Buying a house where a tragedy happened

[Canistayinbed]

Would you?

House near me is up for sale, in the 60’s a father murdered 5 members of his family then killed himself. I couldn’t even bring myself to view the house let alone buy it.

Houses that have had fatal fires, been renovated and ready for occupancy again. Nope.

Id be awake at night ruminating over things and never get any sleep, I know it seems stupid. Anyone else the same? Or do you live in such a place and aren’t bothered by it?

There is a house I drive past every day that has been ‘for sale’ for 8 years, a bit like this!
A man came home to find his friend in bed with his wife, covered the house in petrol and set it on fire, they were both killed and the husband is still doing jail time. It’s a beautiful Victorian, double fronted house in a great area! The plot alone would be worth a fortune!

My sensible side wants to say I’d be fine with it, but I know that in reality I’d be staring at the foot of my bed waiting to see a ghost or hear their screams! The morbid side of me would love to see the inside though!

Absolutely not

The previous owner of our house was found dead in the living room.

As sad as it is, tragedies happen everywhere. Unless you only buy new builds, how would you know?

Do you have a link or address? Currently house hunting.

Can't see what the fuss is about

I bought a haunted house and found out later that the lad (14) had recently died. I'm currently living in my uncle's old house where my aunt died in the back room and nothing bad, but they are family.

If you're worried get the place blessed when you move in - or before if possible - and you should have any problems. Then enjoy your bargain.

I think I'd be OK with it. Possibly less so if it was recent though.

There will have been far more joyous times than tragedies in any property.

Natural death/ someone ill or elderly would be OK. Murder is different. Not sure my imagination could cope in the wee small hours.
Some notorious houses have been demolished, The West House and and the Hindley/Brady House for instance. I bet they still have ghouls coming along to have a look though!!

In Hong Kong, there are real estate websites that actually tell you if the house you are looking to rent or buy is 'haunted' e.g. there has been a tragic death there. People will actively check as there is a lot of superstition around this - to the extent that such properties rent or sell for significant reductions to market, no matter how desirable they are in terms of area/size. Rent and property values in Hong Kong are astronomical so it really makes a difference.

Apparently there are a huge number of deaths in hotel rooms, so if you regularly stay in hotels it is pretty likely that there will have been a death in the room at some stage.

My dad died of a massive heart attack in my mums front room over a decade ago. She still lives there.... lovely house and family home for 70+ years.
Rather than dwell on that why not think of all the lovely babies that have been born in older houses. Ours was built in 1790 and I think dozens of people started their lives in our home and that's lovely.

Your reply made me laugh. Same!!

It wouldn’t bother me tuppence. I’ve lived in a 400 year old house where many deaths would have happened over the centuries, it didn’t worry me.
There were unexplained noises and things seen though….

I once rented a house and found out afterwards that the husband of the landlady had committed suicide which is why she was moving out. I don't know if he did it in the house but it only troubled me because it was sad. A father murdering his kids in the same room I'm watching TV or sleeping would be unbearable for me.

I feel there is a difference between buying a house where someone died - knowingly/willingly as against one where someone was killed. If their death was a trauma then I'd be inclined to think of lingering souls and such, but if it was a normal death which no one was to blame for - then it wouldn't bother me.

That's a ridiculous average as some people work in prisons!

Estate agents are required by law to disclose if a murder or suicide has happened in a property as it falls into the category of things that could affect the price. I assume this only stretches far as back as common memory unless the incident is particularly notorious.

Years ago, a neighbour in an adjacent street killed his wife in the house and tried to make it look like an accident. Within a year of him going to prison the house had been repaired and a new family moved in.
As I recall the house went on the market for about 30% below market value and because it was such a lovely house it got snapped up pretty quickly. I don't think I'd want to live there myself.

I have a friend who bought an incredible house that had been used for years as a brothel and a drug den. Absolutely stunning red brick style home in a pretty good neighbourhood but he spotted that all the damage was largely cosmetic/surface rather than structural. Completely gutted it and it's honestly beautiful now and has definitely paid for itself. He's created a display of photos on one wall showing what it looked like (graffiti walls, filthy mattresses, ripped up floorboards, used needles everywhere). Really interesting project. Don't think I'd want to live there either just because that house will have seen so much addiction and misery and probably trafficking victims too.

I’ve seen too many horror films that start that way.

I don't think I would, and I'm not normally woo like that, but it think it would play on my mind. When I was looking at camper vans I discounted ex-ambulances because of the amount of people that must have died in them.

A normal death of natural causes would not bother me at all. I think most houses of a certain age will have this - as people often like to die at home if they can. In someways these sort of deaths actually add to warmth, character and history of a home. The home is a sanctuary where all human life has occurred, birth, life, death. A sacred place.

Violent death - I am not sure if I would be comfortable with.

The person killed herself on Sunday and there's a new occupier already? Yikes that's fast

No, that was a typo, it should have said "one Sunday".

Was about 3 years ago.

I remember after watching ‘White House Farm’ thinking it was startling that the niece and her family moved in after those awful events and continue to live there to this day. To willingly live somewhere where those you loved were brutally murdered is another level.

I probably wouldn't. Someone was murdered in a house not far from us, and when the house was up for sale not long after it came with permission to demolish it. A totally new house is there now, but I still see it as the house where an old woman was murdered. However, most people wouldn't know the complete history of an old house and anything could have happened.

There's a house near me where someone murdered a member of their family..it was well known all across the UK.
I knew the family to talk to and 20 years on the house has been sold, there wasn't a for sale board or anything, it appears to have been done very quietly.
I say hello to the new owners and nothings ever been said about the murder but they are only in their 20s themselves and not from the area so I don't know if they even know about it, I would never mention it to them in any case.

Would not give it a moments thought.
People have died (and been born) in many houses and the house itself has no involvement.
I would not even be looking for a price reduction "to reflect the trauma", a house is a house is a house.

Down the road from here is a ground floor flat. A young mum lives there (maybe a young couple) with young children. Have been there a while.

People put teddies on the railings.

Around ten years ago a previous, heavily pregnant, mum stabbed the father of her own children. He went to hospital having told everyone he had been jumped in the street. Sometime that evening she drowned her two toddlers in the bath there before walking to the supported housing unit where her ex lived and leaving her flat keys for him. Then she walked across town to a multi story car park and jumped off, killing herself and her unborn child.