Would you buy a number 13 house?

[zooterkin]

I think this may be more common in the US (e.g. the lack of 13th floors), but it seems to be increasingly common in the UK for the number 13 not to be used for house numbers. It's not just developers being worried about not being able to sell houses with that number, they now have the backing of some local councils

Quote:

Such has been the local aversion to "unlucky" houses that the district council, Wyre Forest, has in recent years banned the use of number 13 in all new developments. Local councillor Stephen Clee resolutely defends the policy.

"We have to listen to what the people say," he says. "The local community were saying to us, 'we don't like living at number 13, so can we do something about it?'"

I'm always surprised when people take these things seriously (much like astrology), but it appears they do. The road I live in is particularly unusual in the other direction, as we have a 13 and a 13A, and the latter was built in the last three years, so clearly not all councils have this irrationally based policy.

Would you live at a number 13?

[Lothian]

Yes. I when our new basketball kit turned up I grabbed the '13' strip before anyone else could.

[kakariki]

I certainly would.

I'm also someone attracted to the number 13 because it is omitted frequently enough that it makes it seem rarer and more desirable than other numbers to me.

And speaking of the number 13, I saw this yesterday and noted the absurdity:

Cryptic Fire Sale Location

[Miss_Kitt]

Oh, gads! I hope this isn't going on here--not that the US is a bed of reason, by any means. First of all, most of our house numbers are multi-digit, showing the distance from a cross-street rather than assuming a fixed length of a road. That is, an address might have, "4879" to indicate that the lot is about 800 feet from 48th street--so no house number will be just 13.

I've never understood the mindset of a person who is willing to be on the ACTUAL 13th floor of a building, so long as the number says "14" on the elevator and the address. I mean, if there were anything actually unlucky about the value "13", it would apply No Matter How It Was Labelled!

Shaking my head, Miss Kitt

ETA -- I forgot to say, I'd have no issues with having unit #13, and I've actually had 13 in my phone extension.

EATA: The big superstition number around here is "666" -- which many states now skip on their license plates. I think I have more charity towards the triskaidekaphobes!!

[wombatwal]

No. 13, oh no, of course not. It's a supertisious number I hope you know.

[Madouc]

Hong Kong has much the same fear of the number 4. The last office I worked in omitted all floor numbers with 4 in it, and just to pander to Western sensibilities, also no 13. So even though I was on the 22nd floor, it was actually the 19th.

I can see why this is important for business owners though, where you have to consider the superstitions of clients and partners, however silly they might be. And while I'd have no problem in renting a 4 or 13, I'd be worried about the sale value if I were a buyer.

[qwints]

My parents' home phone number starts w/ 666 (Hewitt, TX).

[kitakaze]

Originally Posted by Madouc

Hong Kong has much the same fear of the number 4. The last office I worked in omitted all floor numbers with 4 in it, and just to pander to Western sensibilities, also no 13. So even though I was on the 22nd floor, it was actually the 19th.

I can see why this is important for business owners though, where you have to consider the superstitions of clients and partners, however silly they might be. And while I'd have no problem in renting a 4 or 13, I'd be worried about the sale value if I were a buyer.

I'm interested why Hong Kong has a problem with four. Here in Japan 4 and nine are bad. 4 is pronounced "yon" or "shi." Shi 死 also means death. 9 can be pronounced "kyu" or "ku." Ku also means torture.

I found this on number 4 in Chinese.

Quote:

Four
Although the number 4 is considered unlucky by most Chinese (see Unlucky section for details), it is considered lucky in some local Chinese dialects where it is a homophone with the word "事(job, business, or task)". When the number 4 is encountered during a celebration, people would often remark "四四如意", which would also refer to "事事如意" (Everything done as wished).

4 also sounds like the word "思 (thinking)". 4 in solfège sounds like "fa (发)", meaning "get fortune"; 14 in solfège sounds like "dou fa (都发)", meaning "everyone gets fortunes".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers...e_culture#Four

[Harpyja]

Not only would I live at the thirteenth house, I'd live on the thirteenth apartment on the thirteenth floor on 13th Street.

[not daSkeptic]

Originally Posted by Miss_Kitt

The big superstition number around here is "666" -- which many states now skip on their license plates.

