It’s no surprise that San Francisco has more than a few ghosts, given its colorful history. What is suprising is the list on the Top Haunted Spots article. Several sites are extremely unassuming and un-scary looking, such as the Safeway at 2300 16th Street, where a ball field used to stand and apparently some players are seen in the aisles, no doubt wondering where their field has gone.

http://sanfrancisco.citysearch.com/roundup/40468#g1

This morning I found an interesting article, Home for Sale, Ghosts Included, from July 2007 about a haunted house in Antioch, CA.

The folks in this home had a little girl ghost who was not scary during the time they lived there. Later, though, they leased out their house and did not tell the tenants about her presence - not a good idea!  Whether leasing or selling, in California, this type of paranormal activy must be disclosed to prospective buyers or tenants.

Their agent did not know about the ghost activity when leasing the home, but found out about it from the tenants after the fact. From that point on, though the Realtor advertised it as being an “atmospheric offering.”

Occasionally it’s fun to google “haunted real estste” or “buy a haunted home” or “sell a haunted home” and see what comes up. Awhile back, the search unearthed a site which is titled, simply, “Haunted Real Estate” and is hosted by a gal who really, really knows her stuff.

Kim Hirchak, a Keller Williams Realtor who advertises that she has been selling haunted and non-haunted homes since 1989, is the hostess with the mostest for ghostly real esate in North Carolina.

A year or two ago, I emailed back and forth with Kim and learned that not only does she have good intuition for sensing spirited places, but she also runs a ghost tour and a haunted pub crawl in Wilminton, North Carolina.

Since it’s now autumn and we’re closing in on the Halloween season, I wanted to reference Kim and her interesting variety of services for the Wilmingtin, North Carolina area. One of these days, I’ll hope to meet her at a Keller Williams event. Meanwhile, if you’re in the area, say hello to Kim and take in one of her fabulous tours!

With warm regards from Silicon Valley,
Mary Pope-Handy

Every state has its own take on disclosure requirements surrounding paranormal activity in homes for sale. In Arkansas, sellers are supposed to disclose it if things “go bump in the night”, but apparently agents there can’t be sued over paranormal issues that creep up after close of escrow.

The Arkansas Democrat Gazette ran an article on August 24 that includes this “ghost buster bill” information as well as a couple of fascinating stories about agents encountering spooks while showing homes. Have a look and enjoy:
Close Encounters of the Ghost Kind.