This weekend, when you go to the movies to check out James Wan’s The Conjuring 2 (and you should, because it’s great), you will be reminded – by the film’s opening sequence – that Ed and Lorraine Warren were the paranormal investigators who actually investigated the Amityville Horror house, one of the couple’s most famous cases. Instead of dedicating his entire sequel to the Warren’s Amityville case, Wan uses it to open his film, giving us a glimpse at the atrocities that occurred in that Long Island home. It’s a timely tale, as the actual Amityville house is back on the real estate market… though the realtor has a great reason why you shouldn’t buy it.
Good Morning America had a report on the home being for sale, noting that horror aficionados (or people who just want waterfront property outside of New York City) can claim the home for a cool $850,000. But the reason why you night want to think twice is laid out by Joanne Mills, broker and owner of Exit Family Realty, who gave this amazing quote about the perils of buying a "celebrity" haunted house:
There is a value to the fact that it is this famous house. It either creates much more interest, but most people wouldn't want it because of that. … [This] house is haunted, yes, but not by who you think. It's haunted by the curiosity seekers that make it difficult for the people that live there.
To this, I can attest. I actually grew up in Massapequa Park, a small Long Island town that sits right next to Amityville. And the story of the murders that took place in this home were the stuff of legend, more intense than the national interest that has been stirred, year after year, by the movies, books and news programs tied to The Amityville Horror. On Long Island, it was a rite of passage for teenagers to find the Amityville Horror house. We’d drive past it. We’d get out and approach it. We weren’t the only ones, by a long shot. It’s a constant tourist trap.
Mills confirms this, saying the interest in the haunted home has only increased in the age of social media:
When it sold last time, in '97, that was a different world. When it went on the market in 2010, it became international news. With social media and everything out there now, it resurfaced in a whole new way.
And it could even get worse after this weekend, with James Wan’s The Conjuring 2 shining a new light on the haunted abode. Truthfully, I can’t even look at the Zillow listing for this Amityville house without getting the chills. Look at those windows! Look at the boat house. Who’d go in there? Who’d ever want to buy that house?! Nope. No thanks. No way in hell.
