Stigmatized’ Properties Can They Offer Big Bargains

Real estate ad offers 'explosive' deal next to Barrie bomb house

In Canada recently, most notably Barrie, Ontario - CBC reports A real estate agent is defending her ad for an "explosive deal" on the house next door to a bomb-filled Barrie home. 

The Royal Lepage listing, which Ivy Kana said she placed in the Barrie Examiner, reads as follows: 

"AN EXPLOSIVE DEAL!! Only $279,000
28 Virgilwood Cres.

Soon to be BOMB FREE and ready for showings again . . . why not live next to the famous house in Barrie. Neighbours have bonded through this and why not be welcomed into this community. Call now to book your showing!"

The real estate agent said most people have had positive responses to the ad, including the owner of 28 Virgilwood.

"It was a play on words, that's all," said Kana, adding that none of the bombs have hurt anyone. "It was just meant to be catchy to be quite honest."

"The whole ad is just trying to put a better spin on a doom and gloom situation." 

Police announced Thursday afternoon that they'd completed their sweep of neighbouring 30 Virgilwood Cr., where more than 80 explosive devices were found during a murder investigation involving the homeowners.

Neighbours were given the green light to return to their residences after a weeklong evacuation.

Kana's ad was meant to appear after the immediate threat had been diffused.
But on Friday police announced an additional cache of chemicals was discovered in the home's basement and some residents were once again evacuated.

"It's in the paper - it's done," said Kana of the overlap.

"I do apologize sincerely to anyone who was offended by the ad," she said. "We're not malicious people."

Among those unimpressed by the ad wasMichael Loyst, the CBC reader who sent a photograph of it to the CBC Community team. Michael said the pitch was in "poor taste," and wondered if it was "too soon" for such an angle.

But others were amused, and even had kind words for Kana.

"Love the new ad. [It was] clever and well played up. Nice to see some comic relief, hopefully people start to appreciate it too!" said Sadie Patterson on Kana's Facebook page.

Kana stressed that the property is still in a great neighbourhood and that the property owner she works with put his home on the market before the bomb threat investigation began.

"It's sad for the person who has to sell the home, but you have to make the best of a bad situation," she said, stressing that the homeowner thought the edgier angle was "great."

"It's got to be marketed it in a different way now."

Still, in light of the response, Kana said she will be re-thinking the marketing strategy and likely won't run the same ad again.

What do you make of the ad? Would you be interested in a good property deal despite an unattractive neighbour?


Meanwhile...Daily Real Estate News Reports...

Home buyers who can stomach some misfortune in a home’s past may be able to find big discounts. For example, buyers can expect to pay 10 percent to 25 percent off the regular market home price for a stigmatized home, according to real estate consultant Randall Bell of Bell Anderson & Saunders. And depending on how bad the crime was that occurred at the home, the more a home buyer can expect in discount to the price. 

"In large, it all comes down to finding the right discount to entice a buyer to accept the property along with its tainted history," Bell told AOL Real Estate. 

But for some, the crime that happened may be too much to stomach, regardless of the big discount. Some buyers worry about the resale value and what others will think too. Also, homes where crimes took place tend to linger on the market from two to seven years longer than they would without a tainted past, according to Bell. 

For example, a Southern California mansion that was the place where 39 cult members from Heaven’s Gate killed themselves sold for $668,000 two years following the suicides, which was less than half of the $1.6 million list price before the suicides occurred. Also, the home where O.J. Simpson’s ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman was killed lingered on the market for two years before selling for $590,000—$200,000 less than the initial asking price. 

However, some buyers say they are willing to overlook a home’s shady past. "It may have a terrible history," says Chris Butler, who purchased a split-level ranch nestled in a forest in Akron, Ohio, that once belonged to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and was the site of Dahmer’s first murder. "But the house didn't kill anybody."