Broker who sold Bezos mansion was sued over discount

The former owner of a property on Indian Creek Island is demanding $6 million, which he conceded during the sale, not knowing that the buyer is billionaire Jeff Bezos

Co-founder of the Brazilian toy and electronics company Tectoy and former owner of a seaside mansion on Indian Creek Island (Miami-Dade County, Florida) Leo Criss sued the real estate brokerage company Douglas Elliman, writes The Wall Street Journal.

In May 2023, the brokerage company was engaged in a deal to sell the Criss mansion, as a result, the American billionaire, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, bought the property.

Initially, Criss put the mansion up for sale for $ 85 million, but representatives of Douglas Elliman convinced him to make a discount, making a deal for $ 79 million. At the same time, they denied that Bezos was the buyer and, according to Criss, misled him, the message clarifies.

The co-founder of Tectoy purchased a mansion on Indian Creek Island, which is known as the “bunker of billionaires,” in 2014 for $28 million. The mansion has seven bedrooms, a library, a wine cellar and a private pool. Bezos owns two more mansions on Indian Creek – he bought one for $68 million, and the second for $90 million.

Criss said that information about Bezos’ intentions to purchase real estate near his other properties would be “extremely significant” for the decision on the deal. Jeff Bezos has not yet given any comments on the case, the note says.

What is a “billionaire’s bunker”?

Indian Creek Island got its name because of its isolated location, as well as increased protection measures for its residents. In total, there are about 40 houses on the island, in which about 86 people live.

In August 2024, a house was put up for sale in Toronto for $1.39 million, in which the former American actress, and now the wife of British Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, lived. She rented this house until 2017. During this period, the actress starred in the TV series “Force Majeure” and began dating Prince Harry.

And in July of this year, American actress and singer Jennifer Lopez and her husband, American actor Ben Affleck, put up for sale their mansion in Beverly Hills (Los Angeles, California) for $68 million.

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