When you ask paranormal investigators about their long term goals you will hear a variety of responses such as learning what happens after death, capturing irrefutable proof of the paranormal, understanding how paranormal phenomena occurs, and owning a paranormal location. The last two are high on my list. When it comes to owning a “haunted” location, there are a lot of things to consider and one of the biggest things for me is “why do you want to own a paranormal location?” This is an important question because it determines what kind of caretaker you will be to your dead. Please realize, if you purchase a “haunted” location, you are responsible for not just the condition of the property but the treatment of the phenomena within the location. 

I want to own a location for long term data collection and to collaborate with other teams to better understand phenomena. I would also like to test the theory about “spirits” adjusting to the presence of their caretakers and how that changes phenomena over time. If the phenomena is conscious, can you work together to solve the bigger puzzle? This does mean that I would allow others into the space to investigate but I would likely have very specific rules and data collection/sharing plans for people who stay in the location. I likely would not have the standard AirB&B type location but that is me. We all have different reasons for doing things. Note that there are other ways that people become investigative caretakers. Mainly, these caretakers will go out of their way to make their location investigator friendly.

Some people want to own a location because they want to preserve history. This often happens when a location comes available in a person’s hometown and the caretaker feels a responsibility to save the location. These are some of my favorite caretakers because they want to preserve the location to the best of their ability and they know a lot of history about the place. When you walk into one of these places, you will notice that it is loved. This in turn encourages visitors to love and care for the building as well.  

And then there are people who want a place just to make money. Now, don’t get me wrong, the investigative caretaker and the historical caretaker are also likely to receive payment for visitors in their location so this isn’t 100% bad. What is different is the mindset. If the location is just for profit then the caretaker likely will not care about the state of the building, the people who visit, or the potential “spirits” residing within. If the owner is fixated on money only, they are likely not going to care if someone is disrespectful and/or harassing the dead. Note that these actions can lead to investigators getting harmed. Maybe not the team that instigates the problem but the next person through the door could have problems. 

It is fine to rent out your location to paranormal teams as long as you have rules about the care of the location and the people who may reside within. Paranormal investigators are used to paying $250-$1000 a night to stay at a location so it’s understandable to want to make some money off of the community. Honestly, most of us are fine with it as long as we see that the owner cares for the location. When I say care for a location, I don’t mean having a coffee pot in the kitchen. People who care for their location will repair things when they are broken, clean the place, make sure they have a working bathroom for guests, have rules about what you can and cannot do inside the location, and notice when something is “off” with the phenomena in the building. 

Most investigators understand that many of these buildings are in disrepair due to years of neglect and don’t expect to be staying in a four-star hotel.We do expect that the caretaker is actively working to restore the location to the best of their ability. We actually expect that a portion of our payment goes to the upkeep of the location and are more than happy to donate money when a well loved place has a maintenance emergency. 

Investigators also get very good at noticing if the “spirits” are being treated respectfully because the activity collected and shared will tell the story. When a location becomes known for negative interactions that is often a sign that something may be wrong, especially if the phenomena has changed over time or gotten increasingly violent/angry. I honestly don’t like going to places where I think people are harassing/mistreating the dead. As a caretaker, this should be important to you too. 

Anyway, those are just a few of my thoughts about owning a “haunted” location and caring for it. I think it is important for teams to consider what they find acceptable when visiting a location and what their expectations are for these locations. No, we don’t own them but we pay the bills by visiting. Teams should care who is collecting their money and if that money is going to support a location or not. Let me know your thoughts. 

Until next time, Happy Hunting!