Rhode Island’s spookiest house has come under new possession. But for now, the buyer remains a phantom.
Located on Round Top Road in Burrillville, the farmhouse that inspired the hit 2013 horror movie “The Conjuring” was slated to be auctioned off on Halloween. But on Oct. 8, an unknown buyer purchased the note and mortgage, taking on the loan for the property. As a result, Needham Bank, the previous mortgagee, canceled the foreclosure auction.
R.I. Paranormal investigator Justin Hawes had raised over $170,000 on GoFundMe to purchase the property and ensure it be overseen by “those who know and respect the true history of the property,” the fundraising page reads. But now, with the Halloween auction canceled and the prospects for a rescheduled auction unclear, the property’s foreclosure and future ownership remains up in the air.
The house’s namesake film was based loosely on the real experiences of the Perron family, who moved into the R.I. farmhouse in 1971. Roger and Carolyn Perron, along with their five daughters, reported regularly experiencing ghostly hauntings and apparitions until they moved out in 1980.
The property was previously purchased for $1.5 million in 2022 by Jacqueline Nuñez, who used the property to run ghost tours. But in 2024, the Burrillville Town Council declined to renew her entertainment license, due to issues between Nuñez and her neighbors, former employees and the Burrillville Police Department.
Nuñez’s business was “creating a bit of a stir within the area that became too cumbersome for the town to continue to allow,” said Justin Manning, president of JJ Manning Auctioneers, the company previously set to auction off the farmhouse.
Over the summer, Nuñez defaulted on her mortgage payments. As a result, Needham Bank began the foreclosure process, which could have allowed the bank to repossess the property.
Nuñez did not respond to The Herald’s requests for comment.
The Halloween auction would have “triggered the foreclosure happening: whereby either someone bought the property and got a foreclosure deed, or Needham Bank took the property back and became the owner,” Manning explained.
Though an outside buyer now owns the property’s note and mortgage, Nuñez still technically owns the property itself.
“A foreclosure has to happen for the property to trade hands,” Manning said.
On Oct. 2, Andrea Perron — who lived in the house during the 1970s as a teenager with the rest of the Perron family — pleaded on Facebook for Hawes to “save the farm” and deliver it into “caring, responsible, mature hands.”
“Paranormal believers, nonbelievers, skeptics, debunkers, historians — they all want to see the property, and they should be allowed to,” Hawes told WJAR. “If we can acquire that property, we’ll fix it up, we’ll open it enough to cover its costs and to keep updates and repairs.”
WJAR previously reported that Tessa Groff, a psychic medium, and Nick Groff, a paranormal investigator, were initially interested in purchasing the house. But they soon decided to publicly back Hawes instead.
“When we heard Jason was seeking support, it was an automatic yes from us,” the Groffs wrote in a message to The Herald.
“We believe Andrea Perron’s dying wish that she put into her video begging Jason to save the house was heartfelt,” they added. “Both she and the house deserve support in that aspect.” Perron is currently fighting stage four breast cancer.
“This wasn’t just a piece of real estate,” Manning said, highlighting the “intrinsic” significance of the Burrillville property to the paranormal community.
According to Manning, a new auction date will most likely occur “at least a couple months” from now.
Michelle Bi is a metro editor covering City Hall & Crime and State Politics & Justice. She is a sophomore from Oak Park, CA and studies English and IAPA. In her free time, you can find her playing guitar, the LA Times crossword or one of her 115 Spotify playlists.
