Paranormal happens to be the new cool in the real estate industry.
The Hiram Scutt Mansion, a large red-brick residence in Joliet, Ill., which is famous for its ghosts, has reportedly gone under contract within a week of hitting the market. While the haunted mansion was listed for $159,900, it reportedly snagged a higher sale price in a bidding war, according to the Zillow Blog.
The Mansion
The Hiram Scutt mansion is named after the Civil war veteran and barbed wire magnate of the same name and was built 132 years ago. The house spans an area of 4,960 square feet and is reportedly perfect for a bed and breakfast. But the residence is capable of more than just that. It is haunted.
The residence has endured a murder and several deaths and the spirits of the deceased now inhabit the architectural masterpiece. The giant Victorian home sits behind a fenced compound as if it were guarding a mystery. The three-story home has hardwood flooring and high ceilings. There is a doll-room, filled with dolls that depict the Victorian life. The room happens to be the creepiest of all with cold-spots being felt there.
Below is an account of one of the visitors experience in the doll room:
"When I agreed to go along to the mansion in Joliet, I figured at best it would be an historic adventure. I was a paranormal virgin if u will. Then I got upstairs to the "doll" room where there was already something goin on. I went to the west end of the room and my right arm got extremely cold. Only the right arm. I tried rubbing it and putting my coat on to no luck.
Then came the overwhelming sensation to get the hell outta that room and now. At that point I had no idea why I was leaving, only that I needed to go. I did not want to return to that room, but I did. Once again the same chill and the same desire to get out. When the circle came, things got stronger for me. Cold and the sense of being messed with."
Dark History
The home was purchased by Brian Kearney, a real estate agent in 2004. He wanted to turn it into a bed and breakfast. In 2006, a group of football players from the University of St. Francis rented the place to throw a bash and a 19-year-old student, Stephen Jenkins, was shot to death at the party.
About two years after the incident, John Wilkes Booth -a Seth Magosky impersonator- purchased the house to turn it into a Magosky and Victorian life museum. But he suddenly died six months later. Children have also died in the home, The Unexplained World explains. It was later foreclosed by a bank and some of its furniture was sold off at an auction.
Haunted USP?
The home was designated a local landmark and is individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The home has been called a "paranormal gem" by Edward Shanahan, a psychic reader and paranormal observer. But listing agent Maria Cronin told Zillow that she had an energy-reader friend visit the house, who felt the paranormal energies but could easily put them at rest.
The haunted status of the home proved to be a boon for the listing. Cronin got calls from several parts of the country inquiring about the house and also received offers. There were about 70 open houses held just in a week and many paranormal investigators came to visit the house to experience it. Cronin will reportedly keep the home open for visitor until this weekend.
The Hiram Scutt mansion isn't the only one taking advantage of its haunted status. Recently, a "for-rent" sign board in a New Orleans neighborhood, which had "haunted" and "not haunted" on either sides, caught headlines after George Takei, of the "Star Wars" fame posted a photo of the signboard on Facebook.
According to a New Orleans local, such ghost stories are a selling point for realtors and clearly, it's not limited to the most haunted city of the United States.
