Matt Sabourin and his two roommates think they finally have an explanation for two permanent, rusty-red stains on their basement floor.
“Concrete is porous, so this could definitely be blood,” says Sabourin.
That’s the theory, anyway, because the three recently discovered their rental home was once the site of a grisly murder/suicide.
It happened over 50 years ago. A 40-year-old woman was shot and killed by her estranged husband who then turned the rifle on himself. Their bodies were found the next day in the basement.
“There were two people murdered,” says roommate Pete Johnson. “There are two mysterious red stains. So, two and two, you know?”
“It’s kind of surreal to hear something like that about the place in which you’re living,” adds Jordan Sheldrick.
Landlords are not obligated to tell buyers or renters about murders. The three tenants say it’s unlikely their landlord, or anyone in the neighourhood, even knew about the decades-old crime. They only found out via a relatively new Ottawa-based website called Housecreep.com.
It was founded by Albert Armieri and his brother after they had trouble researching the histories of their own potential homes. “There’s a lot of information that is publically available,” says Armieri. “But it’s the task of bringing it all together, consolidating all that information.”
Housecreep.com relies on members around the world, called creeps, to help build the database. The entries are moderated for authenticity and, whenever possible, linked to media reports. Armieri says many of his creeps are actually real estate agents who use the website as a tool. “I encourage everybody to become a creep,” he jokes.
So far the site has amassed back-stories on almost 25-thousand addresses. They range from murders to marijuana grow-ops to alleged hauntings.
Matt Sabourin’s two roommates say they find the revelation of a 50-year-old murder/suicide fascinating. They even held a séance to reach out to the previous owner. “We went down to the basement near the blood stains,” says Pete Johnson. “We all sat in a circle and held hands.”
Nothing happened. In fact, they say the house has been unremarkably normal ever since they moved in.
But Sabourin says living there hasn’t been the same since he found out. “If I had the choice and I’d known this happened in the basement I definitely would hot have stayed here,” he says.
Once his lease is up he’s planning on moving out. Thanks to Housecreep.com, he now finds his house just a little too creepy.
What do you think of Housecreep? Would you want to know if someone died in your home? Let us know.
