Believe It or Not: Ghostly Home Encounters
Have you ever seen a ghost? Paranormal activity could be more commonplace than we think, as these experiences reveal
Whether you believe contact with the spirit world is possible or not, there are many people who do – and it’s usually because they’ve had an unexplained encounter with a ghostlike presence. As these true tales from your fellow Houzzers reveal, otherworldly experiences can strike when you’re least expecting them, often when you’re home. If you’ve had an unusual experience of your own, we’d all love to hear about it. Share your tale in the Comments at the end of the story.
Cause for reflection
“I was once standing in the kitchen in the evening when I glanced up into the windows over the sink. As I was looking, I caught the reflection of a white shape moving through the area behind me. It was kind of higher than my head, and was transparent but also ‘gauzy’. It went in the blink of an eye but had a real presence. It made me believe there were spirits around us.” – Leah
“I was once standing in the kitchen in the evening when I glanced up into the windows over the sink. As I was looking, I caught the reflection of a white shape moving through the area behind me. It was kind of higher than my head, and was transparent but also ‘gauzy’. It went in the blink of an eye but had a real presence. It made me believe there were spirits around us.” – Leah
Haunted house
“I’m pretty sure our house is haunted. The previous owners, an elderly couple, both passed away there. I have seen a person-sized shadow walking up the stairs when no one else was home, and often see figures out of the corner of my eye. There’s also a general feeling of disquiet in one of the spare bedrooms. I prefer not to go in there unless I have to, but both our cat and our dog are drawn to that room, which also happens to be the coldest room in the house.” – Denise
“I’m pretty sure our house is haunted. The previous owners, an elderly couple, both passed away there. I have seen a person-sized shadow walking up the stairs when no one else was home, and often see figures out of the corner of my eye. There’s also a general feeling of disquiet in one of the spare bedrooms. I prefer not to go in there unless I have to, but both our cat and our dog are drawn to that room, which also happens to be the coldest room in the house.” – Denise
Ghostly odour
“We have a ghost in our house in Tassie, which we run as a bed and breakfast. He is called Clancy (he appeared one night to a guest here and said that was his name). He often turns up. I haven’t seen him, but boy do I know when he’s about and not happy! He lets out a stench in my bedroom, right near my side of the bed. It’s hard to explain the odour – it’s a really strong, pungent smell. We have checked out every area of the house for more than two years to find out where the smell is coming from – under floorboards, in the pipes, in the attic – but no plumber or expert can find the cause.
“It happens whenever we have a male guest in his room (upstairs on the left). He doesn’t go into that room when there’s a guest, but he comes into my room to complain. He also does it when there is a guest in the house that he doesn’t like.”
“We have a ghost in our house in Tassie, which we run as a bed and breakfast. He is called Clancy (he appeared one night to a guest here and said that was his name). He often turns up. I haven’t seen him, but boy do I know when he’s about and not happy! He lets out a stench in my bedroom, right near my side of the bed. It’s hard to explain the odour – it’s a really strong, pungent smell. We have checked out every area of the house for more than two years to find out where the smell is coming from – under floorboards, in the pipes, in the attic – but no plumber or expert can find the cause.
“It happens whenever we have a male guest in his room (upstairs on the left). He doesn’t go into that room when there’s a guest, but he comes into my room to complain. He also does it when there is a guest in the house that he doesn’t like.”
“Guests often hear music coming from his room, but it stops whenever you get near the room. The house was built in 1869 and we believe Clancy was a stablehand who lived here and worked for the wealthy Shoobridge family who owned the house.
“Last night we had guests staying in the room upstairs that I believe may be Clancy’s. I went to bed in my room and was reading and there was no Clancy smell at all. The guests had been out, but I heard them coming back in and up the stairs at about 10.30pm. Within about five minutes Clancy’s smell was wafting all around me in my room. I’ve worked out what he is up to – he lets me know if he is not happy with who is in his room. He obviously knows who is in charge of the guest bookings! The smell is in his room and it’s in mine – and after a while when I just ignore it, it goes away.” – Marie
“Last night we had guests staying in the room upstairs that I believe may be Clancy’s. I went to bed in my room and was reading and there was no Clancy smell at all. The guests had been out, but I heard them coming back in and up the stairs at about 10.30pm. Within about five minutes Clancy’s smell was wafting all around me in my room. I’ve worked out what he is up to – he lets me know if he is not happy with who is in his room. He obviously knows who is in charge of the guest bookings! The smell is in his room and it’s in mine – and after a while when I just ignore it, it goes away.” – Marie
In no hurry
“I was living and working in a pub in London. It was about midnight when my friend and I walked in – it was closed, but we lived upstairs so we had a key. Sitting in the corner booth, there was this white ghostlike man who was having a pint. It was moving, having a drink, and even the beer was ghostlike. The ghost wasn’t in a hurry to go. It just sort of faded slowly, almost like it wanted to finish its beer first.
