What to do when considering selling or buying a home where someone has died.

Depending on who you ask this is a serious issue or ridiculous nonsense – or, if you are like me, it’s somewhere in the middle.

Of course, folks die all the time in prime South Bay Real Estate. They die in Rancho Palos Verdes homes, Torrance homes, Manhattan Beach homes – and everywhere else in the world.

Here is my take on this ‘haunting’ issue!

1. How did the South Bay resident die? (This is the first unavoidable issue.) If the death was natural causes – Ok fine, proceed to the next step. If the homeowner’s death was suicide or homocide forget it. Game over. Walk away and don’t even consider the home at any price. It’s going to bug you.

2. How old was the deceased and what were the circumstances? In this department the older the better.

3. Where in the home did the death occur? Here the master bedroom or main living area is best…children’s rooms are unacceptable unless you don’t need the bedroom and can convert the room to an office or den. My thinking here is that if you can get OK with someone dying in your own room, that’s your decision. Putting your kids to sleep in a room where someone has died is just too creepy.

4. Is the house haunted? I know this sounds silly but I’m kind of serious! Condition of the house plays into the decision. If the home is old and dated? If so, all the better. Repaint the entire home, install new carpet/flooring, install new fixtures and presto, you’ve got a whole new vibe going on. If the home is updated and modern the new buyer must determine how the old owner’s ‘presence’ can be removed. Replacing carpet is a given, as is wallpaper, popcorn ceiling and interior paint. If you can’t afford to make these changes immediately I recommend you pass on the South Bay home – be it in Rolling Hills Estates or Palos Verdes Estate or wherever!

To find out if someone died in a home you are looking to purchase please call me for a free public records search. I can be reached at 310-809-0203. If you are selling a home in which someone has died you need to know that legally you must disclose the death in most cases. Call me right away to learn about your responsibilities as a South Bay home seller. I can be reached at 310-809-0203.