On I-5 just south of Anderson, CA the exit numbers skip 666.

[El Greco]

I'd love it. I'd love all numbers in my life to have a 13 and a 666 in them: CC numbers, ID numbers, phones, house numbers, car plates etc.

[moopet]

While I have no superstition about the number itself, if it makes people less likely to buy something with foundless negative associations I'd be *more* likely to make an offer on a number-13 house, because odds would probably be on me getting it slightly cheaper.

[shadron]

The developers figure they don't need the hassle. And when you consider they'll name a condo development hemmed in by bus garages "Babbling Brook Estates" (the brook that was there 30 years ago is now running through a buried sewer pipe for 20 miles in either direction), missing 13 is a pecadillo.

[Autolite]

Yeah, I'd buy a number 13 house, (as long as it wasn't built on a Monday or a Friday). I'd also buy a haunted house, but I would be expecting a huge discount...

[Clairvoyant_Kyle]

I refuse to live at any house that is not a number 13 just to be spiteful.

-Kyle

[Aepervius]

if I can get it cheaper because some people think 13 is a bad number, yes I would. heck I used to live as the first direct neighbor of a cemetery in France. VEEERRRRYYYY cheapo house. But very good, calm, and the neighbors never protested if I threw a party .

[zooterkin]

Oh, I forgot to mention, just in case anyone should doubt my critical thinking credentials, the number 13 in our road is where I live

[Agatha]

I would have no problems with buying a number 13, other than the resale value.

As it is, I live at number 11, and I have number 9 on one side, and number 15 on the other. The builders of this estate were obviously superstitious!

[Big Les]

I'd live at No.13 even if 13 people had been murdered and buried in the back garden.

Think of the discount!

[Lonewulf]

Until people can scientifically prove that 13 is a "bad number", yes.

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Absolutely. I'd get married on a Friday the 13th, I'd sit on the corner at the dinner table, not wear "something old, something new..." at my wedding, walk under a ladder, use the number 666, put a hat on a bed, pick up a coin tails side up, etc.

In fact, I think I'll go out of my way to get married on a Friday the 13th, just to show how silly the whole thing is.

[zooterkin]

Originally Posted by Miss_Kitt

Oh, gads! I hope this isn't going on here--not that the US is a bed of reason, by any means. First of all, most of our house numbers are multi-digit, showing the distance from a cross-street rather than assuming a fixed length of a road. That is, an address might have, "4879" to indicate that the lot is about 800 feet from 48th street--so no house number will be just 13.

Thanks for that, I'd noticed that there seemed to be missing numbers on a couple of occasions when searching for addresses in the US, and that explains why.

The edition of More or Less that covered the issue of number 13s also explained the origin of the conventional numbering used in the UK, of odd numbers on one side, and even on the others. Originally houses were numbered up one side and back down the other; however, in London there was constant extension of streets, so houses had to be renumbered. By adopting odds and evens on different sides, new houses could be added as the road grew without needing to renumber the existing ones.

There is a trend to return to the 'up one side, back down the other' numbering in new estates, as many of the roads are closes, with no prospect of extension.

Relating to the main topic, my birthday is also on the 13th, and I suspect that my scepticism may be partly founded on the fact that this never seemed to have been at all unlucky for me, even when it fell on a Friday.

[Gr8wight]

The number 13 is one of my favourite superstitions because it is so inconsistently applied by the superstitious. For example, someone who would refuse to live in a house numbered 13 would not refuse to buy something in a "baker's dozen" quantity.

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

That and the fact that living in a house or an apartment or floor that has been labeled "14" instead of "13" does not make it the 14th.

And it's so arbitrary anyway; how exactly is the house the 13th? Is it the 13th from the corner? Is it the 13th from the start of the road? Maybe the 13th on the block- but wouldn't that make it the 7th in the row?

Pure hokum, even as the paranormal goes.

[Lonewulf]

Superstitions like this seem to be a sign that we love to find order even in the meaningless...

[WildCat]

#13 took my team to a World Series title 3 years ago.

[Giggywig]

Everything else being equal, yes. If I have to pay a premium for it just cause it's #13 and people want to buy it just to prove they are not superstitious, I'll settle for #14.

