Reborn in America, I am a legendary short seller on Wall Street.

Chapter 257 Purchase of an Additional Floor in the Tower

Larry had no idea about the assassination at the port or the subsequent call for help from Logan.

He doesn't need to know.

Larry has much more important things to do now.

On Tuesday afternoon, Larry arrived at the Dakota apartment and met with a man referred to as the "independent contractor." Thornton arranged a highly private meeting room for Larry to ensure their conversation would not be overheard by others.

Of course, this man was not like the stern "expert" from the mysterious organization Larry had seen in movies from later generations, but more like an ordinary construction and decoration contractor, with a mustache, short and stout, and small eyes that gleamed with intelligence.

However, after in-depth exchanges of ideas, the "independent contractor" naturally demonstrated its professionalism.

"So, you mean a separate armory, a safe room that can be used as a refuge, and a hidden vault location? All three of these ideas will be based on a fundamental concept that involves significant modifications to the building..."

The independent contractor simply explained to Larry the unique features of the Dakota condominium's structure, explaining that any modifications would inevitably be obstructed by the condominium management.

Larry's original plan was quite idealistic: to set up his own hidden vault and armory, along with a safe room. This should be considered a standard feature of the mansions of the wealthy in later generations.

But Dakota Apartments is still just an "apartment" at its core. Most people would just modify the size of the apartment and set up a basic vault. It's really very difficult for someone like Larry to undertake such a large-scale renovation.

After thorough communication between the two, the independent contractor still shook his head and refused.

“Sir, I understand your request. If this were your private residence, that would be perfectly acceptable, and we could even do that before you even build your house… But the apartment already has a basic layout. We can build a false wall or a hidden room for you, but large-scale projects like the one you just mentioned are still difficult to handle…”

Larry was somewhat disappointed. After all, he had been wanting to build his own "secret base" for a long time, and it seemed that to fully realize his dream, he would need his own private mansion. It was like Batman and Iron Man; they certainly wouldn't set up a secret workshop in an apartment building full of neighbors.

Larry thought for a moment, then reluctantly admitted defeat. He had originally intended to compromise and only make a hidden safe, but at that moment, the short, stout independent contractor winked and said...

"Sir! You bought the apartment on the 7th floor, wasn't it to take advantage of the tower block above? If it were in the tower block, we would have a lot more room for renovation!"

"A tower?" Larry paused, leaning forward to ask him humbly, "What kind of tower are you talking about?"

The short, stout contractor confirmed that Larry had indeed "bought" the 7th floor by accident, and then revealed more hidden secrets about the Dakota condominium.

The Dakota Apartments are not a single, large apartment building in the modern sense, but rather an architectural complex consisting of multiple towers, duplex spaces under steep Mansard roofs, and huge private terraces.

Above the main building's seven floors, there is a tower floor, above which lies a vast, complex, and spacious hidden space.

The tower features enormous skylights, the lead-framed glass skylights of these penthouse apartments installed on the roof's slope, bringing abundant, even north-facing natural light into the interior. This illuminates the tower's main hall and corridors, creating a cathedral-like atmosphere of sublimity, brightness, and privacy.

In addition, the most coveted asset of a penthouse is its private, wraparound terrace with stone railings, which can be hundreds of square meters in size.

Here, you can hold a completely private open-air dinner with a 360° panoramic view of Manhattan, Central Park, and the Hudson River.

"...The key is that the penthouse is located above all the neighbors, accessible only by a private staircase or elevator, free from noise disturbance from any upstairs neighbors—a true haven in the city..." The short, chubby man spoke with an alluring tone, laughing as he finished, before adding regretfully...

"Sir, when buying the 7th floor of the Dakota Apartments, everyone has their eyes on the tower floors above. These are the rooftops of the entire castle, and there are only four... and the southeast direction you are in is the best facing of these four tower floors."

Larry immediately became very interested in the tower floors above the apartment building, so he got up and summoned Thornton to ask him about them.

Edgar Thornton blinked, and after understanding why Larry had summoned him, he remained silent for a moment before nodding and speaking.
"Sir, the tower you mentioned is real, and... it can indeed be attached to the main living room space on the 7th floor, but..."

Mr. Thornton's voice held a rare hint of awe as he carefully chose his words, "But the top floor is a special case; it is currently jointly owned by the association and has never been formally sold. In fact, the board of directors of the Dakota Apartments considers it a... strategic reserve."

Even if you offer $300,000, the board might not approve the sale; it even involves ownership of the entire building's skyline and...something more symbolic.

Larry understood Thornton's meaning: this thing was not for sale at the moment, and it wasn't something that could be decided by money. It was more of a "comprehensive consideration" of money, status, and reputation. In other words, even among the top-tier wealthy people in New York who lived in the Dakota Apartments, one had to have a reputation and ability that surpassed their peers.