“It was one of those things you wouldn’t believe if it was just you. But we both saw it in the same spot. We looked at each other, saying, ‘Did you see that?’. We since learned that pub was known for being haunted.” – Trixie
“I was living and working in a pub in London. It was about midnight when my friend and I walked in – it was closed, but we lived upstairs so we had a key. Sitting in the corner booth, there was this white ghostlike man who was having a pint. It was moving, having a drink, and even the beer was ghostlike. The ghost wasn’t in a hurry to go. It just sort of faded slowly, almost like it wanted to finish its beer first.
“It was one of those things you wouldn’t believe if it was just you. But we both saw it in the same spot. We looked at each other, saying, ‘Did you see that?’. We since learned that pub was known for being haunted.” – Trixie
Frightening visit
“When I was 17, a ghost flew at my head. It happened while I was lying in bed at around 2am. The ghost looked like James McCallion from the old TV series National Velvet. It was standing by my bed looking down at me for about a minute or so. It didn’t move and nor did I, then it slowly rose up until its body was flat to the ceiling, where it remained for about 10 seconds. Then it shot straight at my head.
“I (not) bravely, ducked under my bed covers to hide. I waited there for about 30 seconds, expecting to see the ghost right up against my face the moment I removed the covers. But he was gone. I had never been so scared in all of my years.” – Rik
“When I was 17, a ghost flew at my head. It happened while I was lying in bed at around 2am. The ghost looked like James McCallion from the old TV series National Velvet. It was standing by my bed looking down at me for about a minute or so. It didn’t move and nor did I, then it slowly rose up until its body was flat to the ceiling, where it remained for about 10 seconds. Then it shot straight at my head.
“I (not) bravely, ducked under my bed covers to hide. I waited there for about 30 seconds, expecting to see the ghost right up against my face the moment I removed the covers. But he was gone. I had never been so scared in all of my years.” – Rik
Song of remembrance
“About a week after my granddad’s funeral in the Philippines, I had a crazy dream about it. It was a replay of the funeral and the wake, but my granddad was by my side. In the dream, he asked me to sing a song to my mum for him. When I woke up, I couldn’t remember the song; I just told mum it was a song he used to sing to her. And she knew what it was! She sang it to me then and I recognised it as being the same song from the dream. That night, we were all watching TV and I could smell my granddad. My mum could too, but no one else who was in the room could.” – Kat
“About a week after my granddad’s funeral in the Philippines, I had a crazy dream about it. It was a replay of the funeral and the wake, but my granddad was by my side. In the dream, he asked me to sing a song to my mum for him. When I woke up, I couldn’t remember the song; I just told mum it was a song he used to sing to her. And she knew what it was! She sang it to me then and I recognised it as being the same song from the dream. That night, we were all watching TV and I could smell my granddad. My mum could too, but no one else who was in the room could.” – Kat
Eerie footsteps
“My boyfriend and I were living together, and I had just come off nightshift and gone to bed. It was a hot day so I was just sleeping under a sheet. My cat was next to me and the bedroom door was open.
“I woke to hear a noise in the flat. It sounded like someone was walking around. Initially I thought it was the unit above, but then noticed my cat had puffed up with his back arched. I immediately thought, ‘There’s someone in the unit, and it’s only a matter of time before they come into the room. I’ll have no escape!’ My cat jumped off the bed and ran off. I grabbed the sheet, wrapped it around myself and walked out into the living area.
“There was no one there, but I could still hear the footsteps. They seemed to be walking in a circle around me. Fair to say, I was terrified. Then logic set in. I reasoned that because it was a ghost/spirit, it couldn’t actually touch me. So I said, ‘I don’t mind that you’re here; it’s OK.’ The noise stopped and I never heard it again.” – Mandy
“My boyfriend and I were living together, and I had just come off nightshift and gone to bed. It was a hot day so I was just sleeping under a sheet. My cat was next to me and the bedroom door was open.
“I woke to hear a noise in the flat. It sounded like someone was walking around. Initially I thought it was the unit above, but then noticed my cat had puffed up with his back arched. I immediately thought, ‘There’s someone in the unit, and it’s only a matter of time before they come into the room. I’ll have no escape!’ My cat jumped off the bed and ran off. I grabbed the sheet, wrapped it around myself and walked out into the living area.
“There was no one there, but I could still hear the footsteps. They seemed to be walking in a circle around me. Fair to say, I was terrified. Then logic set in. I reasoned that because it was a ghost/spirit, it couldn’t actually touch me. So I said, ‘I don’t mind that you’re here; it’s OK.’ The noise stopped and I never heard it again.” – Mandy
Unexplained presence
“When I was 10 years old my family moved from the Adelaide suburbs to the small, rural town of Wangaratta in north-east Victoria. The house was old and warren-like; it was a converted dairy attached to a newer addition.
