A/N: A shout out to SVUSHIPPER4EVER. You are much too kind. Thank you.
Chapter 30
The crowd at the auction was considerably smaller than the previous attempt. Elliot figured it was because people didn't want a piece of property that had had a dead body on it, especially when that body was a child. Those that had showed up mostly looked like developers. The piece of property could probably house a duplex and make good money as a rental property. They'd bulldoze the house and then wait a year before building something new, getting a tax break on the empty property, in the meantime.
"We don't stand a chance," Olivia shook her head. She wasn't wrong. They didn't have the money to compete with developers.
"Maybe if we set the bar high, they'll give up?" Elliot offered a weak attempt at comfort. He figured the developers would only give up way past the amount of financing they'd been able to acquire. They had no collateral but they did have good credit. Olivia was named as the person applying because she was a first home buyer and as a sergeant earned more money than her partner. Elliot being the co-signer helped given his depth of credit history and the fact that he was a veteran. Still the amount they could take out was only three hundred thousand dollars. The interest rates were low but the neighborhood was pricier than that.
"Ok folks we're going to start the bidding low. I'm sure you've all noticed we lost a lot of the folks who had showed interest in the property," the auctioneer announced from his spot in front of the home. He stood on the porch, which allowed him to see the crowd. There were about thirty people standing there but only ten people held the little signs with numbers to hold up, in order to indicate their bid.
"Let's open at fifty-thousand dollars. Do I have fifty-thousand?" Everyone stuck up their signs.
"Sixty-thousand," called out Olivia.
"Seventy-five," called out a man in an expensive suit.
"Eighty," called out a woman in a pantsuit.
"I have eighty thousand. Do I have eighty-five?" The auctioneer asked.
"Ninety," Olivia called out.
"Ninety-five," called out a different man from earlier.
"One hundred," Olivia challenged.
"One-twenty-five," a different woman called out. At that moment, the crowd grew silent. It wasn't that the amount was outrageous, but it seemed that a few weren't really willing to pay that much to then bulldoze the house later.
"One-fifty," Olivia hoped that some would drop out.
"One-seventy-five," the man in the expensive suit spoke up.
"Two-hundred," Olivia knew they were getting close to their limit, especially if they wanted to do all of those repairs to the home. However, a couple more people looked like they weren't willing to pay that much and stopped putting up their
"Two-twenty-five," the woman in the pantsuit wasn't ready to give up.
"Two-fifty," Olivia said. There was murmuring in the crowd.
"I have two-hundred and fifty thousand. Do I have two fifty-five?" The auctioneer asked.
"Two-fifty-five," the man in the expensive suit.
"Two-sixty," Olivia would have been biting her nails if she didn't have to be on her game.
"Two-sixty-five," the man in the expensive suit wasn't giving up.
"Two-seventy-five," Olivia wasn't ready to give in yet.
"I have two-hundred and seventy-five thousand. Do I have two eighty?" The auctioneer asked. There was a hesitation in the crowd. The whole point of the auction was to get the property cheaper than market value. They were fast approaching market value and it was making them think twice.
"Two-hundred and seventy-five thousand, going once," the auctioneer announced.
"Two-hundred and eighty," the man in the expensive suit was not giving up and Olivia looked at Elliot. He nodded.
"Two-hundred and ninety," Olivia swallowed hard.
"Two-hundred and ninety thousand, going once," the auctioneer announced.
"Going twice…" the door was still open, and the two partners held their breath.
"Sold to Sergeant Benson and Detective Stabler!" The auctioneer smiled. Elliot grabbed Olivia and swung her around before landing a kiss on her lips. They had paid a lot more than they had wanted but the house was theirs and now they could start moving their future forward.
"Did you investigate what happened here?" The man in the expensive suit asked.
"We did. We found the guy and he's going to jail," Elliot said.
"Good. Congratulations on getting the house. Hopefully you can bring some joy back to it," the man smiled and left.
"So what do we do now?" Olivia asked as she watched the man walk over to the auctioneer.
"Well we only have ten-thousand left for repairs so let's start with the roof and we'll take it from there. Maybe we can get a separate loan or financing through carpet and paint guys. I don't know we'll figure out," Elliot said.
"We always do," she smiled and kissed him again.
To Be Continued…
A/N: One chapter remains in our story. Thanks so much for reading!