@Dee I have to ask. What happened in those 8 days!?!?

I’d wager it wasn’t just squeaky floors and drafty old rooms. ;)

If you believe that the spirits of the departed can come back to haunt you, you're wrong. When people die, their spirits go either to paradise or hades, to await the judgement. The Bible says "It is appointed unto men to die once, and after that the judgement". True paranormal activity is caused by demonic spirits, not the spirits of the dead.

That is open to interpretation and not everyone holds the same beliefs. Technically it doesn’t say where they go in the meantime if it’s before the rapture but this isn’t that kind of post or subject.

Well, then, I would not be afraid to buy a presumably "haunted" house. Any demonic activity would not hang around my house because I would consider an exorcism and have the house blessed.

I'm not a believer...nor am I a non-believer.

My parents first house in this country was built in 1900. It was the most lovely place to be...serene and happy.

They rented after that one sold and the hallway of the rental (also old) was very very...unsettling.

Also, I hated staying at a relatives. One area had a HORRIBLE feeling. Of course, I didn't say anything for a long time. Then I made an offhanded remark about it and this relative was shocked because she had felt the same way about that particular area ever since moving in.

So, whether I would buy a "haunted" house or not has less to do with reputation and more to do with how it would make me feel.

@Dee, "hightailed" also made me curious.

So no old lady with secret passages inside the walls so she could keep hiding that she lived in the attic or anything. ;)

Sometimes it’s more that they stick around to make sure nobody ruins their beloved house and once they know you’re not going to convert it into a massive open floor plan space, paint all the lovely woodwork and cabinets etc, they calm down. Other times it’s not the house but the land that is the issue. In older areas with small family cemeteries and who knows how many unmarked graves or when things got moved and records lost in fires/floods/forgotten and then trashed - spirits aren’t so much there for a purpose but just echoes and flickering images.

I would. Ghosts are imagined. The house the Sharon Tate murders took place was rented. After the murders, the owner sued Sharon's husband for the cost of new paint and rugs. After everything was painted and the the rugs were replaced, the owner moved in and lived there 25 years with no problems, no ghosts. He said it was the most peaceful house he ever lived in. At one point after the owner moved out it was rented to the group Nine Inch Nails who recorded an album there. There was a documentary filmed there about the group and they had pictures of the crime scene. One of the pictures showed Sharon on the floor and one of the members actually laid on the spot on the floor where her body was found. They never saw any ghosts either. You would think a house with such a violent past would be haunted but it wasn't. How many hospitals are haunted? With all the deaths there, you never hear of ghosts in hospitals. I hope I didn't ruin anyone's Halloween.

I had a ghost (ghosts) in my 1745 era cottage....according to different psychics on two separate occasions they were frightening the dog so I had the house ghost-busted. During the session two of the participants came up, independently of each other, with the same image of a murder happening outside the front door. According to the local historian there was indeed a documented murder there back in the 1700's. After the ghost(s) were dispelled the dog stopped staring at "nothing".

I’ve heard about hospital hauntings from time to time, but do you really think the doctors and nurses are going to want to tell anyone that they see/feel things, or are they going to want to strictly be viewed as educated competent professionals that nobody will call crazy etc?

Sharon Tate’s murder sort of marked a tragic loss - one symbolic of earlier more innocent times - that the citizens of Los Angeles had to face, and not the only incident in what would be a series of devastating social, economic, cultural events. Whether the place she died is where her spirit remains - and I would hope she had moved on to be with her baby where good spirits/energies go when they realize they have no need to stay on our plane - is debatable. People can say they don’t believe or that stuff is faked/imagined, that’s 100% acceptable to express if that is their view. But truth is we don’t know what happens when we die, or even how one place ends up ‘haunted’ when another doesn’t even if what happened there is magnitudes more violent and tragic, and we can’t until it’s our time. If we die and all that happens is we decompose to be the next layer of carbon-based organisms for the next phase of the planet, ok. If we leave this plane to become part of something beyond our human comprehension that’s ok too. But we’ll know what happens someday, until then we can still find these things fascinating and look to understand what is around us.