“My bedroom was the only bedroom in the bottom-half, converted-dairy part of the house. As soon as my mum turned out the light on the first night we spent there, before going upstairs into the other part of the house, I could feel the hair on my arms and the back of my neck raise. I could feel someone watching me.
“Previous to this, I had not been afraid of the dark and had very few fears (aside from snakes). But in this house I was petrified. I would run through the converted-dairy part of the house any time I was alone and had a lot of trouble being down there.
“For a while, it went on like this. As soon as the lights were turned out at night, I would be so scared that I would sneak out of my room and into my mother’s, crawling under her bed and sleeping there in secret.
“One day my sister (15 at the time) and I were sitting in the office (part of the converted dairy) playing on the computer. We were probably doing something naughty because we had the office door closed and locked. The other door leading outside was open because it was hot and still. We were absorbed in what we were doing and heard a loud, deep yell that sounded like an angry man. My mum was home, but not my stepfather. My sister, not moving from the computer desk, called out ‘Mum?’
“Suddenly, the locked door swung open with a bang and the open door slammed closed, the door’s pin-lock (the kind that you push in to lock) compressed on its own.
“After that, I moved into one of the bedrooms in the newer part of the house. We didn’t find much on the history of the property, but when we renovated the converted part of the house a few years later we pulled apart the cupboards and found the name Brian Mephan, and 1882, carved into the brick wall.” – Dick
“When I was 10 years old my family moved from the Adelaide suburbs to the small, rural town of Wangaratta in north-east Victoria. The house was old and warren-like; it was a converted dairy attached to a newer addition.
“My bedroom was the only bedroom in the bottom-half, converted-dairy part of the house. As soon as my mum turned out the light on the first night we spent there, before going upstairs into the other part of the house, I could feel the hair on my arms and the back of my neck raise. I could feel someone watching me.
“Previous to this, I had not been afraid of the dark and had very few fears (aside from snakes). But in this house I was petrified. I would run through the converted-dairy part of the house any time I was alone and had a lot of trouble being down there.
“For a while, it went on like this. As soon as the lights were turned out at night, I would be so scared that I would sneak out of my room and into my mother’s, crawling under her bed and sleeping there in secret.
“One day my sister (15 at the time) and I were sitting in the office (part of the converted dairy) playing on the computer. We were probably doing something naughty because we had the office door closed and locked. The other door leading outside was open because it was hot and still. We were absorbed in what we were doing and heard a loud, deep yell that sounded like an angry man. My mum was home, but not my stepfather. My sister, not moving from the computer desk, called out ‘Mum?’
“Suddenly, the locked door swung open with a bang and the open door slammed closed, the door’s pin-lock (the kind that you push in to lock) compressed on its own.
“After that, I moved into one of the bedrooms in the newer part of the house. We didn’t find much on the history of the property, but when we renovated the converted part of the house a few years later we pulled apart the cupboards and found the name Brian Mephan, and 1882, carved into the brick wall.” – Dick
Caught on camera
“I saw this ghost at the InterContinental Hotel in Melbourne a few years ago. I specifically waited to ensure no-one was in the photo when I took it. I got quite a shock when I looked back at the photos the following day.” – Peter
“I saw this ghost at the InterContinental Hotel in Melbourne a few years ago. I specifically waited to ensure no-one was in the photo when I took it. I got quite a shock when I looked back at the photos the following day.” – Peter
Unnerving coincidence
“My dad was woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of tapping in the attic. Mum couldn’t hear it but he just kept hearing ‘tap, tap, tap, tap’ really loud.
“An hour or so later he got a call from a friend in Fiji and found out that a mutual friend had just died. He had been on the phone out in the street and someone had tapped him on the shoulder from behind – he died of a heart attack. Freaky!” – Olivia
Tell us
Have you had an unusual experience that made you believe in ghosts? Share your story in the Comments below. And don’t forget to like, share or save this story. Join the conversation.
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“My dad was woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of tapping in the attic. Mum couldn’t hear it but he just kept hearing ‘tap, tap, tap, tap’ really loud.
“An hour or so later he got a call from a friend in Fiji and found out that a mutual friend had just died. He had been on the phone out in the street and someone had tapped him on the shoulder from behind – he died of a heart attack. Freaky!” – Olivia
Tell us
Have you had an unusual experience that made you believe in ghosts? Share your story in the Comments below. And don’t forget to like, share or save this story. Join the conversation.
More
Read more interesting lifestyle stories
“I was living in a flat in Darlinghurst [Sydney] and when I went to sleep, I remember my window was open. In the middle of the night, I woke up with a start and opened my eyes. There was a transparent white form with big hollow black eyes right in front of my face looking at me. It was there for a couple of seconds and then a white blur flew out the window. It was like I had startled it by waking up. That was really freaky and I knew it wasn’t a dream.” – Libby