What is your best horror story

[NHunsicker]

Mr Rex. I don't guess it was that as mine bugger was fatter and fuzzy like a bumble and had short wings. Looked like a drunk flying along. Had seen it buzzin around earlier but I guess it snuck up behind me 'cause it got caught between my elbow and my side when I reached back to unsnap by tool belt. (i know tool belt doesn't look very professional but I'm a big clutz and can't hold everything in just 2hands).

I actually just recently had an inspection where some little bug I didn't get a good look at took a bite ought of my hand. It swelled up for a few hours and hurt like crazy, but then went back down to normal. Never had a reaction to a bite like that before.

 

[ghrousseau]

Some other fun ones:

The Elvis Room.......with gold bust, paintings, shrine, and memorabilia

The numerous "floaters" left in the bathroom

The bedroom that had an outdoor cat run attached to the house and 50 angry cats hissing when I opened the bedroom door. Almost passed out from the smell

The REO property I was doing just after the eviction............Jamaican lady trying to get a lock of my hair for a curse........at least that's what I was told

My favorites are always the cross dressing homeowners and the tinfoil hat crowd.

Once saw a coffin as a coffee table.............I didn't bother to look......but I wanted to :laugh:

 

[KenRossman]

a few favorites

 

[Deleted member 77547]

a few favorites

Apparently one can be a Christmas decoration hoarder. That's pretty obnoxious.

I've done several hoarder homes and once inspected three hoarder homes in one week. Some of them were so bad I had to go home and shower and I couldn't function for a couple hours after the inspection from the stench/trauma that I encountered.

 

[ockyappraiser]

two come to mind:

I arrived at one inspection in the "west end" of our metro area. The neighbors meet me and ask "you aren't going in there are you"? They then go on to tell me that the neighborhood watches every night as racoons, opposums and other critters go in and out of the house. Then the owner meets me. When I tell him my concerns his reply "its okay, I brought my gun"!

The other. . .creepier.

the owner meets me at asks me if it will impact that value if the house is haunted. Then she follows me through telling me not to be concerned if doors lock behind me, open and close, things slam or KNIVES FLY PAST MY HEAD!". Needless to say I kept my eye on that lady. After leaving I had to call back. . .the answering machine message had the standard greeting. . .then a greeting for "THE OTHERS WHO ARE LISTENING".

 

[Hamlet]

a few favorites

It always creeps me out when I see groceries in other rooms and toilet paper in the kitchen. Eeeeewwwwww.

 

[23Degrees]

One of the worst I ever saw was a home in LA owned by a former TV actor. This was the only time I could not complete an inspection due to fear for personal safety. Place was in horrible disrepair and was one of the worst pack rat cases I had ever seen. I could not make my way around the exterior due to unstable mickeymouse lean to’s and unstable decking with precipitous drops.

The guy did apologize for appearances and I guess he had an OK excuse – “In the 70’s when I was working on (fill in popular 1970’s TV series here), I was making 10 grand a week. Then they cancelled the show and I haven’t made a dime since.”

 

[Kristina Ledesma]

the owner meets me at asks me if it will impact that value if the house is haunted. Then she follows me through telling me not to be concerned if doors lock behind me, open and close, things slam or KNIVES FLY PAST MY HEAD!". Needless to say I kept my eye on that lady. After leaving I had to call back. . .the answering machine message had the standard greeting. . .then a greeting for "THE OTHERS WHO ARE LISTENING".

Reminds me of one home I did built in 1832, homeowner who appeared to be a rather reputable individual, informed me she would not go into the cistern room. Apparently, "something" kept moving her stuff around in there...and she lives alone. She was a little worried that one might give her a shove into the cistern. Which was a creepy thing-right out of silence of the lambs...still have the photo (attached).

 

[Darrell Hignite]

Finally some real horror stories:

I have done houses with

1. 57 dogs
2. Ten dogs, and a live rooster in the kitchen
3. many foreclosures with everything missing including sheetrock
4. kicked a grenade in one foreclosure, ran out the door and lived

but this is the one that I will never forget:

I was hired to appraise a house a short distance (20) miles for a new client,
the REALTOR left a key under the mat, I proceeded to inspect the property and
must have yelled 50-60 times "Is anyone home", I quickly left the home and proceeded back to my office. The value was about $15,000 above the sales price, so I called the Realtor and she kept asking me "Did anything happen at the house?" I finally told her that I was very uncomfortable there and it seemed to me that someone was running in my peripheral vision. She told me, "You know who's house that is?" I told her no, and she told me that it was a very popular story that became two tv movies where students were playing dungeons and dragons and one of the players had killed the father and almost killed the mother of another player. Needless to say, from that day forward, "I FEEL DEAD PEOPLE!"

I can't go anywhere without being aware of the other side.

Names were changed to protect the innocent.

 

[Viking]

I don't know if this qualifies as a nightmare, but this guy was growing 1200 illegal plants in his house. When he was caught this turned into an REO property. This is in a good suburban neighborhood.