Sure, because if you do believe in ghosts (and I do, and we live with one here) you also believe in ways to placate ghosts.

never. if can help, small children and animals are able to see ghosts. Terrible experience in a house when I was a kid and my parents didn't believe me and my sister, until a night they decided to show up to my father and another day to my mother. Priests involved but nothing worked, we just move out

I grew up in a haunted house. A craftsmen had been moved to its present location, at one time been subject to a fire well before my parents bought the house. I'm guessing the house would be 90 years old now. My younger sisters were sensitive to the spirits in the home, having seen a male and a female on different occasions. I would often hear their footsteps walk up the staircase, approach the bed where I slept. We would hear the usual house settling sounds, but the spirits noises were distinct. I would feel a little unease when home alone. But, at that point in time I would say, I would not be bothered buying a house that was haunted.

I bought a house that was built in 1951 in the Windsor Hills area of Los Angeles. My housekeeper tried to tell me that she had a very frightening dream of a woman in a dark cloud hovering over the house. I dismissed her dream. About 15 months after we moved in my husband just up and left our marriage for no obvious reason. Months later, repair persons, visitors and family members, anyone who visited the house, would become argumentative (I have a rule of treating people graciously when they are in my home) which was shocking and unsettling to me. I began to see frightening things in the house in the day and night, goulish things, like a man with no skin on his body crouched next to my bed, a jetblack skinny figure with bat like wings hovering in my dining room while I was vacuuming, a reflection of a women with neon green eyes in my bedroom mirror (I know, I know, sounds totally wack-a-doodle, but its all true).

So.... I had a friend's parent who had just became ordained come over to bless the house, that helped for about two weeks. I had another person tell me how to bless water and sprinkle the entire house with it, that too, worked a couple of weeks.

One afternoon while I was preparing to leave to meet with a minister about the situation, my teen age neighbor stopped me in the drive. (She grew up in the neighboring house so she had history with the neighborhood). It was apparent that she felt awkward as she said to me, "I want to tell you something, but I don't know where to start." I told her to start at the beginning. She blurted out that I should have my home blessed, I chuckled and told her that is exactly what I am planning to do. She went on to tell me that within the past 10 years, 4 other couples had bought and suddenly moved out, that the wives were nice, attractive business women (her words), like you, and that their husbands just up and left. I was a little awe struct at that moment when just then my phone rings, it is the minister calling to reschedule our meeting, but before he hung up, told me that my house had a curse on it, that a previous couple's mother-in-law (husband's mother) put a curse on their marriage and the curse remained and that I needed to find the object that was used to curse and remove it. The minister did not know my neighbor, In fact, I had been recommended to him by a co-worker from a different city. I remained in the house for 5 more uncomfortable years.

I see this post is much longer than I intended so I will end it with saying, I would Not buy a house that was known to be haunted.

Immediately after death, people are in either heaven or hell - NOT haunting others on earth. But, the Bible, the Word of God, the Truth, does tell us that there are both demons and angels on earth. Satan was one of the archangels in heaven and he and 1/3 of all the angels tried to take over heaven and were thrown out by God. Now they roam the earth trying to keep people from God, the Bible and the truth. They will eventually be destroyed, and you can read all about that in the Book of Revelation, last book of the Bible. A saved/born-again person has the Holy Spirit living inside them and has the peace that goes with that - If a person is born again/saved/Christian, after repenting and depending on Jesus, and nothing else and no one else, to pay for all your sins. All this is in the Bible - the book that the USA was founded on its principals. Satans demons are trying to eradicate the Bible and morality from the USA. The downfall of the USA began in the 1960's when Bible reading and prayer was taken out of the schools - research this and you will see it. So - houses and buildings are not haunted by spirits of people, but demons of Satan, and if you are Christian and depending on God daily, you cannot be hurt by them. I would buy a house that others erroneously said was haunted since houses cannot be haunted by people who are passed on - they are in either heaven or hell and cannot communicate with us on earth in any way.

