Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 156

Mr. Yoon swallowed hard.

‘Alright. I need to save myself first.’

In fact, for the past two months, Mr. Yoon was very nervous and worried.

The emergency committee members with apartment units had agreed not to list their properties for under a billion won.

But during those two weeks, not a single person even showed interest in buying.

It wasn’t as if he had only listed with one or two real estate agencies.

He could have saved money by using only one real estate agent, but that didn’t matter now.

The most important thing was to sell before the lawsuit concluded.

Therefore, he had listed the property with every real estate agency handling Cheongdam Seonyeong’s listings, but for two weeks, he hadn’t received a single call.

So, Mr. Yoon broke the agreed-upon unwritten rule and lowered the price to the mid-900 million range.

And that’s how the contract was made.

He felt a little guilty about deceiving someone into buying a membership right that would soon be lost in the lawsuit, but it was only for a moment.

‘I feel bad for the young fellow, but… if he has this much money at that age, he must be a celebrity or from a wealthy family. None of my business.’

Mr. Yoon had been anxious and on edge until this morning, worried that the buyer might change his mind.

He would feel nervous until he signed the contract.

If he could just sign the contract today, he felt like a decade-old burden would be lifted.

“Alright, have you reviewed the contract?”

“Yes. I’ve read most of it.”

“You’re looking at it thoroughly for a young man, I see.”

“It’s a large sum of money changing hands; I need to be precise.”

“What’s so special about a real estate contract? Haha. They’re all the same.”

Therefore, Mr. Yoon didn’t like the buyer taking his time to review the contract.

He just wanted to get the sign on it quickly and leave this place.

‘Just read it roughly and sign it. Why is this young guy so suspicious?’

But when the buyer read the last page of the contract, Yoon’s impatience had no choice but to turn into embarrassment.

“Ah, but you see, Mr. Yoon.”

The buyer, who suddenly called him, mentioned something he hadn’t expected.

“Yes…? Please, go on.”

“Here, looking at the final payment date… it’s set for two weeks from now…”

“Oh… is it?”

“This is too tight of a schedule.”

“Oh really?”

Cold sweat ran down Mr. Yoon’s spine.

“I need to sell another property to make the final payment… Could we possibly set the final payment date for after April?”

“……!”

In fact, having the final payment date set for just two weeks was an incredibly short time even in a typical real estate contract.

Generally, it was common to allow a month for the interim payment and another month for the final payment.

But because the other party was young, Mr. Yoon hadn’t anticipated any issues with this aspect.

So, he was momentarily speechless.

Woojin, who glanced at Mr. Yoon unable to answer, turned his gaze to the real estate agent next to him this time.

“Usually, when making these kinds of deals, isn’t about three months given for the final payment? Isn’t that right, Mr. Agent?”

The target of Woojin’s question was the real estate agent on the seller’s side.

Caught off guard by the unexpected question, he nodded with an awkward expression.

“W-well, that’s usually the case. Actually, the seller needs the money urgently, so they’re selling it as a quick sale…”

Mr. Yoon, who had been looking dazed for a moment, re-entered the conversation.

“I really need the money by March… Is there no way, Mr. CEO?”

At Mr. Yoon’s words, Woojin made a troubled expression.

“Ah… It seems like there’s not much of March left…”

And he opened his smartphone, checked something, and paused for a moment in thought.

In fact, he had turned on the calendar on his smartphone, but he wasn’t looking at any schedule or anything.

He was merely pretending to check the sales schedule to make the other party anxious.

But Woojin’s contemplation wasn’t an act.

Right now, Woojin’s mind was racing.

‘Alright, good start.’

The target purchase price was 910 million won.

He needed to create the most perfect plan to lower the price of this property to that amount.

Woojin was in control, so he didn’t need to hurry.

After Woojin stopped speaking, silence flowed with tension.

Woojin, who closed his smartphone, slowly opened his mouth again.