This goal is still a bit too much for Larry right now; he might need to achieve something even greater to unlock it. Realizing that this goal wouldn't be easy to achieve, Larry fell silent for a moment.

“However…” Thornton said in a low voice, “There is indeed a separate duplex space on the east tower floor, about half the size of your apartment. Of course, it can’t compare to a full penthouse, but its duplex balcony offers a superb view. If you can buy it, you can certainly combine the upper and lower spaces. If that’s the case, I can sound out… what the key directors think.”

Larry was confused. Wasn't he just talking about a tower floor on the seventh floor? How did this "independent duplex space" come up? What exactly is this tower floor?
Seeing that he didn't quite understand what he meant, Thornton took the key from the vault and led the two of them through the east side of the space, taking the elevator directly to the 7th floor.

There are two separate rooms, 7A and 7B, in the 7th floor corridor, but behind a hidden steel door in the corridor, there is a small staircase leading to a higher level.

Thornton went up to the top floor, opened the iron door to the upper floor, and beckoned the two men to come over.

Larry stepped into this "independent duplex space" first. It turned out that this place was equivalent to seven and a half floors, with half of it being an indoor space and the other half an open-air balcony. There was no glass dome like that of a church as rumored. It was just like a duplex with an additional large balcony of about 7 square meters.

The huge space here has not been formally divided into functional areas. It is a very large open space of 200 square meters, but there are also several huge load-bearing columns in the middle of the building.

If the owner purchases this duplex unit in the tower, he can divide the functional areas himself and plan his second-floor space from scratch.

Larry stood on the empty balcony, looking around. He could see Central Park from here, and the view was quite good.

Mr. Thornton explained, “Dear Mr. Livingston, the ceiling height here is slightly lower than your 7th floor, but it can still serve as a quiet study, and it comes with a large balcony overlooking Central Park. While it can’t compare to the penthouse and its attached tower floors, it’s still quite nice!”

Larry turned to look at the short, stout independent contractor, who was also looking around cluelessly. He instantly realized that Larry had only heard about it before, not that he actually knew the real secret of the Dakota Apartments.

"Could you please describe the penthouse and tower floors you mentioned?" Larry asked.

Mr. Thornton also realized that Larry and the independent contractor had confused the penthouse with the tower floors, and so he continued to explain,

Dakota apartments typically have seven floors, with a separate duplex space above the seventh floor. This is considered a "duplex" that only the seventh floor can enjoy in all four directions. If you buy it, you can also go directly from the main apartment on the seventh floor to this duplex space on the seventh and a half floors.

However, the penthouse is not the concept the independent contractor just mentioned. Instead, it is the top floor of the four castle-like buildings of the Dakota Apartments, which are the 8th and 9th floors, but there are only one, not four.

In other words, only this "penthouse" has that church-sized glass dome room and a top-notch private open-air balcony overlooking the entire Manhattan peninsula in New York.

This is the only one!
Upon hearing this, Larry turned to look at the independent contractor. It turned out that he had spread misinformation, confusing the penthouse with the "7-story" duplex spaces in the four towers.

The penthouse at Dakota Apartments is still not for sale. It is over a thousand square meters and is indeed as spacious and bright as a church built on top of the apartment building.

No wonder Thornton just said that buying that place requires more than just money. After all, to stand above everyone at Dakota Apartments, one must have a comprehensive position that all the "shareholders" (residents) can trust.

Larry realized this instantly. However, he hadn't actually considered the penthouse yet; he was only interested in this seven-and-a-half-story "duplex." Since he was quite satisfied with what he'd seen, Larry then asked...
"Mr. Thornton, how much did the duplex and balcony cost in total?"

Thornton looked slightly troubled and continued, "About $5... As I just mentioned, the area is estimated to be only half the size of yours. Of course, the balcony doesn't count as part of the area. But you could build a passageway directly from the 7th floor to here, which would make a private library or cigar room. However, please allow me to discuss this with the board members."

$5 is indeed a bit expensive, considering that the 7A is priced at $9.

However, Larry thought again and realized that if he had this duplex space, all the secret rooms he had envisioned would be available... Besides, $5 wasn't much for Larry right now... The stock market would foot the bill anyway.

“Alright, I can finalize my purchase of this duplex tower floor. You can apply to the board members. As long as it's the fixed price at Dakota Apartments, $50,000 it is!” Larry made his decision.

Mr. Thornton nodded. “Mr. Livingston, I’ll give you a definite answer by the weekend.”

The short, stout independent contractor smiled and said, “If you can successfully purchase this space, we will take care of building all the ‘special rooms’ you need in this vast space, sir.”

After the three finished their discussion and were about to leave, Larry stood at the entrance of the "seven and a half" duplex space and looked up at the ceiling.

At this moment, he could hardly imagine what the so-called "luxury of Marriott" penthouse would look like, but if one day he could really own that penthouse, wouldn't that be considered a significant milestone in his life?
(End of this chapter)