Previous stories in this post indicate that people were communicating with people who had passed on. What really happens is that Satan and his demons pose as these people, and when people see/feel things/people, they are seeing demons. Only prayer can keep demons away. And if a person is possessed, pray to Jesus to have the demon leave. Prophesy tells us this kind of thing increases in the end times (before the rapture and 7 years of tribulation - all in the Book of Revelation).

I would hate to see this thread turn into a religious discussion but the previous postings just triggered a question in my mind. What do other religions say about ghosts and spirits? Would a blessing from a priest or minister help if the ghost wasn't Christian? This isn't the right forum for such discussions but housing is a universal concern so these issues must arise in other cultures as well.

Would a blessing from a priest or minister help if the ghost wasn't Christian?

For me (Catholic, Latin Rite), only a Catholic priest (Latin or Eastern Rite) can validly bless a home. He can bless homes regardless of the religion of the person inhabiting the house. I don't consider priests/ministers of other Christian sects to be validly ordained; they are simply laypeople to me. When addressing them, I use their preferred titles out of respect, not out of belief.

However, standard blessings from ordinary priests don't cast out demons (I agree with Terri that the "ghost" is really a demon, not a person; but I disagree with other things s/he posted :-P )... A specialized priest who does exorcisms is required for permanent results. Only a handful of such priests exist worldwide.

Linda, I was thinking the same thing after reading comments my post may have prompted. I come from a place of knowing that everything in the universe is in motion thus is vibration, thus is a form of energy. Energy cannot be destroyed only transferred. There is + and there is - energy. I think there are a multitude of names we call these disemboweled energies depending upon individual cultures and belief systems. I too, think it wise, prudent and considerate that non should impose their 'beliefs' upon another, for at the end of the day, we are all just guessing what the great mystery is. Peace, light and understanding to all.

You can flag posts that you do not like (Check the box "I just don't like it") and they will disappear from your view.

If you are interested in what other religions have to say about spirituality, I suggest that you read The Upanishads, the most important book of Hinduism. What I remember from reading this is that if the body is cremated, then the spirit is set free, and so I have stated in my will that I want to cremated, just to make sure that my spirit does not remain earth-bound. Where is work used to be a crematorium, and so perhaps cremation does not full work.

Sometimes I think paranormal activity is energy that is stored in the earth, but that does not explain everything. It could also be using energy from living people. Many kinds of energy travel though the air that we cannot see, such as TV & WiFi signals, magnetic fields, gamma rays, etc.

Many buildings besides houses are said to be haunted, notably The Comedy Store in West Hollywood, where I experienced the most dramatic poltergeist activity while I was there in the afternoon for traffic school.

I have 3 separate ghost stories that concern myself, my father and some friends, so I do believe there are things in this world that we will never understand. Reading through the posts above where people have spoken with their hauntings made me realize that speaking to the spirit tells it you know it's there, you know it needs help, and it's time to leave. I did that with my kitchen ghost who used to rattle the dishes drying in the rack (we didn't have a dishwasher back then). This used to happen at least once a week, I'd always go in and check the dishes weren't just settling. In fact I couldn't replicate that sound myself. So I came to accept that a former resident in apartment was haunting my kitchen. When my nieces came to stay at Christmas, the dishes were especially active. I told the ghost that I have help now, my nieces are here and she's welcome to go now. I thanked her for her help and said goodbye. That was the end of the rattling dishes, never heard it again.

i want to add that this was a Muslim country. My business partner who is Muslim was very worried when I mentioned the kitchen ghost. He told me that there are readings from the Koran that can dispel ghosts. I am not religious at all. But hey if it works...

Last year an off season tenant committed suicide in my winter home. I had no idea how this would effect me once I got there. After all, anyone to take their life in such a violent manner was not a happy soul. The first day I went in with my sister there was a huge crash...a heavy mirror fell off the wall....the screw had come loose. Other than the smell, which was that of old blood, that permeated everything nothing made me feel uncomfortable. The entire house (thanks to the insurance co) was painted, flooring replaced, every surface cleaned including a/c ducts and upholstered furniture. I never once felt anything bizarre. People suggested burning sage, but I felt it was't needed. Had I felt at all uncomfortable I would definitely have sold the house.

