Owning a home is a dream come true for many people. If you want to afford a typical home in the US now, you need to earn $120,000. Back in early 2020, you needed an income of just $63,000. With how expensive (and limited) property is in this day and age, putting down a deposit feels like a massive leap forward.
And when you finally get your keys and unlock the front door, it’s like the start of a new era. However, unless it is a completely new building, you might find some surprises, shocks, and mysteries inside. Homeowners spilled the tea about the strangest, creepiest, and most outlandish discoveries they made inside their homes, and we’ve collected their best stories to share with you. Secret rooms? Hidden panels? We’ve got all of this and more.
#1
The previous owner's wife had passed away not long before we purchased the house. About a week after we took possession, the realtor called us and asked if we'd found the owner's wife's wedding ring in the master bedroom closet. We had not. A few years later, we were cleaning on top of the kitchen cabinets and found the ring. Why it was on top of the kitchen cabinets we will never know. We were able to track down the owner and return it, however.
70points
#2
My cousin found an honest to gosh hidden room. A bookshelf swung forward and revealed an unfinished place under the stairs. It had a water glass and some star wars books from 1996 in it.
63points
#3
We bought our house in September last year. About this time last year our cat started playing with this little wooden thing he found. We had no idea what he was playing with but when we walked over to see what it was, it turned out to be a little Dreidle. We had never seen it before but that's when our cat let us know he was Jewish.
62points
The reality is that your deposit, mortgage, and utilities aren’t the only costs you’ll have to cover when you finally own property. There are lots of hidden costs that can really hit your wallet where it hurts if you’re a first-time homeowner.
Investopedia explains that some hidden costs, such as property taxes, fees, and homeowners’ insurance, are routine and inescapable. Meanwhile, other costs like upkeep and repair are unpredictable and occasional.
Some of the highest costs of homeownership are related to roof upkeep and repairs, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), electrical systems, and plumbing.
#4
I have a painting from a famous Cambodian artist named Nhek Diem. It is apparently the first painting he won an award for at an international exhibition, and made his reputation. He later studied at the Disney studios, returned to Cambodia, and disappeared during the rule of the Khmer Rouge. Found in the back closet of a trailer house I bought in ~2002.
If I had listened to other family members, I would have tossed it. But I liked it. Now, my hope is that it makes it somewhere that Cambodian people who would appreciate it can see it, and not on the wall of some corrupt official.
The national art museum of Singapore had someone who expressed interest in a purchase, but I lost their email and still am unsure what would be best for the painting and secondly for me. I was going to put it on some kind of perpetual loan it to the national galley of Cambodia, but was advised against that because that organization is only interested in Angkor Wat era art, and subject to the whims of connected government officials.
I am from multiple generations of poor white trash, and we don't have any experience on how to handle stuff that we own that might be of interest to decent folk, and the tax implications of such. I am not looking to become rich off this painting, nor do I think it can do so for me. I just want to do what is right by the Cambodian people, the unfortunately deceased artist, and myself, as best I possibly can. This painting is a cultural product of Cambodia, and has probably spent the last half-century in American obscurity.
If I had listened to other family members, I would have tossed it. But I liked it. Now, my hope is that it makes it somewhere that Cambodian people who would appreciate it can see it, and not on the wall of some corrupt official.
The national art museum of Singapore had someone who expressed interest in a purchase, but I lost their email and still am unsure what would be best for the painting and secondly for me. I was going to put it on some kind of perpetual loan it to the national galley of Cambodia, but was advised against that because that organization is only interested in Angkor Wat era art, and subject to the whims of connected government officials.
I am from multiple generations of poor white trash, and we don't have any experience on how to handle stuff that we own that might be of interest to decent folk, and the tax implications of such. I am not looking to become rich off this painting, nor do I think it can do so for me. I just want to do what is right by the Cambodian people, the unfortunately deceased artist, and myself, as best I possibly can. This painting is a cultural product of Cambodia, and has probably spent the last half-century in American obscurity.
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51points
#5
Moved into an old house in Berkshire, UK, and found a bible from the 1700s in the attic. In the back was handwritten the history of the early owners. The Church in the village was 12th century and had all the records so so we tracked down the modern descendants and gave them the bible.
50points
#6
A cat..the house we purchased had a closet under the basement staircase. During the final walk through I felt the compulsion to open the door out of curiosity. Seeing that it was a closet with no light I decided to shine a light to see how far back it went, in most narrow part I saw two glowing eyes and was able to make out the outline of a cat. When we called the owners thinking they’d be so relieved, they had acted surprised saying “we searched all over for him, and had just figured we ran away during the move”. As we proceeded with the closing procedures, they continuously offered for us to take the cat saying their apartment wouldn’t allow pets and they had no where to take him. It got to the point where our realtor had to tell them to stop. I like to imagine it’s all happen stance and they didn’t just decide to lock the poor cat up in a closet for us to find.
The worst part is, we didn’t move into the house until a few days later. If I hadn’t randomly decided to shine my flashlight inside the closet, that poor cat would have suffered.
The worst part is, we didn’t move into the house until a few days later. If I hadn’t randomly decided to shine my flashlight inside the closet, that poor cat would have suffered.
46points
Furthermore, where you live matters a lot. For example, in areas that are more at risk of natural disasters, you can expect to pay lots more for insurance.
“Typically, homeowners insurance doesn't cover ‘acts of God,’ meaning that you'll need to purchase extra coverage against disasters like floods, hurricanes, and earthquakes. Even water damage from storms is very rarely covered in a basic homeowners policy,” Investopedia warns.
