They even attempted to get permission from the city's planning board to raze the house and divide the property into two lots. Gothamist is a website about New York City news, arts and events, and food, brought to you by New York Public Radio. I'll know as soon as you move in. Score the best deals on Apple, Levi's and more. Thanks for contacting us. From June 2014 to February 2017, the Watcher sent Derek and Maria Broaddus four letters to their Westfield home at 657 Boulevard. Beth Sullivan, the real estate agent who was listed as involved in the sale, also declined to comment on Friday. One family's nightmare is over: They finally sold the home where they were terrorized by letters from "The Watcher." The Woodses would not comment on the case or the home, according to their attorney, Richard Kaplow. Bloomberg reports that 657 Boulevard in Westfield, New Jersey, sold on July 1st for $959,360. All rights reserved. Comment below or Send us a Tip. Why are you here? Zillow reports the house was sold for $959,000 this time around, resulting in a significant loss for the Broadduses. Follow her on Twitter@JessicaRemoNJ. The former resident counter-sued, alleging they were defamed. But a few days before they moved out, they received a letter from "The Watcher." The lawsuit — which claimed the previous occupants didn’t disclose earlier correspondence from “The Watcher” — was later dismissed. Who has the bedrooms facing the street? Gallery: The Westfield "Watcher" house. New Jersey couple tormented by 'The Watcher' opens up, Home stalked by 'The Watcher' back on the market in New Jersey. The police questioned one of the adult children, but he had denied knowing anything about the letters. News trucks parked outside the home, and the couple was deluged with requests from the media. The Broadduses bought the six-bedroom Colonial home in the affluent suburb for $1.3 million in 2014, records show. The couple were eventually able to rent the house. It will help me to know who is in which bedroom. The couple put off moving day, but the notes just kept on coming. This story has been shared 506,687 times. The infamous “Watcher” house in Westfield, New Jersey, was sold in July despite the former owners revealing they had received mysterious letters from someone claiming to watch their house. The Watcher will, presumably, keep right on watching—and so will we. Do Not Sell My Personal Information, Your California Privacy Rights In the missives, The Watcher claims to be the rightful owner of the home and hints he’ll be keeping tabs on the “young blood” that’s taken up residence in the abode. And what of the Watcher? They had lived in the home for 23 years without incident, Ms. Woods said — though they had received one letter from “The Watcher,” just a few days before they moved out, said Richard J. Kaplow, the lawyer who had represented the Woodses after the Broadduses sued them, on Friday. So, they rented it out. The Broaddus family hired a private investigator and an ex-FBI profiler to try to find the identity of the Watcher. This story has been shared 290,700 times. And so the Broadduses wound up with a prohibitively creepy property on their hands, and the family wound up renting it for years while they looked for a buyer. The Westfield ‘Watcher’ house finally sells — at a $400K loss Updated Aug 08, 2019; Posted Aug 08, 2019 View of the "Watcher" house at 675 Boulevard in Westfield. He or she wrote: Was your old house too small for the growing family? Two weeks later, another note arrived, New York Magazine reported. 235,510, © 2020 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved Find NJ.com on Facebook. Authorities have never publicly identified any suspects in the case. Westfield police and the Union County prosecutor’s office have sought out The Watcher, but no one has ever been charged in the case. The Woods then counter-sued for defamation. Share your email address to get our top stories each day. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett faces questions on Day 3 of confirmation hearings, August 8, 2019 | 6:48pm | Updated August 8, 2019 | 7:23pm. "I hope this nightmare is behind them, and I look forward to the Netflix version.”. I’ll know as soon as you move in.”. The case was dismissed. If their claims were true, there's no reason to expect they ever stopped watching, nor wondering if whatever hellish treasure they sealed inside 657 Boulevard's walls had yet been uncovered. Updated 0043 GMT (0843 HKT) August 13, 2019, (CNN)One family's nightmare is over: They finally sold the home where they were terrorized by letters from "The Watcher.". Will they sleep in the attic? Derek and Maria Broaddus bought the nearly $1.4 million 1905 Dutch colonial revival home in 2014. The Broadduses never moved into the property because they were spooked by four threatening letters from the “Watcher," including the first letter received just three days after buying the home. Joe Jonas fans think his new neck tattoo is a tribute to Sophie Turner, Kate Hudson, Zoe Saldana and more stars pose in their underwear for a good cause, Andrea Lee Christensen says pink hair helped her land ‘Power Book II: Ghost’ role, Washington insiders say to beware Nancy Pelosi, David Byrne’s ‘American Utopia’ to re-open on Broadway in September 2021, Broadway legends can’t wait to go back to iconic Joe Allen, © 2020 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, terrorized for years by creepy, sinister letters, claims to be the rightful owner of the home, How the coronavirus pandemic has changed NYC for the better, Property magnate Harry Macklowe skips rent at Mort Zuckerman’s GM Building, 10 gift ideas that are on sale for Amazon Prime Day, The best headphone deals you can buy this Amazon Prime Day, The best Amazon Prime Day deals you can buy today, Amazon takes up to 30 percent off Fitbit devices for Prime Day, Marshall speakers up to 35 percent off for Amazon Prime Day, YouTube bans COVID vaccine misinformation, Cardi B was in bed with Offset when she accidentally posted her nude photo. Three days after the couple closed on the home in 2014, according to New York Magazine, Mr. Broaddus received the first of many menacing notes from someone who went only by the name “The Watcher.” The writer — whose identity the couple said they never learned — appeared to be spying on the family from somewhere nearby. The family began receiving ominous notes three days after they closed on their dream home in 2014. The writer noted the make of the couple’s car and the comings and goings of construction crews, and observed that the couple had three young children. But now, a new owner will brave the home. Some even accused the couple of orchestrating a hoax, which the Broadduses have denied. "657 Boulevard is anxious for you to move in,", "Will they sleep in the attic? The couple bought the home for $1,355,657. The infamous “Watcher” house in New Jersey was sold in July. The story put many residents on edge. The couple grew suspicious of other neighbors and began having nightmares. Sitemap Or will you all sleep on the second floor? by: Tribune Media Wire. Derek and Maria Broaddus moved all of their belongings into the Westfield, New Jersey, home between June and August 2014, but they never lived there because of the threatening letters. The renter told NJ.com he hadn’t heard about the threatening letters until after he responded to the ad for the six-bedroom home. That's right, the aggrieved residents of the Watcher House have finally offloaded their curséd property—at a loss, but still. I'll know as soon as you move in. 11. At first, the Broadduses wondered if the writer was someone who had made a failed bid to buy the house, but that theory was quickly dismissed. It is far away from the rest of the house. The Broadduses bought the home for $1,355,657, and it was originally listed for $1.25 million in March 2016. Only hours left on Amazon Prime Day! Have you found all of the secrets it holds yet? Your California Privacy Rights The couple claimed the previous owners failed to disclose the existence of the “Watcher,” a letter-writer who said he was carrying on a family tradition of stalking the house and its occupants. In time they will.”. However, the Woodses claim that the letter was not threatening and that they discarded it. No, that would probably dampen your enthusiasm for the place; it would almost certainly make you wildly suspicious of your new community, and indeed, tensions between the Broadduses and their fellow Westfield residents ratcheted ever upward as the new homeowners tried to figure out who was sending the threatening letters. Or are they too afraid to go down there alone. The real estate agent, Beth Sullivan of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, confirmed the purchase with TODAY Home but said the new homeowners would like to remain anonymous and have no comment at this time. They had never moved in. Subscribe to NJ.com’s newsletters. The house the Broaddus family moved into in Westfield, New Jersey was, in fact, their dream home.