You wouldn't really think that a starring role in a classic serial killer flick would be a home's best-selling point. Ever. But think again. It turns out that the buyer who scored the 1910 Pennsylvania home featured in the 1991 movie "The Silence of the Lambs" took notice when the listing burned up on the web. It was featured on our list of most popular homes in April more than once.
Plenty of folks wanted to take a gander at the spot that housed Buffalo Bill, one of the creepiest characters in movie history. And apparently, seeing was believing in the home's real-world, nonmurder potential for this buyer.
"He saw the home on the internet," listing agent Dianne Wilk says of the buyer. "The fact that [the house] was in the movie is probably what caught his eye. He was not looking in that area at all." But once he took a look, "he just fell in love with it." The home was sold for $195,000, down from an original ask of $249,000.
The charm of the home is undeniable -- and surprise, surprise, it's no house of horrors. The century-old five-bedroom, 1.5-bathroom residence maintains much of its original details, including a wraparound deck, 10-foot-high ceilings, oak-paneled walls, wood flooring, and pocket doors.
For the scenes with Jodie Foster playing FBI Agent Clarice Starling, who is tracking a serial killer, the home was made to look like a shabby shack. But that was only for the movies. The Queen Anne has since been restored to its former glory, with all the clutter and the green paint in the kitchen from the shoot long gone. (In case you're wondering: The elaborate basement torture chamber was filmed on a soundstage.)
You can compare the movie version of the house with its real-life rooms in this clip:
The exterior of the home is easily recognizable from repeated viewings of the thriller. And just like in the film, it really is located right near the train tracks in the small town of Perryopolis, PA, outside of Pittsburgh. But the real home is anything but a spooky place.
"It is so beautiful. There is nothing scary or funky about the home at all," Wilk says. "It's a very inviting place."