How to Find Out if Someone Has Died in Your House
Every home has a history, but not all of it is easy to overlook. When a death has occurred on the property, it raises questions, stirs emotions, and in certain states, even affects the legal side of the deal.
So how do you know if your dream house has a story you weren’t planning on inheriting? The answer depends on where you live, how much research you’re willing to do, and how far you’re willing to dig into the past.
What the Law Says
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Disclosure rules vary widely. In California, for example, sellers must tell you about any death in the home that happened within the past three years. South Dakota and Alaska only require disclosure of violent deaths. In states like South Carolina, sellers aren’t required to say anything at all.
This patchwork of laws means the responsibility often falls on the buyer to ask the right questions. Once you ask directly, real estate agents are bound to answer truthfully if they know. It’s tricky because not every seller or agent will have the information, especially if the home is older or has had many owners. That’s where your own detective work comes in.
The First Steps
Neighbors can be surprisingly helpful, so start by going local. They’ve often seen families move in and out, and they may remember events that weren’t widely reported. Knocking on doors might feel awkward, but it’s one of the fastest ways to learn about a property’s past.
Then, hit the internet. A quick Google search of the exact address, with quotation marks around it, can pull up news reports, real estate listings, or archived stories tied to that location. Don’t stop at the first page of results; older articles may still be online but buried deep. Social media can also surface neighborhood chatter that isn’t in formal records.
If online searches don’t give you answers, public records might. Death certificates in the United States list where a person passed away, and local vital records offices keep that data. Libraries and historical societies also hold archives of newspapers, which can reveal if a death at the home ever made it into print. While some libraries have digitized their collections, in many cases, you’ll be scrolling microfilm like it’s 1989.
If you know the names of past owners, you can cross-check their obituaries to see if the place of death matches your property’s address. It takes patience, but it often turns up details.
Paid Tools and Services
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Some websites now specialize in this exact concern. DiedInHouse.com is the most well-known and offers reports that include deaths, fires, and even drug activity tied to an address. It costs about $12 per search.
NeighborWho takes a broader approach by giving property history and ownership details for a monthly fee of around $35, which may also include death information.
Crowd-sourced platforms like HouseCreep.com are another option. Users share stories and records about properties with unusual or tragic histories, which can be useful if your address shows up in the database. While not official, these reports often provide leads that you can verify elsewhere.
If a home’s history is a dealbreaker and you don’t trust your own research, private investigators can take on the job. They use a mix of public records, paid databases, and old-fashioned digging to trace past events tied to a property. It costs more than running a quick online search, but for buyers who need certainty before closing, it’s the most thorough option.
The Price of a Tragic Past
Some buyers need to know whether someone died in the house for their comfort. Moving into a space with a tragic past can affect how you feel living there, regardless of discounts or square footage. It could also be about transparency on the property’s true value.
Non-natural deaths, such as homicide or suicide, can reduce a home’s value by 10 to 25 percent, according to some real estate estimates. In contrast, deaths from natural causes usually have no impact on price or resale.