BTW, in FL when selling there is no legal obligation to mention anything that may have taken place in the home.

No way!

No, I wouldn't buy any property I felt to have negative energy, what other people might call "haunted" (although I rather dislike that term). Resale value aside, if a property affected me strongly I'd have it investigated & evaluated by others with more skill before I'd even consider buying it.

Re hospital hauntings, there's plenty to be read about Linda Vista Community Hospital in Loma Linda, Waverly Hills Sanatorium in Louisville, & Tooele Hospital in Utah. These are well-known sites with long histories, & the list goes on. Re the Sharon Tate house, again there have been numerous investigations utilizing various types of equipment that detected unexplained activity on that parcel of land (the original Tate house was torn down & a new home built on the same lot, now known as the Oman house).

Since childhood I've had experiences in various locations, although people who know me would describe me as an extremely analytical "logical" thinker. Logic (& the field of psychiatry) dictates that feelings shouldn't always be totally dismissed. "Gut feeling" or intuition could be a conclusion drawn by subconscious evaluation, so a conscious explanation isn't readily forthcoming. There are underlying reasons for gut feelings that deserve attention.

People have varying degrees of sensitivity to the energies around them, ranging from zero to very strong. Some people never possessed or have totally repressed their innate sensitivity, & they'll never experience anything considered paranormal (I'd compare it to color-blindness). It's dismaying that non-sensitives sometimes express judgmental statements & are dismissive or even derogatory towards those who are sensitive. Not personally seeing or feeling something doesn't equate to iron-clad proof of non-existence (gamma radiation, radio waves, & ultraviolet light come to mind); the most that can be said is "I don't know if it exists or not." Uncategorical denial is illogical in itself, because it has no basis in unassailable fact/proof: one would have to be able to prove beyond reasonable doubt that every single image, recording, & experience other people have reported was caused by natural known phenomena. One has to be careful of confirmation bias & not draw conclusions based only on what one wants to believe or disbelieve. In rhetoric this is known as the logical fallacy of argument from incredulity, that one's personal belief towards a premise is a logical reason for acceptance or rejection. Personal belief in & of itself does not establish proof of fact one way or the other.

As far as describing oneself as being "logical", a logical person observes things, gathers & investigates whatever facts are available, & gives the findings careful consideration with as little bias as possible. Logic doesn't automatically dismiss something out of hand just because it can't be physically seen or otherwise experienced personally. Imho, many people don't admit paranormal experiences solely because they're worried about being judged & belittled by others. Being accused of being "illogical" negatively implies lack of intelligence, emotional stability, &/or education. Statistically speaking, there are simply too many people who've reported incidents all over the world in every culture & every time frame to completely dismiss all paranormal events as imaginary, or to accuse every single reporting person of not being "logical". If nothing else, those reports at least have to be acknowledged as being a valid part of the human condition. Any thinking person should admit that what we don't know far outweighs what little we do know about the universe.

Presently we lack the scientific tools to measure & therefore provide proof defining/explaining certain energies - but there are a lot of people working on developing those tools. Thermal imaging cameras have recorded evidence at the very least providing proof of some kind of anomaly, whether we can explain it or not. There are many video & audio recordings that have been examined by field experts confirming they haven't been staged or tampered with. Although the recordings are interpreted subjectively, they still have no "logical" scientific explanation.

Well, I've rambled on enough, far outside the bounds of the simple question posed by a home decor site :-)

I have never experienced evil threatening to my person spirits. I'm curious though, why do those who are open not ask for protection from positive guardian spirits? If there are bad spirits there are also good spirits.

Yes, buy it. I never met a dead person that I didn't like, the living on the other hand......

