Burying St. Joseph

by Jay Thompson on September 3, 2008 · Comments

in Humor, Random Musings, Real Estate

In order to help a home sell, people have been burying St.Joseph statues in their yards for ages. Some say the practice will help a home sell faster, and of course others say it won’t do anything.

The practice is said to date back to at least to the great St. Teresa of Avila (A.D. 1515 – 1582). St. Teresa founded an Order that needed a new convent built. The nuns found a perfect piece of land, but didn’t have the money they needed. So they asked St. Joseph to intercede, burying medals with his likeness. Over time, the folk custom developed into burying small statues of St. Joseph in order to help homes be sold,

I find it interesting how customs like these develop. I don’t know if there is anything to the St. Joseph’s statues, but this site sells over two million of them a year so apparently someone thinks it works…

Here’s an act comedian Ron Culberson does regarding the power of St. Joseph statues:

You may need to click though to see the video if viewing by RSS feed or email

I don’t think I’ll be ordering cases of these things, but if one of our clients wants to try it, I’ll loan them a shovel.


 

Email This Post Email This Post Print This Post Print This Post

 

 

Thanks for reading! We value your thoughts and opinions, so please feel free to leave a comment. Please contact us if you have any questions or need help. You can also get automatic updates for this blog free via: Potentially Related Posts on Phoenix Real Estate Guy:
Meme’d By the Cactus
Inman News Names “Top 25 Most Influential Real Estate Bloggers: 2008″
Most Overvalued Housing Markets

 




Read this blog's Comment Policy
  • Remember, it doesn't work without prayer and faith
  • Excellent point Brian. There are a lot of awfully convincing "testimonials" here . A few naysayers, but the vast majority are quite positive.
  • Paula
    This guy is funny! I've had many clients who have buried Saint Joseph, some have sold, others not. I'm certain there is some degree of belief involved, other times it's still been price.
  • Thanks for referring to my story. It's amazing but true.

    With this tough real estate economy, I think more people would prefer to bury their house!

    Ron Culberson
  • My dad has been selling real estate since 1974, and his pat answer to this statue business is:

    "well, if burying one works, why not bury 5 statues, and it will sell 5 times as fast? Or 12?"

    then the sellers say, "don't be ridiculous. "

    His answer - "you first."
  • If it will help sell or buy a new home I might just try burying one in my yard! I really want to buy my first house - but with the housing slump i'm afraid it would be a very bad idea.
  • Will you be putting up an ad to sell St. Joseph statues on your sidebar?
  • Jay,

    One of the St Joseph home seller kits actually is a great little company. They hire adults with disabilities to assemble the kits and most of the profits go back to charity.
  • I'd never heard of this until I moved from Indiana to Texas. Thought it was the strangest thing at first - but I've seen so many people do it that at this point I don't even give it a second thought.
  • I've had a couple sellers try it. I remind them that for it to work they must say lots of prayers. Saying the prayers probably works better than burying a little 'Made in China' plastic statue.
  • I have one sitting on the counter... had it for years. Never buried it. I just had to drop a price on a house, maybe it is a good time.
  • @ Ron Culberson, that is a hilarious video.
    @ John C, I love your dad's answer.
    I say it is Hocus Pockus Voodoo Bologna, but never the less it made for a good article. ;)
  • 2 million a year ?? I didn't even know 2 million existed !!!
    @ John C - priceless reply ;)

    Ismail
  • Welllllllll.... A long time ago, I prepared my first house for sale and when I was ready to put it on the market (being the good Catholic that I am) I buried St. Joseph and said the prayers I was supposed to. I believed with all my heart that I would sell my home quickly. I advertised an open house for the first day of showings to be at the open house. I put the "for sale" sign in the yard on Sunday at noon (when I buried him); the open house was at 2:00 and by 3:00 I had a full price offer and another back-up by 5:00. I haven't sold one since without first kicking things off with St. Joseph. I believe in the power of prayer... along with having your home Showroom Ready and Priced Right. Amazing how those three things work together! Will homes sell without requesting the aid of Saint Joseph? Sure. But if it can help them sell faster and higher, why not try a little faith (not voodoo)? Great post Jim. The comedian was hilarious!
  • "Great post Jim"

    Who the heck is Jim and what's he doing posting on my blog? ;)

    A little faith certainly never hurts Holly!
  • This would be a good time to have a "revise comment" feature. ha! Sorry Jay. No idea where that came from. Doesn't matter... "A rose by any other name would still smell as sweet." :)
  • Interesting that you mentioned this. I see less of this than I did 10 years ago. Maybe the new agents do not do this as much. In Louisiana and New Orleans all Saints are treated well.
  • This Guy is funny.

    I grew up catholic but I never heard this until recently. My sister and nice both say he should be buried upside down.

    <abbr>Neds last blog post..A Cool New Tool</abbr>
  • Eric is right. I haven't seen a St. Joseph statue lately either. But, over the years I've had two clients that I can remember who planted St. Joseph's statue in their backyard. Each time they buried it headdown. And, each time the house sold within a matter of days.

    I am glad I stumbled across this post in light of the slow traffic on my listings this month. Instead of spending my money on classified advertising, maybe I will check out that pottery shop sells those St. Joseph statues.

    <abbr></abbr><abbr>Larry´s last blog post..Kentwood Expands Marketing Department</abbr>
  • We're actually seeing more of this in our area. I think everyone is like "why not" - and decides to give it a go. I believe that this ritual has more to do with the power of positive thinking. [Think: The Secret ala Oprah] And while I haven't noticed any significant increase in getting homes for sale sold, it does seem to help soothe the emotions some of the sellers.

    <abbr></abbr><abbr>Jennifer in Louisville´s last blog post..Louisville Luxury Homes</abbr>
  • First time I heard this. I wonder out of all the people that have done this if they were able to sale there house with no problem. I guess that will remain a secret.
  • My devious mind makes me think that whenever someone has an eye on a house, before making an offer, it may be a good idea to go looking if they buried a St-Joseph's statue in their yard.

    If there is one, it might be easier to negotiate a lower price knowing the owners are so desperate to sell!
  • I saw this on Hannity and Colmes. I think people are getting so desperate they are trying to invent mythology.
  • 2 MILLION a year? What the heck is wrong with people...

    <abbr></abbr><abbr>johan´s last blog post..How Does Zara Clothing Compare To Designer Clothing?</abbr>
  • Interesting method for selling a house.. I might try that.

    <abbr></abbr><abbr>Devon Holiday Cottages´s last blog post..Treetops, Torquay</abbr>
  • Thats unusual. People have beliefs but never heard anything like this. At this time there are so many houses for foreclosures, even this won't help much.

    <abbr></abbr><abbr>David´s last blog post..Dog clicker training</abbr>
blog comments powered by Disqus

Previous post: Agents that say they don’t sit opens are in my opinion lazy…

Next post: Ask the Broker: Should I Leave My Home During Showings?