Are you afraid of clowns?

[kdonnel]

My in laws are putting their house on the market soon and my wife casually mentioned to her mom that she would need to box up her clowns before the showings started. Her mother had no idea that a large percentage of people are afraid of clowns. My mother in law has about 500 clowns on display shelves and hanging from the ceiling in what would be the formal living room of her house. She had no idea that potential buyers might find her display disturbing and had never heard that some are afraid of clowns. She has no plans to remove the clowns prior to the showings starting.

 

[MIGrandma]

No, I’ve never been afraid of clowns and really don’t understand why anyone would be.

 

[foodiddiedoo]

Even if people aren't afraid of clowns, it's still super recommended to put away things that are overwhelmingly personal before showing your house. People can't seem to "imagine" what a space is like if they are distracted by someone else's personal belongings. Seems like the clowns would be a major distraction for a lot of potential buyers since she has SO many of them.

Also, yeah clowns are creepy: "We all float down here"

 

[J'aime Paris]

I'm not afraid of clowns, but my BFF is terrified of them!

 

[Brett Wyman]

My in laws are putting their house on the market soon and my wife casually mentioned to her mom that she would need to box up her clowns before the showings started. Her mother had no idea that a large percentage of people are afraid of clowns. My mother in law has about 500 clowns on display shelves and hanging from the ceiling in what would be the formal living room of her house. She had no idea that potential buyers might find her display disturbing and had never heard that some are afraid of clowns. She has no plans to remove the clowns prior to the showings starting.

Clowns aside ALL personal artifacts should be minimized when listing a house. This is real estate 101 folks. Your mother is simply limiting her potential buyer pool.

 

[L&Lfan]

No, I’m ambivalent toward clowns. I have no problem with the Boardwalk Inn swimming pool.

 

[luvsJack]

I am not but the people I know that are, it doesn't matter if its stuffed or ceramic or a real person, they are just as afraid. Some even of just a clown mask sitting on a shelf. So I definitely think your MIL should take all of them down to show the house even if it wasn't something already recommended by real estate agents.

I know a grown man who was doing a show of sorts and part of the show was a man in a clown mask. He has known this man for years! But before the man could put the mask on, the other guy had to leave the back stage area. He could not bring himself to be in the same space as his friend in the mask. So, for some, its a fear that runs pretty deep.

 

[SteveH]

Affraid? No. Do I think they are on the creepy side? Yes. Would it prevent me from buying a house? Probably not, but I would fully agree they should be boxed up. 500? Yeah that might creep me out and take my focus off the house and it's assets. Staging a house for sale is an art. We last sold a house 17 years ago an our agent was a wonderful Type A person when it came to staging, clutter is the worse enemy. But she even had us declutter kitchen drawers and cabinets to make everything appear larger.

 

[mco65]

No, but we had a front desk girl at the office that was deathly afraid of clowns and balloons..

 

[luvnwdwgal]

I’m not afraid of clowns, I just don’t like them. I find them strange in a creepy way. I don’t like people in costumes either. It always amazes me how grown adults get so excited about characters at WDW.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I find them kinda creepy. Especially sad clowns.

 

[Disneylover99]

No, I’m ambivalent toward clowns. I have no problem with the Boardwalk Inn swimming pool.

This is how I feel. Not afraid, just ambivalent. I have no use for clowns. I don’t find them cute, funny or scary. Just useless. Lol.

 

[cinnaminny]

Not afraid, but not a fan. Also and I only say this after seeing my in laws old house, it can make a house look like its stuck in a 70's time warp. Basically looking like nothing has been improved in a long time. True or not, it might turn buyers off.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

Clowns are creepy, dolls are creepy. A big display of clown dolls? Oh Heck No.

 

[cluvsdisney]

I am not afraid of clowns but I would be creeped out if I walked into a room/house with 100s of clowns all over the place.

 

[Miffy]

Unless your MIL's living room is the size of a ballroom at Versailles, it must look tremendously cluttered. It wouldn't matter what those 500+ objects in her living room were--they're just clutter to someone else and a real turnoff to any potential buyer. Is there no real estate agent involved here? If there is, that would be the person to talk to your MIL about this, since I assume she (a) actually wants to sell the house and (b) loves those clowns. It'd be better if someone outside the family explained the situation to her.

There are a few circumstances that I can imagine that would make the presence of the clowns moot. (1) The house is a tear-down anyway and anyone who bought it would be razing it and building something else on the site. (2) The house is amazingly underpriced for the market and the neighborhood. (3) The house is an architectural gem, perhaps designed and built by Frank Lloyd Wright or another well-known architect. (4) The property the house is located on is worth a fortune and no one would really care about the house itself or what's inside.

One other possibility also occurred to me: your MIL may not actually want to sell the house, consciously or subconsciously. And, of course, since she's still living there (is she?) she doesn't want to dismantle the decor she's happy with.

 

[disneyseniors]

My in laws are putting their house on the market soon and my wife casually mentioned to her mom that she would need to box up her clowns before the showings started. Her mother had no idea that a large percentage of people are afraid of clowns. My mother in law has about 500 clowns on display shelves and hanging from the ceiling in what would be the formal living room of her house. She had no idea that potential buyers might find her display disturbing and had never heard that some are afraid of clowns. She has no plans to remove the clowns prior to the showings starting.

I'm not afraid, but I find them really creepy, both alive and dolls!
Thank you, Stephen King!!!

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

My in laws are putting their house on the market soon and my wife casually mentioned to her mom that she would need to box up her clowns before the showings started. Her mother had no idea that a large percentage of people are afraid of clowns. My mother in law has about 500 clowns on display shelves and hanging from the ceiling in what would be the formal living room of her house. She had no idea that potential buyers might find her display disturbing and had never heard that some are afraid of clowns. She has no plans to remove the clowns prior to the showings starting.

that would creep me out.

I'm ok with one or two clowns, like at the circus, depending on the make up.

But IT scarred me when I was a teen, lol

 

[3smithboys]

I am not a fan... no thank you.

 

[E&Cmom]

No. I am indifferent of them. Don’t like them but don’t hate them.