Haunting story blights another (but famous) house sale
Owner says he has struggled to sell the mansion after singer Adele claimed it was haunted during an interview.
The owner of a Grade II Listed house in West Sussex has blamed ex-tenant Adele for making his house unsaleable after an interview she did with CBS in which she said the ex-convent was haunted and ‘quite scary’.
The story was then picked up by both the tabloids and Hello! Magazine, which featured it in a celebrity haunted houses article.
Adele had rented Lock House back in 2012 for a six-month period but reportedly refused to renew the contract due to the haunting.
13 years on market
The property’s owner, Nicholas Sutton said Adele’s remarks had “negatively impacted future marketing” after spending the last 13 years trying to sell the property.
Despite the best efforts of both Savills and Strutt and Parker, no buyer has ever been found. It came close in August 2020, but the prospective buyer withdrew after learning of the house’s supposed haunting.
Having failed to sell the property, Will Humphries for The Times reports that Sutton is now on his second attempt to get planning permission to turn it into three houses and a cottage, although it is also currently listed on Rightmove (see pic), with the sale being handled by House.Partnership.
Turn-off
Although hauntings can generate a lot of publicity it can be a serious turn-off for buyers.
But it is not always bad news; haunted houses even have their own section on Rightmove. And, as was reported in The Neg, despite being haunted by a blood-thirsty black hound, a Welsh chapel got 14 bids at auction and sold for £10,000 over its guide price.
If a property is haunted, there is no clear legal requirement in the UK to disclose it during a sale, but there is in the US!
PIC: Fred Duval/Shutterstock and Rightmove
I think you’ll find that there is actually a legal requirement to disclose if a house is believed to be haunted. Under the Material Information guidelines, any information concerning the property that could potentially affect a buyers decision to not only buy, but even to view a property, must be disclosed. Although haunting cannot be proven and is not therefore a fact per se, the fact that the property is believed to be haunted is enough to potentially deter some buyers, as we have seen in this case, and must therefore be disclosed.
Hi Richard, The law in the area is a little bit grey but according to conveyancing solicitors Wilson Browne: In the case of a haunting, ‘It is not a requirement for you or your estate agent to disclose specific information about a property’s history but for a Phasmophobic buyer (a person with a fear of ghosts) this could lead to a case of non-disclosure under the Misdescriptions Act of 1991. It is the responsibility of the buyer to ask about the property’s history and the seller to disclose the information.’
Regards SImon