Japan's real estate market has birthed an unusual new profession: paid haunted house sitters. Property owners are paying brave individuals 88,000 yen (approximately Rs 52,000) to spend the night in homes with tragic pasts. By doing so, owners hope to prove to wary buyers and tenants that the properties are safe from supernatural activity. The service aims to revitalize interest in thousands of "jiko bukken" (stigmatized properties) that currently sit vacant due to superstitious buyer hesitation.
According to The Times, a jiko bukken is a home where someone died in disturbing circumstances, such as murder, suicide, a fatal fire or a "lonely death", when an elderly person dies alone and is not discovered for days or even weeks. Japanese law requires estate agents to disclose such histories to prospective buyers or tenants, making many people reluctant to move in. That is where the overnight investigators come in.
They spend the night inside the property while monitoring it with cameras and other equipment. If nothing unusual happens, they issue a certificate stating that no paranormal activity was detected. Some companies even promise compensation if a verified haunting is later proved after they have declared a property ghost-free.
The service is becoming increasingly popular as Japan struggles with a growing number of vacant homes. An ageing population, declining birth rate and migration to cities have left millions of houses empty across the country. Stigmatised properties often remain vacant for years and are usually sold or rented at discounts of 20 to 50 per cent compared with similar homes.
For bargain hunters, these discounted homes have become an attractive option, especially as property prices continue to rise. The ghost investigation service aims to remove the psychological fear attached to such homes and help landlords find tenants more easily.
According to The Economist, demand for these once-shunned properties is also growing because affordability has become a bigger concern than superstition for many younger buyers. The strange profession has become one of Japan's most unusual niches, blending real estate with ghost hunting in an effort to bring abandoned homes back into use.
