The former home of an accused serial killer is currently sitting on the market in Massachusetts, and this week, appears to have traumatized an unwitting couple who were on the hunt for a good deal.
The home in question is located in Springfield, Massachusetts, about an hour and a half west of Boston. The listing — which is visible on Zillow and other online portals — describes the 1,026-square-foot property as “cozy,” “well cared for,” and a “great house for first time buyers.” It has two bedrooms, one bath and is asking $137,500.
Credit: Sears Real Estate
What the listing doesn’t mention, however, is that it is also the former home of accused killer Stewart Weldon. Police arrested Weldon in May 2018 after he fled from an officer who tried to pull him over for a busted tail light. When officers finally caught him, they found a woman in his back seat who said she had been tortured, raped and beaten in the home.
Days after the arrest, Weldon’s mother — who owns the property — told police she smelled something foul at the house. When investigators arrived, they reportedly discovered three decomposing bodies in the home’s basement, shed and garage.
Prosecutors believe Weldon killed three women and assaulted seven others. He is currently awaiting trial and faces a total of 52 counts for murder, kidnapping and other crimes.
Property records cited by Zillow show that Weldon’s former home first hit the market last June. The property went under contract less than three weeks later, but the sale appears to have fallen through soon thereafter and the listing was removed. It popped up again in September and has been sitting on the market ever since.
This week, the listing apparently caught the eye of a couple on the hunt for a home. In a Reddit post shared early Thursday morning, a user going by the name Cookie-Jedi wrote that he and his fiancée had been house hunting for about a month when the listing crossed his radar.
The Reddit user didn’t know about the home’s history and said that at first it seemed “promising.”
“Decent sq feet, not very old, okay sized yard, and quite a bit below market average compared to most of the houses in the area,” he wrote. “It was fairly dated on the interior and right on a busy main road, which is what we attributed the low price to, but was cute and had a lot of potential.”
Credit: Sears Real Estate
But things began to go downhill during the showing on Wednesday. First, the would-be buyers noticed that there was an “‘off’ smell” in the home, which they attributed to cats. Then they joked that it “had the vibe of a haunted house.”
“Well then the shit gets real,” the Reddit user wrote. “We go to the basement and the first thing I notice is a lot of residule [sic] adhesive all over the walls and ceiling with /something/ stuck to it. I, being the dumbfuck I am, poke at it and inspect further and recognize it to be sound-proof foaming.”
Credit: Sears Real Estate
The would-be buyers wondered aloud to their agent why a basement would need soundproofing. But the agent reportedly replied “oh god let’s leave, I know why this house is still on the market,” and ushered the couple out of the home.
The agent then apparently explained the issue and apologized, but the experience of viewing Weldon’s former home appears to have left the would-be buyers traumatized.
“Needless to say we were both mortified,” the Reddit user wrote. “We noped right the fuck out and on to the next house, but I have not been able to shake it from my mind. I TOUCHED the fucking foam in the torture room. When we got home I took a lava hot shower, burned some sage, and cried.”
Credit: Sears Real Estate
Inman was unable to independently confirm the details of the account, but has reached out to the Reddit user and will update this story if or when he replies.
Today, the home remains on the market, and the listing even includes photos of both the basement and the garage — though no soundproofing materials are obviously visible. However, the viewing experience appears to be lingering with the would-be buyers.
“Its now 3am,” the Reddit user wrote, “and I have been too traumatized to sleep and just needed to get this in writing because I cannot deal in any way.”
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