Let St. Joseph help you sell your home
From Zillow blog
By Inman News, Tuesday, July 17, 2012.
Fingers crossed image via Shutterstock.Editor's note: This article is reposted with permission of Zillow. View the original item: Can’t Sell Your Home? Bury a Saint
By BRENDON DeSIMONE
Don't look now, but St. Joseph might be buried in your backyard.
Not the saint, of course, but a statue of him. Through the years, St. Joseph has become the patron saint of real estate. People across the country, if not the globe, often bury a small St. Joseph statue in the yards of properties they hope to sell.
Many believe the statue will bring them good luck in selling the home. When real estate agents have listings that won't sell, they may stage some of the rooms, take new photos for the marketing materials, get the seller to move out, or remove items from the home and put them in storage. And of course, they may reduce the price. If all else fails, many agents turn to St. Joseph.
Origins of the tradition
While the tradition may sound campy, if not irreverent, it has plenty of followers. Many agents bury a statue of St. Joseph as soon as the "For Sale" sign goes up on the front lawn. There have been stories of homes sitting for months without an offer. And then, after St. Joseph is buried on the property, the offers come in.
The tradition has been going on for at least several hundred years. St. Joseph was the earthly father of Jesus and a carpenter. But it's not entirely clear how the practice of burying St. Joseph statues started. One tale suggests that nuns during the Middle Ages buried a St. Joseph medal and asked the saint to help them find land for a convent. Some believe German carpenters started the tradition centuries later by burying St. Joseph statues in the foundations of homes they built.
Where to bury the statue
However the tradition began, something else about it is unclear: Exactly how and where should St. Joseph be buried? Some believe the statue should be deep-sixed head down, facing the street. Others say St. Joseph should be buried facing the house. And those without a yard simply plant the saint in a flowerpot.
This much is certain: When the real estate market declines, sales of St. Joseph statues increase. "In the past, we've seen some upticks in sales of the kits whenever there's a sign that the housing market is on the skids," said Nicholas Cole, director of marketing for a Charlotte, N.C. company that sells religious items online. Cole was quoted by The New York Times in 2009 -- during a particularly low point of the real estate market.
Are you a St. Joseph statue believer now? If so, head over to Amazon.com, where you can buy a St. Joseph Home Seller Statue Kit for $8. Shovel not included.
More from Zillow Blog:
- About to Buy a New Home? Don’t Show These People
- 10 Things That Make a Home a Good Home
- 5 Things Not Necessarily Included in Your Home Purchase
- Rents Rise as More Americans Flock Back Into Cities
- How Much House Can You Get for $300K?
Copyright Zillow 2012
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Submitted by Stephen Chip on July 17, 2012 - 1:15pm.
They even sell an eco friendly kit - http://ecojoekits.com/
Submitted by Matthew Ferrara on July 18, 2012 - 5:00am.
Oh no! Please tell me Inman didn't just pick up this ridiculous post, too? It's bad enough that Zillow spread this junk yesterday, but reblogged on Inman, too? Agents who are working hard helping consumers make tough decisions must be shaking their heads.... And consumers deserve better than witchcraft articles. How disappointing.... What's next? We'll see Inman Next talking about a Ouija Board App for the iPad? Maybe my blog on it will encourage Inman to take this one down: http://www.matthewferrara.com/rssfeed/ouija_or_ipad/
Submitted by Matt Carter on July 18, 2012 - 10:08am.
Matthew, I can understand why the practice of sellers burying St. Joseph statues would appear to be a subject of dubious merit to real estate professionals. That doesn't mean it will go away if we ignore it. Inman News writers have also tackled this tradition many times over the years. Most recently, Tara-Nicholle Nelson had this to say about the practice:
"When it comes to selling homes, I have seen that many sellers, by the time they are motivated or even desperate enough to buy and bury a statue, are also motivated enough to reduce the price, uplevel their home's aesthetics, and correct the other issues that were keeping buyers from biting.
"Some will say that it is these other changes that St. Joseph-burying sellers tend to make at or near the same time as they put the statue in the ground that actually caused the house to move -- not the statue itself. But, I say, if you want or need to bury a statue for peace of mind, go for it -- it probably can't hurt. Just don't neglect what we know works -- and that's staging, primping and price-cutting."