Moisture is a massive enemy of structural integrity. It attracts termites to the wood in your building. Meanwhile, damp and humid areas are wonderful for mold to spread its nastiness. If your HVAC system is contaminated, it can actually spread the mold throughout your entire home.
#7
After moving into our new house, we found around $14,000 behind the toilet. Apparently the person who lived in the house before us did not believe in banks.
42points
#8
A soldier's pocket bible, from 1861. Mint condition, gold-leafed.. with an inscription from his sister......
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33points
If you’re a homeowner, what are the weirdest, coolest, or most unsettling things that you’ve ever discovered in your property? Meanwhile, if you’re renting, what are the oddest or creepiest things you’ve found that the previous tenants left behind? What are the strangest things that your neighbors have ever done?
On the more grounded side of things, what are some unexpected and hidden homeownership costs that genuinely shocked you?
Share a few of your experiences in the comments after you’ve upvoted the stories you enjoyed the most.
#10
I found a hidden room. It was a big room that had been finished out, except for the central heat. When I say big, it was easily 15 ft x 30 ft.
Here is what was in the room:
* A boxing speed bag in the corner with a pair of boxing gloves hanging nearby.
* Over two dozen women’s wigs on fake heads.
* Two mannequins. Both of them were bare, but neither seemed to mind.
* About twenty garbage bags full of stuff.
* A pile of women’s panties/knickers. At least thirty pair.
* About twenty hat boxes.
Here is what was in the room:
* A boxing speed bag in the corner with a pair of boxing gloves hanging nearby.
* Over two dozen women’s wigs on fake heads.
* Two mannequins. Both of them were bare, but neither seemed to mind.
* About twenty garbage bags full of stuff.
* A pile of women’s panties/knickers. At least thirty pair.
* About twenty hat boxes.
32points
#11
When i was 16 my friends dad bought and sold houses and would pay us to clean them out. In one particular house we found a 2 man horse costume, a male blow up doll, bag of pot, and sockem boppers. Anyways we had a great weekend running around our neighbor hood in the horse costume with a blow up doll on top.
31points
#12
A .38 revolver, hidden in a closet. Had a police officer friend run the serial number. Turns out it was stolen in a home burglary in 1973. We found it in 1998.
30points
#13
Hanging on the wall in the unfinished, closed off part of the attic, we found a matted portrait of a man staring angelically off into space as he cradled a deer. Upon closer inspection we realized the man had an arrow through his hand where it lay over the deer, having protected it from injury. We call him Deer Man.
30points
#14
My mom bought her house 12 years ago, but last year my mentally unstable brother kicked the front door down. The door had a giant metal lock on it (it didn't work, we just used the deadbolt but kept the lock on because the house was built in 1795 and looked cool) the lock broke off and a bunch of little papers and cards fell out of it. Among them were CIA ID badges, business cards that had to do with cryptography, and other things that had to do with the CIA.
A few days later I thought I would look through the house in search of more CIA stuff, and stumbled upon a WWII explosive round under one of the floorboards in the attic. That week was wild.
A few days later I thought I would look through the house in search of more CIA stuff, and stumbled upon a WWII explosive round under one of the floorboards in the attic. That week was wild.
30points
#15
My kids found a crawl space up in a bedroom. They found Ken dolls with their hands melted and razors embedded. I did my best to lighten the freakishness and joked that Sid must have lived there.
28points
#16
My parents bought a home that used to be a funeral parlor almost 100 years ago. Dad had never questioned why there was a second bulkhead that went nowhere and when there was a bust pipe they finally had to cut it open
Inside we found a small walled off room that had hundreds of old bottles, odd equipment, chemicals/perfumed salts, stained glass windows from the original building and a few old ledgers + accounting books. Parents had no use for it and a local antique shop owner/town historian happily took it when offered.
We had received some cool old copies of photos of how the house originally looked a few years later.
Inside we found a small walled off room that had hundreds of old bottles, odd equipment, chemicals/perfumed salts, stained glass windows from the original building and a few old ledgers + accounting books. Parents had no use for it and a local antique shop owner/town historian happily took it when offered.
We had received some cool old copies of photos of how the house originally looked a few years later.
28points
#17
An old friend of mine grew up in the house I now own. I had no idea, but he struggled with severe mental illness from around high school on. His mom left a few boxes behind in the garage and one of them was full of all his old arrest info, letters from his parole officer, and most depressingly...a letter from the judge recommending he be remanded to a psychiatric facility instead of prison. Apparently he lived his adult years in a home for schizophrenics and died a few years ago. The whole thing was just very sad.
28points
#18
A mason jar was found on a shelf inside a bedroom closet above the door. It had piece of white fabric tape on it. Written on the tape was "Jay's Fart Jar". I didn't want to open it to confirm. It went right in the recycling bin.
28points
#19
My friend's dad bought a place to use as a rental property. It used to be a dentist's house. This dentist apparently brought home all the teeth he pulled.
The mailbox was on a concrete pillar. This concrete did not use pebbles as aggregate, it was full of human teeth. Hundreds, maybe thousands of them.
The mailbox was on a concrete pillar. This concrete did not use pebbles as aggregate, it was full of human teeth. Hundreds, maybe thousands of them.
28points
#20
A child-sized WWE belt. Despite purchasing my first home and now being several years worth of salary in debt for the first time, I was most interested in how I could possibly wear such a fine article of clothing to work the next day.
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27points