Honesty is the best policy - especially when it comes to selling a house with a murder or haunted history, according to the Chinese real estate experts.
Chinese real estate firms have started maintaining a database on the number of homes in a locality where a murder or suicide was committed. Apparently, the number of such houses is increasing. Not that more murders and suicides are happening but just that the homes' histories are only being unearthed now.
MarketWatch reports that the trend of maintaining a record of "murder homes" is gaining traction. HomeLink, a famous real estate broker in China, has already recorded 900 such murder homes. Real estate agents said that buyers usually freak out when they discover that their home has a bad history to it and often want a refund of their money, which realtors end up paying from their pockets later.
To avoid such disputes, realtors have set to work unearthing the history of the homes. But these experts say that digging up information about a "murder house" isn't easy. It takes a lot of sleuthing and follow-ups on sources and previous customers to find the grim events the walls of the homes once endured.
In Hong Kong, these "murder houses" are known as "Hongzas" that translates to "unlucky houses." Citizens believe that living in these houses without performing satiating rituals can even be fatal for the occupants. These homes usually sell at deep discounts.
But, does bad karma really depreciate a home's value? Do ghosts and voodoo stories scare off buyers? Not all the time, MSN real estate reports.
There are several paranormal lovers out there who would still want to buy your home if there is a ghoul in the attic. They don't mind the sudden apparitions and sudden chills. They don't mind sharing their space with a ghost. Craig Schaible, a New Jersey resident who recently bought a haunted Victorian home in the area told MSN:
"Would I pay more money for a haunted house? No. The decision to buy the house was based on the house itself."
"Some buyers will welcome a famous old ghost or a ghost with a sense of humor, while others will find the space too tight and won't want to share it with anyone else - It's like the live-in help!" Wendy Sarasohn, senior vice president at The Corcoran Group in New York City, told CNBC in an earlier interview.
But for orthodox believers, realtors recommend calling in a "space clearer" or a psychic to clear away the negative energy from the house.
"The moral of the story about disclosure is: It will be expensive if you don't disclose!" Mary Pope-Handy, a real-estate agent in Silicon Valley added.