I smudged our new home because, upon discussion with a person who is a member of a First Nations tribe, I believed it appropriate and they confirmed it would be. I knew that while the home is less than a decade old the land is yet another part of the country that was taken from the First Nations peoples and as such it is bound to have history of conflict and blood - we actually live in a subdivision named after one of the better known Omaha/Lakota/Winnebago leaders. So, even though we are not First Nations we wanted to make sure we would effectively show respect for the land, that we planned to be good stewards of the gift we have been fortunate to receive, and that the good spirits would always be welcomed but not the bad. It’s important to learn the customs and recognize why you can do one thing but not others, such as only burning white sage and not also sweet grass or cedar which the First Nations believe confuse the spirits while just white sage does not. And it’s also important to be mindful of your intent when doing things like smudging - a respectful attitude and kind heart demonstrate you are speaking truth without the taint of deceit. In the end it’s because I’m pretty much a beacon for all sorts of things that we decided we should smudge our home to protect it and ourselves and then set out to do it in the proper manner that respected those who hold and held the belief in its being sacred ancestral land.

So, even though we were both raised in Protestant homes, it’s possible to peacefully coexist and honor other spiritual/religious customs without losing ones own, you simply have to want to try, and, seek the advice of the ‘experts’ who have the knowledge you do not when it comes to those other customs and beliefs. It’s even possible to reconcile science and logic with beliefs in things unknown or unseen, to understand that what we do know or can prove isn’t incompatible with faith.

My dear friend is Oneida (Native American), and I asked whether she was a believer in bad spirits. She said she was always taught that if you live a good life with good intentions you shouldn't have to worry about them. She's a grounded, no-nonsense woman, so I took that advice to heart.

@Jenn Codename:Danger What the hell is smudging?

Blue Wren, 'smudging' is a ritual that is performed to purify a space, the burning of sage smokes drives away negative vibes. This is something that First Nation peoples and others use in various occasions.

My house was investigated and the tapes sent to a university with a paranormal department. They say it's haunted. I don't think it's haunted but strange things do happen on occasion. For example, one morning I was in bed reading and I swore a heard a girl's voice at the foot of my bed. The dogs were on my bed and started to growl. Nothing earth shattering- but weird.

I'm curious though, why do those who are open not ask for protection from positive guardian spirits?

In Catholicism, these are Guardian Angels. Everyone has them, and pregnant women have two (hers plus her preborn baby's). I have 6 young children, and am *always* thanking God and their guardian angels, lol.

Saints are often asked for prayers for specific intentions (just as you would ask a friend to pray for you), a "saint" simply being someone in Heaven. God is always given full credit, though, even if others helped you petition for help.

LOVE this thread.

To answer your question on our 8 day stay... The cats and small children refused to go upstairs unattended. You could hear distinct footsteps on the upper floor if you were downstairs, despite no one being up there. There was a basement that just emanated a bad vibe. Our fish tank froze nearly solid, killing all the fish, despite the rooms not being unbearably cold. The water heater pilot refused to stay lit. We had the plumber out 7 days in a row. Now, I realize not all of this has to be ghost related, but those 8 days were the worst 8 days I have ever spent anywhere. The final straw was at one point, my sister and I were in the living room, which was connected to a grand foyer. The living room shook violently, and our first instinct, being in California was that this was an earthquake. We walked out of the living room into the foyer, and there was no shaking.. back to the living room, more violent shaking. It was literally, somehow, just the living room shaking. Even the shaking I could have handled had it not been for an overwhelming feeling of whatever was there wanted us out.

My current home has a black figure that can be seen walking around from time to time. I once scolded it for coming home at 5am (thinking it was my teenage daughter passing my bedroom.) It stopped at my doorway, took its lecture and moved on. I woke up at 9am to find that I was the only one home. When she returned an hour later, we got into a huge argument because I insisted it was her. She insisted she was where she was suppose to be until arriving home at 10am. My middle child sees the black figure quite often. My husband and I have only seen it a handful of times, but the feeling of ill intent is not there, if that makes sense.

