Would you move into a house where a murder or suicide took place in?

[NJmaverick]

Why or why not?

[Arkansas Granny]

1. No, I don't think I would. I would always be aware of the violence, sadness and pain connected

to the residence because of what happened there.

[City of Mills]

2. Interesting question

I'm looking to buy a home, and one that came up for sale was the site of a murder a year earlier...the property was listed at a great price (well below it's value) but I have to say I wasn't interested in a showing due to what had happened there...

[NJmaverick]

8. How much cheaper was it?

[City of Mills]

28. Well

At the time, similar homes were selling for around $180-190K. This one was for sale at $149K. I don't know if it ever sold or not; maybe an investor picked it up? All I know is sometime after I saw "For Rent" signs on it.

[Tobin S.]

3. I like to think that I'm not a superstitious person

But I might be superstitious enough to steer clear of a house like that.

[ZombieHorde]

4. There is going to be a murder after I move in, why not before? nt

[poiuytsister]

5. This is a good question, my house was built in 1896 or so,

and I am sure that stuff has happened here in the last 113 years. The only thing I know about for sure is a man who lived here a child told me that he had been born on the dining room table. I told him "gee Paul, I will never have another dinner party that I don't think of you!"

[Curtland1015]

6. If the price is right, why not?

I don't believe in ghosts, and you'd certainly have interesting stories to tell to everyone that came over to visit.

[NJmaverick]

39. True

[cwydro]

7. I wouldn't want to;

I'm too weird about stuff like that.

[NJmaverick]

9. To answer my own question

I would love to save all that money. I have no superstitions and with no belief in ghosts or evil spirits how could I pass it up?

[pitohui]

18. you could pass it up because of resale value considerations...it has to be disclosed

in some states if a murder has occurred in the house it must be disclosed to any potential buyers

if you're concerned about resale value, then you might want to keep it in mind

[noamnety]

23. I know I'm going to hell

because I read that and my immediate thought was if I ever kill myself, I should go do it in someone's house that I want to screw over by lowering their resale value.

(I suppose it's just murder though, not suicides?)

[quakerboy]

26. Thats brilliant

I can't believe I missed that.

[NJmaverick]

32. hmmm .. never thought of that

[Dystopian]

38. Thank you for this info...

I live in MA...there's a suicide situation, land cleared, one house built and sold...
And now instead of building more houses, the guy is selling the land...
I don't know where to start, but will google some real estate disclosure laws here to see what I come up with.
If you know how I can find direct info...please let me know...
It hits close to home in so many ways...
Thank you...

peace~

[azmouse]

10. Probably not.

On a dark and stormy night it would be on my mind.

[Obama2012]

11. No

I don't feel like living with a pissed off ghost.

[auntAgonist]

12. nope

Having known someone very close to me who was murdered, knowing the pain of losing her, the horrific circumstances there is no way I'd be able to live in a crime scene as such.

I'm not sure I could live in a home where there was suicide either. I'm just weird that way.

[Deep13]

13. Well, I wouldn't pay extra for that.

Sure why not? For all I know, I already did.

[stray cat]

14. How about if it was the only house you could afford - keep renting or buy?

[crispini]

15. I do believe in vibes. That said, I also believe that it's possible to 'clear' a house like that

of the negative energy. I'd probably get one of my more 'sensitive' friends ;) to check it out first, maybe do some cleansing. :P

[NJmaverick]

31. How do you clear a house of bad vibes?

[crispini]

41. Heh. Well, okay, at the risk of sounding like a fruitloop --

I believe in karma, and the one-ness of life and the universe. I believe that people and their surroundings tend to share energy. When I bought my house, I felt very attracted to it, and I have since met and gotten to know its previous owner, and I think we have a lot in common -- I feel in harmony with the intentions he made, for example, maintaining the organic garden, etc. I do believe it's possible for that energy to change, for good and for bad. But, one isolated incident over a period of years may or may not bother me -- for me, it's more the overall.

So, as in your original question, *if* I was attracted to the house, and found it comfortable, despite knowing the history, I would inquire further about the overall history of the house, and judge accordingly. And if I still felt attracted to the house after knowing more about the sum total history of the house, I would get one of my more "sensitive" friends to check it out, and if it still felt right, I would purchase it, after smudging, etc., and other rituals to bless the space. Actually, I smudged my house before moving into it and still do so periodically to keep things moving. ;)

You'll laugh when I tell you that I'm an engineer, but I also know that there are "more things under heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." I have a healthy respect for intuition and feelings. There are many things in life that are mysteries.

