As a Realtor in the Bryan College Station area, I have sold hundreds of homes. A small percentage of these homes were properties that had a history; that is a home where the previous owners had died while living there.

According to the law in Texas, if the property is what is called a "Notorious House", which means it is known by the general public for what has happened on or in the premesis, be it a death or a home with ghosts, it will have to be disclosed to all potential buyers.

An exception to this rule is if someone dies in the property and the death was caused by natural causes, suicide or some sort of accident that had nothing to do with the condition of the house.  Under these circumstances, the death that occured in the property does not have to be disclosed.
 
Often, when a Real Estate Agent lists or sells a home, we have no idea if someone has died on the the property or not.  (We do find out quickly via the neighbors however, if the home has a reputation for being Haunted.)  

If you are a Buyer and concerned about the possability that someone might have died in a property you are considering buying, the best way I have found to find out if the house has a past is to Google the property address on the world wide web. Typically, if something noteworthy has happened to the home, it's likely there is a police report posted on the web that can tell you all the details.

Personally, in the last 7 years, I have only sold only one Notorious House. This was a house where a family of 4 was murdered back in the early 1970's and, I can tell you, property value is typically affected by a home's grizzley past. 

While I am certainly no psychic, and am not certain what I believe when it comes to ghosts and deceased spirits roaming the earth, I can clearly remember one particular home in Bryan that I can say with 100% confidence: if haunted homes exist, this house definitely fit the bill.

Every time I attempt to take interior advertising photos of the property, I would return to the office only to discover that my pictures had all come out fuzzy and yellow. The lights in the home would constantly start flickering when I walked into the room, hallway, etc. When it was time to leave the house, I would switch off the kitchen light, leave the property, get in my car, and notice the kitchen light was back on! I confess, I was "Extatic at the very Least" when that house finally sold.

If you are feeling especially brave, and want to stay at a Haunted House, about 40 minutes from town in Calvert Texas is a Bed & Breakfast which used to be a prision called The Hammond House. The TFC Paranormal Research Team, a real ghost-hunting team based out of Bryan-College Station, recorded Electronic Voice Phemonena (EVP) and other readings at the Hammond House.  According to Casey Linda Unger, who headed the team, the property definitely has a few ghostly inhabitants. To learn more about the Paranormal Research team right here in BCS, click here or you can go to http://www.freakuency.org/about.htm and for information on the Hammond House, or to schedule a little get away just go to http://www.thehammondhouse.com/index.php but, if the place is haunted, don't expect a good night's sleep!

And Remember, I'm Happy to help you sell any property you have! Notorious or Not, just give me a call!

More Real Estate Articles

Original Article