What Is The Strangest Thing You've Ever Seen On A Showing
Sid Polish Sid Sells Maryland Realty
From hidden bomb shelters to unexpected wildlife encounters, showings don’t always go as planned. We asked local agents and preferred partners to share the strangest things they've seen while touring homes—and their stories range from creepy to downright unbelievable!
Michelle Windsor Abplanalp
Rosendale Realty
Full-sized stuffed black bear standing on hind legs in a basement; a loaded handgun on the bedroom floor. A collection of baby doll heads.
Rosendale Realty
Full-sized stuffed black bear standing on hind legs in a basement; a loaded handgun on the bedroom floor. A collection of baby doll heads.
Dee Dee Miller
Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.
Coffin in a crawl space in Centreville. (The owner admittedly ran a funeral home and it was a sample he was storing in the crawl space.)
Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.
Coffin in a crawl space in Centreville. (The owner admittedly ran a funeral home and it was a sample he was storing in the crawl space.)
Joshua Mast
HomeSource Pro Real Estate
A cat sanctuary—multiple rooms filled with crates of cats. I’m guessing at least 60. I was in there for about 45 seconds—it smelled too bad.
HomeSource Pro Real Estate
A cat sanctuary—multiple rooms filled with crates of cats. I’m guessing at least 60. I was in there for about 45 seconds—it smelled too bad.
Elizabeth Robb Janney
Coldwell Banker Realty – Annapolis Church Circle Office
A large collection of adult videos. Pet rats. A fish tank full of various glass marijuana paraphernalia.
Coldwell Banker Realty – Annapolis Church Circle Office
A large collection of adult videos. Pet rats. A fish tank full of various glass marijuana paraphernalia.
Candice Bothun
Century 21 New Millennium
An entire reptile room at a rental in Crofton.
Century 21 New Millennium
An entire reptile room at a rental in Crofton.
Larry Doyle
Long & Foster Real Estate
A bathroom with a shower head above the toilet. I guess it was called a “chit & shower room.”
Long & Foster Real Estate
A bathroom with a shower head above the toilet. I guess it was called a “chit & shower room.”
Lauren Matera
Revel Home Team
Explicit items. Guns. An entire bedroom for a huge iguana.
Revel Home Team
Explicit items. Guns. An entire bedroom for a huge iguana.
Bobby Davidson
HomePro Chesapeake
This one $15 million estate on the Eastern Shore had a guest house—although the guest house was just FULL OF dozens of full-size mannequins and props!
HomePro Chesapeake
This one $15 million estate on the Eastern Shore had a guest house—although the guest house was just FULL OF dozens of full-size mannequins and props!
Denise Mattern
Coldwell Banker Realty – Annapolis Church Circle Office
Found tunnels in the basement leading to a bomb shelter.
Video camera on tripod with scarves on the bed.
My client passed out naked on his bed.
Cages in the basement that seemed like people were held down there. Also, there was a toilet at the very bottom of the stairs so you could see someone using it from upstairs.
Locks on bedroom doors in the hallway with blood and scratch marks on the door inside.
I feel like I can keep going…
Coldwell Banker Realty – Annapolis Church Circle Office
Found tunnels in the basement leading to a bomb shelter.
Video camera on tripod with scarves on the bed.
My client passed out naked on his bed.
Cages in the basement that seemed like people were held down there. Also, there was a toilet at the very bottom of the stairs so you could see someone using it from upstairs.
Locks on bedroom doors in the hallway with blood and scratch marks on the door inside.
I feel like I can keep going…
Rachel Best
RE/MAX Leading Edge
Oh my—these are all insane! Like “home showing nightmares” that should air on E! True Hollywood! Ha! Guess I’ve gotten lucky these past 15 years in the business! I’ve only come across some snakes—and a weird refrigerated pig slaughter room in a basement in an old farmhouse.
RE/MAX Leading Edge
Oh my—these are all insane! Like “home showing nightmares” that should air on E! True Hollywood! Ha! Guess I’ve gotten lucky these past 15 years in the business! I’ve only come across some snakes—and a weird refrigerated pig slaughter room in a basement in an old farmhouse.
Melissa Mitchell Murray
The Murray Home Team at Compass Real Estate
A completely empty house. Walked through the entire finished basement and in a finished closet under the house: a mini table and chairs with dolls in the chairs having a tea party.
Only things in the house. Terrifying.
The Murray Home Team at Compass Real Estate
A completely empty house. Walked through the entire finished basement and in a finished closet under the house: a mini table and chairs with dolls in the chairs having a tea party.
Only things in the house. Terrifying.
Lynn Peaper
Next Step Realty
You guys have all the fun!! I promise my showings are all very boring. That, or I’ve blocked it out.