“Actually, when trying to make a real estate transaction, not many people buy with all cash, right?”

“T-that’s right.”

“The cash I can secure right now is less than 200 million won.”

“……”

“I was planning to buy it with the money from selling another property, but it seems like that won’t happen until May.”

This apartment, listed for 960 million, currently has a lease of 590 million won.

So, based on the current price, Woojin needs 370 million won in cash to purchase it.

Including taxes for buying and owning property, he needs about 400 million won, making it impossible to buy with the cash he currently has.

Woojin was explaining this.

In simple terms, he was saying, ‘I don’t have the money to buy it right now, so what are you going to do about it?’

“W-what should we do…”

Mr. Yoon unconsciously let out a groan.

His mouth began to dry out, and his mind became even more complicated.

But no matter how complicated Mr. Yoon’s mind was, Woojin could see right through it.

In fact, this entire situation was unfolding according to Woojin’s script.

‘If this guy’s brain is working properly… he’ll probably agree to postpone the final payment and ask for all 200 million won before March, right?’

If he receives about 200 million won first, it would be impossible to provide double the deposit as compensation even if he loses the lawsuit.

To break the contract, he would legally have to compensate double the amount, which was 400 million won.

Rather than compensating that much money, it would be better to just take the loss and buy the apartment.

After pretending to think for a moment, Mr. Yoon said exactly what Woojin expected.

“Then, Mr. CEO.”

“Yes, please speak.”

“The money I urgently need seems to be resolved with the 200 million won that you said you could secure, right?”

“Is that so?”

Mr. Yoon nodded and spoke again.

“Yes. If you deposit 200 million won as a contract deposit and interim payment within March, would you be willing to postpone the remaining final payment to April or May? What do you think?”

Because the situation was progressing exactly as expected, Woojin barely managed to hold back the laughter that was about to burst out.

‘I’m glad he’s not too stupid.’

Now it was Woojin’s turn to act again.

He felt like the destination was right in front of him.

“Ha… Do I really have to go that far…”

As Woojin sighed deeply, Mr. Yoon asked with a puzzled expression.

“Didn’t you say you had about 200 million won right now?”

Woojin slowly shook his head and replied.

“The cash in my account is only enough for the 10% contract deposit.”

“Yes? Then the 200 million won is…”

“The 200 million is the most I can get, even with loans.”

Woo-jin frowned slightly and bit his lower lip. Yoon’s face showed his worry again.

For Yoon, this felt like begging Woo-jin to borrow money to buy the property.

‘Damn it, what should I say?’ Yoon wondered.

If there were many buyers and Yoon was in a stronger position, it wouldn’t matter.

He could just say, ‘Buy it or leave it.’

But now, Woo-jin had all the advantages.

Yoon felt that if Woo-jin didn’t buy the property, no one else would.

He couldn’t even keep the property; he had to sell.

So, in that brief moment when Woo-jin paused, Yoon felt desperate.

His hope soon turned to despair.

Woo-jin looked very sorry, but he was about to say the worst thing possible.

“I’m really sorry, Mr. Yoon.”

“No, what do you mean all of a sudden…?”

“Actually, I thought a lot before deciding to buy.”

“What were you worried about?”

“As you know, there are rumors that the association will lose the lawsuit… Even if I buy it cheap, I’m still scared to buy it.”

“Ah… Well, the association president said that would never happen…”

Woo-jin interrupted Yoon.

“If you had to take out a loan and rush the deal like this, what would you do, Mr. Yoon?”

Yoon didn’t know what to say.

Even Yoon knew that if he were Woo-jin, he would give up on the deal.

“Ah….”

Woo-jin delivered the final blow.

“No matter how I think about it, I think it’s right to just give up.”

“……!”

“I’m really sorry, Mr. President.”

Woo-jin stood up quickly. He acted like he had nothing more to say.

Even if Yoon didn’t stop him, it wouldn’t matter.

