Jeff Bezos hid his identity to buy a mansion at a discount

It has been revealed through documents that the founder of Amazon hid his identity while negotiating the price of a seven-bedroom home on Miami's Indian Creek island, known as a “billionaire bunker.” By concealing his identity, Bezos secured a 6 million dollar discount. While this discount may be a small sum for Bezos, who has a fortune of 190 billion dollars, Leo Kryss, a co-founder of the Brazilian toy and electronics company Tectoy, did not take kindly to the alleged deception.

According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, Kryss is suing Douglas Elliman, the real estate brokerage that handled both sides of the transaction, claiming that he could have sold his home at full price had he known that Bezos was the buyer.

Kryss had listed his home, which features a wine cellar, library, and theater, for 85 million dollars in May 2023. When an offer for the house came shortly after Bezos paid 68 million dollars for the property next door, Kryss suspected that the billionaire was behind the offer. However, a Douglas Elliman employee assured Kryss over the phone that this was not the case, adding that the buyer would not pay more than 79 million dollars for the property. Kryss accepted the deal, but later learned that he had actually sold his home to an entity linked to Bezos.

In the lawsuit filed in Miami, Kryss claims that knowing Bezos's identity would have been “extremely important to his negotiations and decision regarding the final sale price.” Kryss's attorney, Dana Clayton, stated:

'THE ULTIMATE BENEFICIAL OWNER SHOULD HAVE KNOWN WHO THE BUYER WAS'

“Douglas Elliman failed to fulfill their duties to our client. They knew or should have known who the ultimate beneficial owner buyer was, and they misrepresented this crucial fact to our client.”

It is not unusual for the super-wealthy to keep their names secret when making an offer on a property, out of concern that the asking price will be raised. Indian Creek is a private village located on a man-made island in Miami's Biscayne Bay. It was named the most expensive neighborhood in the US in 2001. Residents of the area include Tom Brady, David Guetta, and Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner. The 300-acre island contains 41 lots surrounding the prestigious Indian Creek golf club.

News Source: 12punto