[NJmaverick]

42. It doesn't sound crazy

Then again I try to respect all people's religious and supernatural beliefs.

[enigmatic]

16. I have

Many years ago; though I'm very interested in the paranormal, I never heard/saw anything weird..

[petronius]

17. Sure, as long as it had the amenities I was looking for

I wonder if it's even common for such a house to come at a discount - is that the sort of history that a seller has to disclose?

[edhopper]

19. Yes

then I would make up a story about how there are ghosts causing havoc and sell it as a movie.

[Lars39]

20. No, I'd always wonder if there were still blood spatters I couldn't see everywhere

[CaliforniaPeggy]

21. My dear NJMaverick...

We lived across the street from a lovely house where the daughter had OD'd. She later died at the local hospital.

The house came up for rent, and we decided to rent it. We lived there for two years, had our younger daughter while we were there, and the house was completely comfortable to live in.

We moved, not because of negative vibes or ghosts (there weren't any) but because we were buying a larger house on a bigger lot...

So there you are.

[NJmaverick]

29. Well sounds like you got the best answer

real experience

[mnhtnbb]

22. Houses have vibes--I'm sure of it. Although I've never lived in

one where a murder or suicide took place (that I know of) we did buy a house from a couple
who divorced about 6 months later. The house had strange vibes from the time we moved in.
Later we found out that the husband had been running around on his pregnant wife. After she delivered,
he left her.

I never liked the house.

[Iggo]

24. Suicide? No problem. Murder? I dunno.

It would depend on the circumstances of the murder. Like if they were murdered just because they lived in that house...that would inform my decision greatly.

[quakerboy]

25. Do I have to do cleanup?

Is it solved or unsolved? I can do cleanup, but that's gonna effect what I am willing to pay. If its "unsolved" then probably not. If someone still living and willing to kill is wandering about unchecked, who has done so in this home, Im going to be somewhat apprehensive about staying there.

If we set aside the practical concerns like cleanup cost, resale value, and loose murderers, then probably. While I do believe there is a world of the spiritual surrounding us, I simultaneously feel that it only has what power we allow it. A spirit will not be taking a knife and coming after me, for instance. On the physical side I would feel quite safe. And for the more ethereal spiritual effect, I feel very secure in who where, and how I am in this existence. So I am likewise not concerned about that aspect of it.

[NJmaverick]

30. There are companies that specialize in that sort of clean up

[quakerboy]

43. I dont mind doing it. I just want a good discount if I am going to have to

I can do it cheaper than the companies that specialize in doing it. And I can do it better. They ain't got nothin on what I dun seen in this short lifetime.

[Forkboy]

27. Sure, because I don't believe in ghosts.

[NJmaverick]

33. How about vibes?

[Forkboy]

35. In this hypothetical is there really any difference?

[RFKHumphreyObama]

34. There was actually a case in Australia revolving around this not so long ago

There was a grisly murder case in Australia back in 2001 where a young man brutally murdered his sister, his mother and his father in their home. You can read about it here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sef_Gonzales

Their home was put up for sale and was purchased but the real estate company didn't bother to inform the occupants what had happened. There was a big uproar and, as you can read in the article, the real estate agents were forced to refund the deposit that the buyers had made on the house.

I followed the case closely -it was quite extensively covered in the media as the horrific details unfolded

As for me personally, I think it would depend. I believe in the supernatural but that may not necessarily prevent me from moving into a home where something awful had happened. I'd probably have to assess the case involved before making a final decision

[NJmaverick]

36. Very interesting, thanks

I noticed in the end the buyer only got a 10% discount. I would think it would be more

[PassingFair]

37. As long as it was completely cleaned up...and a decent amount of time had passed...

it wouldn't bother me at all...IF I got a good deal.

I don't believe in supernatural appearances.

[TK421]

40. I lived in a house where a violent suicide took place....thankfully, nothing

creepy happened...wasn't visited by any spirits or anything like that. I just moved out of state....

[NJmaverick]

54. Did you ever think about it?

[TK421]

64. Sorry for the late reply...

not really, but when I'm flipping through channels on TV and come across shows like Most Haunted I do; most of those cases seem to be centered around suicides or murders

[MilesColtrane]

44. I would be hesitant.

I did not use to believe that particular houses could effect your mental and emotional state until I lived in one.

I still don't know what, if anything, happened in a duplex I lived in nine years ago, but something about that place was not right.