If no other buyer came, Yoon would have to call Woo-jin again.

Of course, it was unlikely Yoon wouldn’t stop him, but still, Woo-jin was confident.

“W-wait! Mr. President!”

“Yes?”

“W-what if I lowered the price more?”

“Hmm…?”

“You said you need a loan for 200 million, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Well, you’ll have to pay interest and everything… How about I take off another ten million won?”

Woo-jin looked Yoon in the eyes, trying hard not to laugh.

The game was almost over.

“I was really surprised, Mr. President.”

“Yes?”

“I didn’t know you could negotiate it down to the low 900 million range….”

“Haha, I stopped myself from cutting it down even more.”

“……”

“After all, that guy had no choice but to sell.”

After the deal was done, Woo-jin went back to Cheongdam Real Estate and had tea with Mr. Kim.

He had time before his next meeting. He also liked how careful and fast Mr. Kim worked.

Woo-jin thought working with Mr. Kim on the other deals would be easier. So, he wanted to get to know him better.

Mr. Kim also wanted to build a relationship, so they were talking in a friendly way.

“But really, how many more properties are you planning to buy?”

“Yes. Actually, I’m planning to buy everything that becomes available.”

“Huh….”

“Why?”

“I’m envious of your money, but… your execution is really amazing.”

“Is that so?”

“Actually, isn’t it a scary situation no matter how sure you are?”

“You’re talking about the lawsuit, right?”

“Yes. Even if I had the money, I don’t think I could do what you did, Mr. President.”

“Hahaha.”

“I guess money is made by those who earn it.”

As they talked, Woo-jin realized Mr. Kim was a good person.

He didn’t seem fake, and he was professional.

So, Woo-jin told him something he hadn’t mentioned.

Woo-jin leaned forward slightly. “Mr. Kim,” he said, lowering his voice a little, “do I look familiar to you at all?”

Mr. Kim looked at him closely, tilting his head. “Hmm? Should I know you?” he asked, a little confused.

Woo-jin thought that at least one real estate agent or seller might recognize him.

It had been a while since Woo-jin had been on TV, and he had cut his hair short because he didn’t want people recognizing him.

Woo-jin remembered presenting at the construction company meeting. He thought people from Seonyeong Apartment might recognize him from that day.

Of course, it didn’t matter if anyone recognized him.

He could just act innocent and say he wanted to live in a house he designed and built himself.

But no one recognized Woo-jin, so he wanted to tell Mr. Kim.

“At the construction company selection meeting, I presented the design plan for Chunwoong Construction….”

“Yes……?!”

Woo-jin took out his business card.

“Seo Woo-jin, CEO of WJ Studio. I’m a little disappointed you don’t recognize me.”

Cheongdam-dong is a great location to watch for long-term investment.

Just like he made friends with someone in Munjeong-dong, he wanted to build a long-term relationship with Mr. Kim.

‘The Cheongdam president is also a Kim,’ Woo-jin thought.

Mr. Kim looked surprised.

“Ah, that……! Now that you mention it……!”

Woo-jin smiled.

“Haha. I’m glad you recognize me now.”

“You should have said so earlier! You’re really amazing……!”

Woo-jin finished talking with Mr. Kim, left Cheongdam-dong, and went back to the WJ Studio office.

Seongsu-dong was right across the Yeongdong Bridge from Cheongdam, so he got to the office quickly.

Woo-jin arrived at the office, got a can of milk from the vending machine, and went to his office feeling good.

‘Good. It seems like the first step went well….’ he thought.

Today went smoothly, but now the real work begins.

Since he told Mr. Kim, the news will spread among the real estate agents.

Then, the people who aren’t on the committee who were holding out will struggle to sell their properties.

‘Two weeks. No, I might be able to buy them all in a week,’ he thought.

The third and fourth weeks of March passed quickly.

When April 1st came, there were seven contracts in the safe of the WJ Studio CEO’s office.

Golden Print