[psy kick]

Originally Posted by Big Les

I'd live at No.13 even if 13 people had been murdered and buried in the back garden.

Think of the discount!

I'd wait til they caught the guy first..

[VespaGuy]

I met my fiancee on Friday the 13th about 3 years ago. We're getting married in 6 days.

That may be considered good luck or bad luck.... ;o)

[BillC]

I was born in a number 13 house.

[Freethinker]

I'd have no problem living at a house or apartment numbered 13, but I'd hesitate to invest money in a house with such an address. No doubt there are enough who wouldn't buy the house because of the address that it would depress the resale value.

[The Atheist]

Originally Posted by zooterkin

Would you live at a number 13?

I've lived at #13 in two different streets.

Originally Posted by BillC

I was born in a number 13 house.

Possibly why the whole "bad luck" things started...

[TheSkepticCanuck]

I don't see why it would make any difference if I worked or lived on the 13th floor of a building, or if I worked or lived on the 14th floor of a building that skipped the 13th floor. In either case, I'd still be on the 13th floor, despite the arbitrary designation of such. Anyone who thinks that the luck or lack thereof changes simply by modifying a label is as delusional as those with a fear of the number 13.

[Monza]

Originally Posted by TheSkepticCanuck

I don't see why it would make any difference if I worked or lived on the 13th floor of a building, or if I worked or lived on the 14th floor of a building that skipped the 13th floor. In either case, I'd still be on the 13th floor, despite the arbitrary designation of such. Anyone who thinks that the luck or lack thereof changes simply by modifying a label is as delusional as those with a fear of the number 13.

It gets worse. Most buildings in Europe consider the floor above the ground floor to be the first floor. So where in the US, a building may have 20 floors. In the UK that same building would have 19 floors. So how can one be sure if they are on the actual 13th floor?

As for me, I have no hesitation to be on the 13th floor or sit in the 13th row of an aircraft (what are the chances the the people in the 12th and 14th rows will live if I die in a crash?). Where I work we assign a project number to new projects. We are currently on 520. When we get to 666 I will definitely make sure that one is assigned to me!

[Rocko]

Originally Posted by daSkeptic

On I-5 just south of Anderson, CA the exit numbers skip 666.

In the UK we stopped printing license plates which ended in "666" quite a few years back. Bizarre.

[SimonD]

My aunt moved into a number 13 house directly across the river where her brother drowned on the same date (not year) that he died.

She's still there 20 years later

[merentha]

Originally Posted by kitakaze

I'm interested why Hong Kong has a problem with four. Here in Japan 4 and nine are bad. 4 is pronounced "yon" or "shi." Shi 死 also means death. 9 can be pronounced "kyu" or "ku." Ku also means torture.

I found this on number 4 in Chinese.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers...e_culture#Four

In many Chinese dialects, 4 does sound like death as well, even though the intonations for the two characters are slightly different, not like it'll deter the superstitious. Anyway, some who speak the Cantonese dialect try to negate its gloomy association by suggesting that 4 ("sei") also sounds like 喜 ("hei"), which means happiness. However, I've never come across any Chinese who use the solfège to "redeem" the number.

On the other hand, the number 3 ("sam") is equated with 生 ("sang") in Cantonese, meaning "to live/survive/be alive" which is the antithesis of death associated with 4. Hence, 13 would be considered auspicious, as it sounds like "guaranteed to survive" in Cantonese, whereas 14 is doomed as it equates to "guaranteed to die".

I don't have an issue with living in a house with an inauspicious number, but I'd avoid buying one as it does affect the property's resale value. I've known cases of nice properties where potential buyers won't even bother to view the place once they learn of the address when they phoned the sellers' agents to enquire. Those who were willing to buy would drive a hard bargain for a deep discount on the valuation price.

[Jeff Corey]

It is similar to when we bought our house in a variagated diverse integrated neighborhood. We didn't care about the grotty Brit next door, even though he lowered our property value. But we got our house cheap and it is worth about the same as it was 16 years ago.

[Jonquill]

I'd rather live at number 13 than in a street with a silly embaressing name, like Woollybutt Street.

[The Atheist]

Originally Posted by Jonquill

I'd rather live at number 13 than in a street with a silly embaressing name, like Woollybutt Street.

Oi!