[Skittles]

45. yes, would not bother me a bit

and I am the daughter of a suicide

[NJmaverick]

55. I sorry to hear that

:hug:

[jobycom]

46. Why wouldn't I? Probably a lot of us live on a spot where something violent happened

at some time in history, even if we don't know it. The only ghosts or vibes in those houses or on those spots come from the living.

[LSK]

47. no, because I saw the Amityville Horror when I was 8

And it freaks me out to this day.

[XemaSab]

48. A dude died in my living room of natural causes

Doesn't bother me at all. :shrug:

[NJmaverick]

56. While you were living there or before?

[Quantess]

49. Realtors are not required to tell you that info, AFAIK

So you could end up buying a house that had a gruesome history.

[proteus_lives]

50. I'd rather not.

Bad juju. I believe that places can soak up negative energy.

[wickerwoman]

51. Sure. The whole world's a graveyard.

Every one of us right now if probably sitting on top of a spot where someone died or was killed.

If it was my dream house and I got a good bargain on it, I wouldn't hesitate. I'd be living there for decades, so I wouldn't worry about the resale value.

[Patiod]

52. Not a problem. Nor proximity to gravehyards

I take care of my elderly Dad, and I'm sleeping now in my parents' bedroom, where my mom had a fatal stroke (I had to clean up afterwards myself).

My dad won't sleep in the room (although probably for different reasons). For superstitious reasons, my brother and his wife won't sleep in there when he visits, which means I don't have to pack up and move to another room, which works for me.

I did have one dream where I saw my mom, greeted her, and she turned around and grew fangs and growled at me, which creeped me out, but my SO explained it so that it didn't bother me: "You were sleeping with the dachshund, right? And what always happens when you move him in his sleep? Do you think you might have moved around when you dreamt about your mother, causing the dog to growl and that to be reflected into your dream?"

[NJmaverick]

53. lol, sounds like your dachchund isn't a very good bed mate

[Patiod]

58. Yeah, he's not great for the love life either

When SO sleeps over, the dachshund wants to sleep between us.

We move the dachshund. He growls, waits until we might be asleep, and then snakes his way up the bed to be between us again.

This goes on all night - not good for sleep or love!

We put up with a lot from the little guy because wWe feel sorry for him - he was my mom's dog.

[Red State Rebel]

59. I have 2 dachshunds...every night is a weinie dog sandwich!

They are not condusive to sleeping guests :) but I love em!!

[Patiod]

60. I got so used to the cat - forgot the Weenie Dog Mantra:

"Must maintain maximum possible skin-to-skin contact during sleep with rest of pack all year round".

Unlike the cat's manta: "Don't touch me until the temp goes under 20 degrees, and even then, maybe not"

[NJmaverick]

63. I wonder if he knows how good he has it

:hi:

[Rambis]

57. Friend had this happen

He had a POS volkswagon beatle that kept breaking down and when he would get rides home people would say.... oh you live here? Finally he asked what is wrong with the house? Turns out a farmer shot his wife in the kitchen went to the bank and shot the loan officer president of the bank. Then killed himself somewhere on the property. He had been living there for 9 months with no problems so.... don't know I could do it?

[FunkyLeprechaun]

61. If it's a big house and going cheap

Yes. I wouldn't want to see the crime scene photos though!

One of my friends lived in a house where there was a fire which killed two children and they were found dead on the staircase. My grandfather died in his house, of natural causes (he wanted to die at home) and my parents slept in the bedroom he died in (used to be my grandparents room).

Houses have a history.

However, I wouldn't want to live in a meth lab house. I've heard that the walls literally absorb the chemicals.

[_dynamicdems]

62. I'm not sure.

Death and places of violent death are all around us, every street and highway and most every place has been a place of death at one point or another in the past.

However, moving into a new home knowing it has a history of murder or suicide isn't something I'd prefer if all other options were the same. I'm not a believer in ghosts, but who needs to live in a place that would be a constant reminder of the details of specific tragedy? I suppose it would depend on the date of the event and the circumstances. If the story were particularly horrible, I'd probably pass. If it were something like the wife of a sea captain killing herself after her husband was lost at sea 300 years ago, I'd probably be okay with living in the house. If it was a contemporary murder of a young child, then that would be a no.

Another thing to consider would be the actual danger factor in living in a home that was notorious for being the place of a particularly notorious crime. Known crimes tend to attract unhealthy interest. I'd prefer to live in a house with less colorful a history.

There is also the question of some places seemingly attracting negative events. Although I tend to believe there would be a scientific reason for such, there would still be the reluctance to dabble in things about which little is known. For whatever reasons, bad places may well exist.