How to Avoid Buying a Home That’s Haunted
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Listen at schwab.com slash washingtonwise.
It's Halloween, Tuesday, October 31st, and this is your Money Briefing.
How does the episode introduce the risk of moving into a haunted house?
I'm J.R. Whelan for The Wall Street Journal. So picture this. You're all settled in. It's the first night in your new home. Wait, what was that? I guess it was nothing. Right? There it is again. I think this house might be haunted. Shouldn't the seller have told me about that?
If you're purchasing a home and you're somebody who really doesn't want to live in a haunted house, if that's important to you, you should definitely ask directly.
Which states mention paranormal activity in real-estate rules and what do they say?
Make sure that the house is clear of any paranormal activity before you purchase.
We'll talk with WSJ contributor Erica Mailman about buying and selling haunted homes.
after the break.
It seems ghosts and spirits always seem to show up every year right around Halloween. But what if they pay regular visits to your home throughout the year? Should you tell a prospective buyer? Wall Street Journal contributor Erica Mailman joins me. So Erica, which states address the issue of homes possibly being haunted, and what do the rules say?
No states require any kind of disclosure about a possible haunting in the house, with the exception of New York, and we'll talk about that a little bit later.
Why should buyers directly ask sellers about paranormal activity before purchase?
But Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Minnesota are all states that mention the possibility of a house being haunted, but only to reiterate that there's no need to disclose.
Are those states sort of laying the groundwork for a situation where someone has identified the fact that their house could be haunted?
That would be the surmise. If you're purchasing a home and you're somebody who really doesn't want to live in a haunted house, if that's important to you, you should definitely ask directly.
What practical steps do people take to 'clear' paranormal activity before moving in?
And that's what the National Association of Realtors Associate Counsel Deanne Reimarowitz told me. You know, ask outright. If that's important to you, make sure that the house is clear of any paranormal activity before you purchase.
How would someone clear out paranormal activity?
I talked to some people who have taken a few precautions before moving in, and a few examples were having cleansing ceremonies just to make sure that any lingering bad energy or spirits remaining could be cleared out before the new owners take ownership.
What kinds of paranormal claims have homeowners reported in real cases?
What kind of paranormal activity have people claimed to exist?
There's been a ton of really interesting narratives that have arisen. Some of the really interesting ones were this couple in Oroville, California, felt that there was somebody lying in bed between them. There were easygoing things like French doors opening on their own. And then on the most extreme end, and in that same Oroville, California house, A woman returned home from a trip and felt like entities were attacking her, and she wasn't able to return to the house for two weeks.
Now, you mentioned New York State's rules a moment ago. What is it about New York that stands apart from the other states in this category?
So in New York, there's a beautiful Victorian on the edge of the Hudson. But when the Ackley family purchased it in 1967, it was decrepit and it had stood vacant for seven years. And so that family moved in and did experience, as they say, a lot of paranormal activity. And in fact, Mrs. Ackley wrote it up in a Reader's Digest article titled My Haunted Home on the Hudson. And that kind of started problems for her decades down the road after their kids had grown and they were selling the home because Jeffrey Stambovsky placed a down payment on the home in 1989. And when he learned that the house was said to be haunted, based on this Reader's Digest article, articles in the local newspaper, and also the fact that the house had been featured on a haunted walking tour article,
He pulled out. And a year later, he asked for his down payment back.
What was the New York 'Ghostbusters' legal case and how did it change disclosure rules?
And they said no. And he filed suit. And he lost. And then a year later, he appealed and then won. That is now known as the Ghostbusters case because Mr. Stambofsky said he would have never purchased the home or placed a down payment if he had known it was haunted.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–0:32
2
How does the episode introduce the risk of moving into a haunted house?
0:32–1:13
3
Which states mention paranormal activity in real-estate rules and what do they say?
1:13–2:31
4
Why should buyers directly ask sellers about paranormal activity before purchase?
2:31–3:03
5
What practical steps do people take to 'clear' paranormal activity before moving in?
3:03–3:38
6
What kinds of paranormal claims have homeowners reported in real cases?
3:38–5:23
7
What was the New York 'Ghostbusters' legal case and how did it change disclosure rules?
5:23–6:41
8
How can prospective buyers check a home's stigma and protect themselves from nondisclosure?
6:41–8:23
Speakers
3 identifiedMore from WSJ Your Money Briefing
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