This season, the most chilling effect on the housing market might have come from Netflix’s new series, The Watcher. In this true-crime household horror, an architecturally obsessed psychopath targets the buyers of a celebrated suburban home with intimidating anonymous letters. As the buyers unravel the mystery of The Watcher, they uncover some rather unsettling particulars about their recent purchase.
Watching this series is sure to make any house hunter second guess their mission. With a long tradition of American hauntings and anecdotal horrors, some buyers might wonder how to avoid purchasing a nightmare property. Thankfully, we asked the experts.
The Terrors of Texas Real Estate
Lydia Blair is a Vice President and Escrow Officer at Allegiance Title Company. With so much experience in the real estate realm, she has a good understanding of just how unsettling some Texas estates can be.
“There are some old Texas homes and rural properties that have a grave on the property,” Blair said. “When you think about it, we have a lot of Texas suburbs that used to be farms and ranches. Those folks buried their dead on the family homestead. Who knows where? If the seller knows about a grave, they must disclose this information to a buyer.”
Unfortunately, sellers in Texas are not obligated to report any deaths, hauntings, or supernatural occurrences to prospective buyers.
“In Texas, the seller does not have a duty to disclose any death on the property unless it was related to the property’s condition,” Blair said. “For example, if someone fell off a ladder and died or committed suicide, that does not need to be disclosed. However, if they got electrocuted due to faulty wiring or fell off a balcony because the railing broke, that would need to be disclosed.”
Avoiding a Housing Horror
Beatrice de Jong is a Consumer Trends Expert with Opendoor. She’s been thinking about how to avoid Watcher-like real estate drama since seeing the series, and she has some advice.
“Ask to see the buy, sell, and repair history of a house,” de Jong said. “This will give you great insight into the turnover of the house. Has it been bought and sold a lot over a short period of time? This could mean there are some red flags that you may want to look into.”
Then, if there’s nothing on the books, there may be some answers on the block.
“Ask to speak with the neighbors,” she added. “Sometimes, even if you don’t have suspicions, asking to speak with a neighbor may give you valuable insight into your home’s history, more intel on the neighborhood, and you’ll likely get interesting tidbits you would not otherwise get from the real estate agent.”
De Jong also recommends asking the current owners and hoping for some honesty. Unfortunately, as Blair knows, this may be easier said than done.
“The typical Realtor answer to why a seller is moving is that ‘their needs have changed,’” says Lydia. “It’s a polite way of saying ‘none of your business.’”
If stories like The Watcher have you wondering about your next home purchase, you’re not alone. Just be sure to do as much research as you can, survey the neighbors, look into records, and never buy sight unseen.
