If someone dies in a house, does that decrease the value of the house?

Question

It was a peaceful death, the person passed away in his sleep.

Answer 1

Only if it was a notorious death (murder, etc) or the death created a health hazard (body wasn't discovered for weeks, messy suicide, etc)

If it is an older house, chances are many people have been born or died in the house over the years.

There was a house less than a block from me that the owner ended up demolishing because he couldn't find a buyer after a particularly gruesome murder took place there. A couple of years ago, a husband had killed his wife and dismembered her, then hid her body parts behind the walls. They never found all of her, and that was an issue with prospective buyers.

Answer 2

Decrease In Value

Answer 3

I used to work in real estate. Someone dying in a house won't directly effect the value of the house in the sense of an appraiser taking off $3,000 from the home's value because of a death.

But in terms of buyers, it might bother some people. It creeps people out. Would you want to buy the house where several people died or were killed? Most people wouldn't, even though 99.999% of the time the home has nothing to do with the death.

You can't lie about it though. If you are asked directly, admit it. If not, don't raise it.

Answer 4

The realtor has to disclose the fact that someone past away in the house by law. It may effect the pool of buyers but if the house in in good shape It's unlikely to effect the asking price.

If it smells of death then I'd say yea, it will decrease the value, try to get rid of the stench. De-orderize the house, re-carpet and repaint top to bottom and bye bye house.

Answer 5

Some states require notification of that fact if it's known to the seller. If it was a notorious killing, it might affect the value -- either up or down. Some are so bad that the house is torn down, such as John Wayne Gacy's house.

I owned a place in Texas for a number of years where the wife of the original owner had died peacefully. She had loved the place and it showed in a number of custom touches that she had done including some lovely stained glass work. I always felt comfortable in that house -- it always felt like love lived there.

Answer 6

No, it wouldn't decrease the value it just may decrease the number of buyers if it was known. For some reason people don't want to live where someone has died. So I wouldn't tell. Unless it was someone famous, cause then the value would increase.

Answer 7

Was it in the news? People die all the time. If it was some kind of horror-movie-like event, then the seller has a burden of notifying the buyer, and yes, it will diminish demand, which will lower the value.

Personally, I was interested in a place until I found out that someone was killed there. It's just spooky. Dying is something else. I don't think you are required to notify the buyer about something like that.

Answer 8

i wouldn't go out of your way and bring it up to a potential buyer. It doesn't make a difference and is irrelevant in selling the house.

If it's brouhgt up, a potential buyer can lie and say their superstitious to try and bring the value down. The potential buyer can also tell other buyers as well, and a false rumor may start saying the house is haunted. Again, the value may go down.

So why bother bringing it up in the first place?

Answer 9

No it will not decrease the value of the house unless the people who are viewing the house are some kind of religious freaks ;]

Your good!

Answer 10

Nope...people die every day...unless there was a mass murder or something else really unpleasant happened there...the value is market value.