I’d say that the current situation you have, @dee, is just someone who is attached to the home they once occupied (or at least the property is where they once lived) so they stuck around - as long as it’s not scaring anyone or presenting as someone(thing) that it is not to form an unhealthy connection to any of the living people in your house, you should be okay. If that changes, do what you feel necessary to protect you and your family without hesitation or waiting to see if it gets worse - don’t need to go through that kind of thing.

I have to admit that your scolding it for coming in at 5am and the response was not the standard teenager reaction made me laugh, thinking “well it’s not a sulky teen at least”!

Love this thread. I went to Catholic school and we visited Mundelein Seminary in Chicagoland in 8th grade. At one time, they had priests who were trained in exorcism. We went to the library where one of the priests did all of his research. There was a DEFINITE cold/creepy vibe about that room compared to all others. It was enough that I refused to walk across the threshold into the room. The story went that he eventually was so overcome that he threw himself out the window and died.

Hey all, Our editorial team got a kick out of your stories and some of you are now featured in a Houzz article. Check it out! https://www.houzz.com/magazine/would-you-live-in-a-haunted-house-stsetivw-vs~95221904

I'm loving reading these stories...better than a book of haunted short stories!

When we were house hunting, we went looking at a couple homes that were strange. One house was a foreclosure and empty so we were just looking around the outside by ourselves. It had a breezeway between the garage and the house and was unlocked so I opened the door and went in, as I entered the area, I heard blood curdling screaming which sounded like a group of people screaming. I quickly went out the back screen door being shaken by the screaming. Once out the back door, on the back porch was a dead black bird. I told my husband about the screaming and he was outside and heard absolutely NOTHING. There was no screaming outside...no noises of any people making any sounds could be heard outside. Needless to say, we got the heck out of dodge!

Then we were looking at homes with our realtor and when I went inside of one home, I couldn't stay inside of the house. I just had to get out of there. I'd never felt that in a house tour before. I was like "NOPE, cross that one off the list". That house just totally creeped me out!

We ended up buying a home across the street and a few homes down from that house. We love our home and it's a bright and cheery home. I even love going down in the basement and piddling around. The only thing here that's happened is every once in a while, we will smell cigarette smoke for a few minutes. Kind of feel like maybe the old man that used to own the home is coming to check on us...or maybe someone is smoking next door and the smell is coming in the house. Most likely...HA!

I know some family members that have had real ghostly encounters and they are people that know would never make up stuff. They are also strong Christian people that live wholesome Christian lives. One person in particular is my sister, her husband is a Baptist Preacher and she's straight as an arrow. They lived in a country farm house for a while that was very old when the kids were young. They had chairs slide across the floor in the dining room. The kids had trinkets fly off of shelves across their bedroom. Like they were being thrown at them.

My in laws rented a home for a year when they were between homes that they owned. This house had all sorts of weird stuff. The young toddler screaming at what seemed to be nothing but it appeared the child saw something that scared him. The dogs barked at imaginary things. TV would go on and off and change channels when they watched. Things would fly off of counters in the bathroom. They would hear people talking. The worst thing that happened though is during the night, their young son was thrown out of bed and the mattress was thrown on top of him, the clock radio started going with the radio blaring and would not shut off even after they unplugged it. They only stayed for as long as their lease as up. My sister in law blessed the house and put crosses up over all the entrances. It did help. I had spent a few nights in that house and did not feel or see or hear anything but that was after the crosses and blessing.

I did, but didn't know it at the time. It was our previous house, built in 1902. The ghost didn't show itself until our youngest daughter left for college. We had been in the house about 20 years by that time and she was born when we lived there. It started with the tv turning on by itself in the downstairs living room. Lights turning on by themselves. One night we were in the upstairs master watching tv before falling asleep with the tv still going. When I woke up several hours later the tv was on (ready for this), channel 13! It was a Steven King movie called Overdrive. No, it had not been on that channel at all before we fell asleep. It was a small portable tv and we took it down in the basement to store. Another time, our daughter was home from college and a necklace she had put on her dresser disappeared. No one else had been in her room. After that when we couldn't find something, we blamed our ghost. My husband also swears he had seen someone walk past our bedroom door several times (just a shadowy figure). We believe the ghost was upset that our daughter had left. It seemed to be a friendly ghost, just pulling pranks. Whenever something strange happened, we blamed it on our friendly ghost. We build a new home 2 years ago and so far have not had any reason to believe the ghost moved with us, we think it stayed at the old house. By the way, a previous owner (an elderly lady who lived in there alone for many years) died in one of the bedrooms.

