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Sellers of Pottstown home: 'Our house is haunted!'

This time of year, many people pay money to get spooked at haunted houses. But for Guy and Kathie Clauson, all they need to do is enter their Pottstown home for what they say is a real-life haunted experience.

This time of year, many people pay money to get spooked at haunted houses. But for Guy and Kathie Clauson, all they need to do is enter their Pottstown home for what they say is a real-life haunted experience.

"It's very weird; it's hard to explain," Kathie said. "It almost feels like you have someone watching over you in a weird way."

The couple says the 1870 Victorian house they are selling – which is included on Zillow's list of "Real Life Haunted Houses For Sale" – is haunted. They say they have spotted dark figures, heard strange noises, and seen doors open, faucets run and lights flicker.

"Initially we just thought it was an old house with bad lighting and wiring," Guy said.

Guy said they realized within the first week of moving there in 2004 that something wasn't right.

"I came home one day and the house felt cold," Guy said. "I walked up to the second floor, and saw the door to the deck off the bedroom was wide open, and there was snow pouring in the house. I then heard a loud noise of running water, so I walked into the bathroom and both facets were turned all the way on."

Guy said this has happened at least 10 times over the past decade.

In that same room, they've noticed other strange occurrences: antique rocking chairs leaned against the bookcases tilted backwards, and the lights flickering on and off. They said their neighbors have even told them they've seen the lights flickering in that room when they're not home.

The Clausons said they've noticed the most "haunted" activity happens in that room on the second floor. It turns out it was the bedroom of a 90-year-old woman who lived there until her death. In that room, the couple said, the most original features remain.

"They redid most of the wood work in the whole house, but in the room she used to sleep in, they didn't remove the paint," Kathie said.

Another spooky incident recalled by Kathie was when she went upstairs to tell her husband to stop playing his guitar so late in the night.

"When I went upstairs to tell him to stop playing, the light that was next to him turned off," Kathie said. "The light went back on once he started playing again. The ghost seemed to prefer my husband."

When Guy recorded a guitar session once, he said he played the tape back and could hear a woman's voice in the background. His wife wasn't home when he recorded it.

The Clausons recall dozens of other strange and spooky encounters during their time living there. They moved to Collegeville about a year-and-a-half ago, but not by choice.

They said if it was up to them, they would have stayed in their so-called haunted home, but they moved out to care for Kathie's sick mother. They also opened up a restaurant in that town – Chow Bistro.

"I certainly don't think it's for everybody," Kathie said of the house. "Maybe if we had kids it would be a different story, but I felt like it was a benevolent spirit."

Even when they moved their furniture out of the house, they noticed more unusual happenings.

"Things were thrown, doors were slammed, " Kathie said. "A speaker hit my husband, and a door flew into his back when there was no breeze or anything." But after all of that, it still didn't seem to bother them.

The MLS listing does not hint about any haunted history. It describes the home as one that "boasts an incredible array of vintage and custom elements," such as two walk-in bay windows, custom millwork and a "unique" second floor balcony – the same deck where the Clausons found the door open multiple times.

Other elements described in the home are three fireplaces, high ceilings, inlaid hardwood floors, and stained glass windows.

The home is 2,681-square-feet, and has five bedrooms and two bathrooms. It's listed for $176,500. While the Clausons first put the home on the market in May, it had its most recent price cut last week.

The listing agent, Brian Kelly of Kelly Real Estate, chose not to comment on the haunted stories.

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