Next Step Realty
You guys have all the fun!! I promise my showings are all very boring. That, or I’ve blocked it out.
Suzy Lenox
Douglas Realty LLC
A completely vacant house, no heat, electricity, etc., with one little girl’s room still completely set up downstairs. Very creepy.
A full mannequin of a woman with a mop in a bucket in the closet.
An interior room that was obviously there between two other rooms with no way to get in that we could find—maybe a trap door somewhere?
Douglas Realty LLC
A completely vacant house, no heat, electricity, etc., with one little girl’s room still completely set up downstairs. Very creepy.
A full mannequin of a woman with a mop in a bucket in the closet.
An interior room that was obviously there between two other rooms with no way to get in that we could find—maybe a trap door somewhere?
Jody Sutton Buck
Cummings & Co. Realtors
A dead body! Yes, true story!
Cummings & Co. Realtors
A dead body! Yes, true story!
Liz Coleman Osborn
Coldwell Banker Realty
A hatch in the floor in the basement that, when we opened it, had a chair and a blanket on the floor! Reminded us of Silence of the Lambs—scared the crap out of all of us!
Coldwell Banker Realty
A hatch in the floor in the basement that, when we opened it, had a chair and a blanket on the floor! Reminded us of Silence of the Lambs—scared the crap out of all of us!
Jim Schaecher
Keller Williams Flagship of Maryland
An actual brothel in a nice suburban subdivision.
Keller Williams Flagship of Maryland
An actual brothel in a nice suburban subdivision.
Deb Randall
Next Step Realty
I found a tenant passed away in a multi-unit rental property that I was showing. His name was Karl. His landlord said he was a very good tenant. We checked for a pulse and called 911. My buyer client was obviously upset and said, “I guess we’ll reschedule!” He ran out and left me there to wait for the ambulance.
Next Step Realty
I found a tenant passed away in a multi-unit rental property that I was showing. His name was Karl. His landlord said he was a very good tenant. We checked for a pulse and called 911. My buyer client was obviously upset and said, “I guess we’ll reschedule!” He ran out and left me there to wait for the ambulance.
Nima Mohammadi
RECreative Visual
Not a showing, but still! A quiet, unclothed seller (female) in the shower while I was taking photos of the house.
RECreative Visual
Not a showing, but still! A quiet, unclothed seller (female) in the shower while I was taking photos of the house.
Brendan Spear
Caprika Realty
A couple in a very compromising situation in the shower.
Caprika Realty
A couple in a very compromising situation in the shower.
Different showing—was a run-down townhouse that seemed vacant. My client and I were talking loudly about the windows and water damage, walked into the master bedroom, and there was a person sleeping (I assume asleep) on a mattress on the floor. We quietly left. No idea if they broke in, were dead, asleep, on drugs, or what. But didn’t feel right.
Last one—not so strange, but when Chelsea and I were looking for our first house, I remember checking out this fixer-upper out near Sandy Point. It was dark and pretty late. I maybe opened the screen door and felt this cold, dark, scary energy come over us, and we looked at each other and pretty much ran back to the car and rolled out. Just felt so creepy. Was a really strange feeling.
Last one—not so strange, but when Chelsea and I were looking for our first house, I remember checking out this fixer-upper out near Sandy Point. It was dark and pretty late. I maybe opened the screen door and felt this cold, dark, scary energy come over us, and we looked at each other and pretty much ran back to the car and rolled out. Just felt so creepy. Was a really strange feeling.
Robin Cavallaro
RE/MAX Realty Group
An unexpected scene involving a couple. A man in the shower. A gun on the dresser next to a few lines of what I assume was a controlled substance.
A sunroom full of questionable plants.
Lock on the outside of a door in the attic to lock someone in (two different houses, both built around 1900)
RE/MAX Realty Group
An unexpected scene involving a couple. A man in the shower. A gun on the dresser next to a few lines of what I assume was a controlled substance.
A sunroom full of questionable plants.
Lock on the outside of a door in the attic to lock someone in (two different houses, both built around 1900)
Sid Polish
Sid Sells Maryland Realty
Does walking into a vacant condo in North Bethesda—along with my elderly client—while a couple was in a very private situation on the couch count? For the record, I knocked first and no one answered.
Sid Sells Maryland Realty
Does walking into a vacant condo in North Bethesda—along with my elderly client—while a couple was in a very private situation on the couch count? For the record, I knocked first and no one answered.
Justin Disborough
Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.
This turkey vulture that my client snuck through the kitchen to scare it—and it flew over my head. Was a foreclosure.
Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.
This turkey vulture that my client snuck through the kitchen to scare it—and it flew over my head. Was a foreclosure.