Yes, I would and did. I bought it before I heard the rumors. The day I moved in, after a few weeks of doing some minor remodeling, I was exhausted and during the night I "had a dream" (or met the ghost) & told him to get lost. Whichever it was, I saged the house the next day, and never heard from him again. The house itself was in need of one major repair, a rain leak. As some of you know, they are the "devil" to find. But I did some reconnaissance and found the cause. I lived in the house about 2 years and sold it for reasons other than ghosts and leaks. It was a wonderful experience, and I have great memories. It's posted on my website with a brief description and more photos, http://www.ferriszoedesign.com/eclectic.html

My dream home: a creepy haunted fixer-upper next to a cemetery! I want to believe that there is some type of afterlife. My home would be welcome to all!

I get creeped out enough when I'm home alone in my house that isn't haunted, I would never by a house someone said was haunted, true or not I think it would get in my head to much.

We bought the house that belonged to our neighbour. She was an elderly lady who had health problems and with no close family, so we looked after her a bit in the last five years or so of her life and especially as she neared the end. She always intended for us to buy her property when the time came, as it is next door to the farm owned by my husband's parents with whom we farm. She died in her home, and my husband was the one who found her. We were fortunate to be able to purchase the property even though there were other interested parties. Although the house would have been a tear-down for most buyers we elected to completely gut and restore it. Since she finished her life in her home, the entire contents were in the house. And since she had no close family, it was left to us to sort, discard, sell, use everything from the 40 years she and her husband had lived here.

I often felt her presence when we first moved in, but I know she wanted us to live here and I like to think she appreciates that we are respectful of her treasured objects. When our children expressed concerns about her still being here, I reminded them that she was a friend and she wants us here, so if she is still here we will be just as generous as she is and not be scared of our friend. For the first few weeks I would occasionally get a "hit" when approaching her bedroom door "shh...she's sleeping" so I would go away for a bit until the sensation passed. And I would always give a little tap on the door before I entered. I rarely sense that anymore. Maybe she has moved on or relaxed, maybe my psyche has adjusted to the new home. I told her about each thing we decided to get rid of and apologized if they were sentimental items (photos, clothing, etc.). When I'm using something of hers that I really love, I thank her for the enjoyment I get from it. When her flowers pop up in the yard I take a moment to really focus on her and feel gratitude. When we break something that was hers, I apologize for that. I don't know for certain that she can sense this, but I do know that I would like to be respected in these ways.

I had a couple of ghostly experiences as a child. They were actually less frightening than my own imagination!

Yes. I've lived in 2 different homes with "presences". The 1 st one, I was single and frequently saw an older couple on the 2nd floor. They never chose to have any interaction with me and usually immediately went up the attic stairway when I approached. The only thing that was ever bothersome, was they insisted that the one bedroom door remain closed. Even if I had it open with a doorstop holding it, I'd come upstairs to find the doorstop moved and the door closed. I had a girl friend that hated going upstairs in the home because she said it "felt funny" up there. I never told her about the couple.

The house we live in now had a "presence" when we first purchased it. We were planning on a major renovation, though there had been talk by other interested parties in tearing down the home. I took time one afternoon when I was there alone to talk to it. I explained I was there measuring the rooms because we owned the home now and were going to repair the home so it could stand another 150 years. Apparently, it was comfortable with our plans, because I've never felt the "presence" since that day 7 years ago.

I do believe in spirits, but do not think that is a negative when purchasing a home.

@ldstarr

Given how common it is for things to be stirred up when major renovations start, I think your ‘talk’ was a smart move!

It's Wednesday, 11/8/2017 and I'm still revisiting this thread hoping for MORE ghost stories!!!!!!!!!!!