If you’re anything like me, one of the searches in Google you might type could be “how to find out if my house is haunted”. Well, I don’t need to search for information on this topic any longer, as I have developed my sensitivity and knowledge on the paranormal throughout my years. In this hub, I will give you personal stories of my own experiences with haunted houses, as well as identify some of the main signs to tell if your house is haunted.

Just for a frame of reference to confirm that I know what I’m talking about with ghosts and haunted houses in general, the picture above is a real picture of me in 2001…with unexplained mist in front and around me. If you look towards the bay window, where the dogs are playing, you’ll see a red circle that I have drawn around what we believe to be the ghost of a little boy who died in this house. This was not a picture with double-exposure and no one smoked in the house. We’re not sure what the mist in front of me is though…

You hear footsteps at night, things just don’t feel right…how do I know if my house is haunted? Do the footsteps count? Does it count if my house is super old? How do I find out if my house is haunted?

In my lifetime, I have lived in at least three haunted houses…all of which were a minimum of sixty years old. Keep in mind though that not every older home is going to be haunted. Also, your house doesn’t have to be old to be haunted…it could be brand spankin’ new…just built yesterday and be haunted. So to conclude this thought process, the age of your home has nothing to do with whether your house is haunted or not.

So let’s start with some REAL signs that your house could be haunted. Because there are SO many signs to give you in answering “how to find out if my house is haunted”, we will split them up by exploring signs for hauntings via the five senses.

Sights

• objects seeming to be lost, then pop up in very obvious places
• shadows appear or move when nothing or no one else is in the house to create shadows
• outright sighting of a mist or person in your home or around your home or an unidentifiable figure
• you’ve seen objects move such as doors opening or shutting with no one to move them
• pictures of ghosts or mists or recorded videos of ghosts or ghostly activity (such as the video to the right)
• frightening out-of-the-ordinary nightmares that seem to recur and come in patterns: sleep paralysis and sleepwalking could come as a side effect or in correlation to these nightmares
• flickering lights, lights turning on and off by themselves
• flickering televisions and radios; channels and stations changing by themselves; changes in electric appliances
• your animals react to something unseen in a room; dogs bark at the air or cats meow or hiss at the air

Sounds

• thumping sounds like footsteps on steps and floors, or even thumping sounds on walls or ceilings
• scratching sounds on walls or ceilings
• disembodied voices – screams, calling of names, cries, moans, recorded EVPs

Scents

• strange odors or scents emanating from particular rooms with no other explanations
• odors could include bad odors such as sulfur, death smells (rotten smells) or could be sweet smells such as floral perfume scents or smells of food such as cupcakes or bacon

Tastes

• some experience a metallic taste in their mouths when encountering certain malevolent spirits/ghosts

Touch or Sense

• hairs raise on the back of your neck
• you get chills when it’s not cold in the house
• cold spots or unusually warm spots
• a sense of someone watching you
• feelings of discomfort or unsettling feelings
• physical feeling of being touched, grabbed, choked, or even attacked

There are many more signs that you could be in a haunted house; however, these are some of the main signs to confirm and how to find out if your house is haunted. Keep in mind that you could be experiencing only one of these things and your house could still very well be haunted.

The hauntings and experiences with ghosts vary from ghost to ghost…just as differences in humans vary from human to human. Obviously if you’re experiencing physical attack and blatant movement or even hurling of objects…violence in any way from an unseen force, you can bet your butt that your house is indeed haunted. And in this case, you might want to stop reading this article and find a priest or someone who can aid in cleansing your home.

But, if you are experiencing less severe signs of a haunting in your home, but signs nonetheless, your house may indeed be haunted.

There are a few ways of actually confirming that your home is haunted:

• you can videotape different areas of your home where supernatural things are thought to be occurring (specifically at night is the best time)
• you can also set up recorders to try to catch EVPs (electronic voice phenomenon)
• you can call in a team of ghost hunters or paranormal investigators
• you can ask that a psychic or a sensitive come to your home and confirm that there is a ghost
• you can conduct a séance and ask for direct confirmation from the ghost haunting your house (which I advise against unless you are entirely skilled in the realm of spirits…if not, this could anger the ghost or make your situation take a turn for the WORSE)

Depending on the type of paranormal occurrences you are experiencing, you can most likely determine the type of ghost or spirit that is haunting your home.

If you’re experiencing slight sights, sounds, smells, etc. then your house is most likely haunted by your average run-of-the-mill ghost or trapped soul. It is possible that the hauntings in your house are also leftover residual energy from a past experience…usually a tragedy that could have occurred in your home or on the property that your home is standing on.

If you’re experiencing more violent or malicious paranormal activity in your home, then there could be three different types of spirits or ghosts present. It could be a poltergeist, a demon, or even an ancient spirit…what some call an “elemental”.

Poltergeists are usually just what we refer to as “noisy ghosts”…ghosts that make a lot of noise, bang some pots and pans around, and sometimes will physically attack the home’s residents…usually, the poltergeist activity surrounds a young woman or child.

If the haunting is even more violent and domineering, it could very well be a demon (or what many people believe to be demons). Think about the people in your home…have any of them were playing with an ouija board or been messing around with seances for sheer fun? A door could have been opened in your home or on your property that hasn’t been closed…and has invited a demon to stay. Call your local priest, psychic, or someone who is spiritual and able to cleanse your home.

An elemental is an ancient entity…and can be found in the oldest of places…many of them in the desert, in the mountains, or in the old ancient sacred places in Europe. If their homes are disturbed, then they could show up with anger or rage. This is a very RARE haunting, though and is probably not what you are experiencing. If you feel it is, it’s probably time to move!

The normal ghost or residual energy that could be haunting your home is something that I feel can be lived with…can you share your home with these energies or spirits? Do they frighten you so badly that you can’t learn to live with them? If you answered no to the second question, then a cleansing or exorcism could be in store…and you might be experiencing more than a simple haunting in your home.

If you feel poltergeist activity is occurring, or even demon possession of sorts, an exorcism or cleansing of your home is of dire necessity. Call a priest or local shaman to have your home cleaned immediately.

I lived in two homes where there was definitely a ghost or two present, maybe even residual energy circulating in the bricks and wood. In these cases, I learned to live with them and share my space with these spirits or energies. Why? They weren’t hurting me or trying to scare me, so why force them out or make them angry?

In another home that I lived in, I experienced sleep paralysis and what I felt was an evil spirit stalking me. In this case, I moved immediately and escaped these feelings and what inevitably might have been an evil spirit of sorts.

In my most recent home, I began experiencing sleep paralysis again and feelings of something watching me…so what did I do? I used a smudging stick of white sage and cleaned my entire home, and also blessed my home…and the energy had left that very day! The night terrors and feelings of discomfort and unease were gone after that.

If you have found the answer to “how to find out if my house is haunted”, then I have served my purpose. If you still don’t know…try out some of the suggestions that I mentioned before. Set up a video camera or voice recorders…or even invite a team to your home…or a psychic of sorts.