Buy or sell a haunted house? This is what the law says you must do

House hunting comes with many challenges – why else would they make TV shows about it? But one thing is particularly difficult to deduce when you’re considering buying a house: if the house is already inhabited by invisible spirits. That’s why some states have laws specifically addressing the buying and selling of haunted houses.

The real estate website Zillow recently did a quick review and found that only four states specifically mention “paranormal activity” in their disclosure laws: New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Minnesota – and only two of them require disclosure.

Of course, there are additional laws that address the reasons why a house may be haunted, such as making it public if someone died in the house… and how they died.

According to Zillow:

• New York courts “will revoke the sale of a home if the seller creates and perpetuates the reputation that the home is haunted and then takes unfair advantage of a buyer’s ignorance of the home’s haunted reputation.” For example, if you don’t tell a potential buyer that your house will be featured on a TV show about ghost hunting, the court could rescind the sale.
• In New Jersey, “a seller must truthfully tell a buyer whether there are haunted housemates on his property,” but only if asked.
• In Massachusetts and Minnesota, laws specifically list homes as “mentally affected,” saying buyers don’t have to disclose this status.

What does the law say in Alabama?

Alabama is a “caveat emptor” state, which means “buyer beware.” The statue does not specifically mention ghosts or paranormal activity. Instead, Alabama law does not require it each revelations, according to NOLO.com, an online legal encyclopedia. Still, most responsible sellers provide information about defects that affect “health, safety, environmental, structural, mechanical or other potential problem areas,” NOLO says.

There is an exception to Alabama’s “buyer beware” disclosure law: If a buyer specifically asks if a property is haunted – or if there is some other problem – the seller must answer honestly.

Zillow says nine states have laws requiring reporting of a death on the premises, but these vary depending on how long ago the death occurred and whether it was from natural causes or homicide.

Zillow says:

• Sellers in California must disclose a death on the property if it occurred within three years of the current transaction, while sellers in Alaska must disclose a death that occurred within one year.
• South Dakota sellers are only allowed to notify a potential buyer of a death if it is a homicide.
• In Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, New Hampshire, New Jersey and South Carolina, sellers have a responsibility to tell a seller that a death has occurred on the premises “only if requested.”

Deaths and potential ghosts lead to a home being defined as “stigmatized” — meaning a home “might be avoided by potential buyers based on an event, such as a murder or suicide, that occurred there,” Zillow says. “Stigmatized properties can create challenges for sellers and opportunities for buyers.”

Which brings us to the big question: Does a “haunted” house make it more or less likely to sell? Zillow surveyed potential buyers and found that “29% said this was the case more likely to buy a house if it is haunted,” while “33% said nothing could convince them to” buy a haunted house.

Some people like the idea of ​​a haunted house because they can get a better deal for the price, while others may see commercial potential for a haunted house, such as turning it into a short-term rental to appeal to ghost hunters or people looking for “a supernatural encounter,” says Zillow.