Samuel.” I grinned.
“Well played. But I still think showing them the penthouse was a waste of time.
“Maybe. Maybe not,” I said as Grant locked up the building and we climbed in the back of the car.
An hour later as I was sitting at my desk going over some things with Cody, my phone rang. I answered it and put it on speaker.
“Hey, Ricky.”
“Bella, my clients would like to present an offer.”
“That was fast. So, they fell in love with apartment 10A? I knew they would.”
“Um. No. They want to purchase the penthouse for $11.5 million. Cash deal and occupancy in thirty days.”
“Shut up, Ricky! Wow. I’m in a little bit of shock right now,” I said as I stood from my chair and did a little dance of excitement. I looked over at Grant who sat there with a shocked expression splayed across his face.
“You and me both. But somehow, I think you knew they’d want it, and that’s why you took them up there. Anyway, send the paperwork over ASAP so we can close this deal.”
“I will. Thanks, Ricky.”
“No. Thank you, Bella. You’re going to be hearing a lot more from me.”
“Hey, before we hang up, how did they go from a budget of five million to eleven million?”
“They were going to also buy a condo in Miami and decided to forgo that and put the money towards the penthouse instead.”
“That’s great, Ricky. I’ll be in touch.”
“Unbelievable.” Grant grinned. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” I smiled as I took a bow.
