Durham county council drops ‘unlucky 13’ from home numbers

If likely to obituary in tomorrow’s Guardian headlined ‘Promising young Guardian Northerner writer dies aged 22′, you already know I’ve created grave miscalculation. Many people will think I will be currently flouting Satan himself by looking into making fun of superstition in the article published to the 13th. Okay, therefore it is not Friday, but nevertheless dear reader, We’re taking gaming within my hands.

Some on Durham county council needs to be amongst people who join superstitious beliefs too, because latest research by they decided to prevent new build houses being numbered 13.

That’s right. Hidden in Appendix 2: Street Naming and Numbering Policy and Procedures paragraph 8.6 is definitely the council edict: “All numbers should really be used in the[ir] proper sequence. The number 13 might be excluded from your numbering scheme unless its advantageous for the Street Naming and Numbering Officer to include it.”

Leaving aside well-known question regarding when it is advantageous to number a building 13, this is often an amazing development for the country (in addition to a region) which takes pride in its no-nonsense stiff upper lip. People of your north east are regarded C by folks that live here, at least C as among the most level headed people around. Cowing to superstition isn’t really done. 

Except actually, there can be a solid economic basis behind the process. Viewing Land Registry Data implies that triskaidekaphobics could possibly be more established than we think. Recent research by FindaProperty.com uncovers that living at number 13 can often mean your house is worth 6,511 not as much as other, less fate tempting, abodes. In case there are men and women who feel uneasy enough to reduce your asking price, you need to banning the quantity outright isn’t a bad idea all things considered.

Unproven fears seems to be a weird grounds for getting a major financial decision, but Andrew Smith of your Digital Property Group believes that “for many people, superstitions can enjoy an enormous role” in regardless of whether they prefer to buy or you cannot.

A amount of councils within the country have instigated similar legally-binding bans to the number 13, while a staggeringly large number of developers unofficially skip over the phone number when building their new estates. 28% of streets already don’t have a number 13.

Professor Richard Wiseman in the University of Hertfordshire believes that humans are surprisingly superstitious. From a 2003 survey of two,068 people he done, 77% of individuals said we were holding “at least a bit of superstitious and/or carried out some type of superstitious behaviour”. 42% were “very/somewhat superstitious.” 25 percent of people admitted they purchase the heebie jeebies from the sinister number.

Prof Wiseman says now:

We were a superstitious nation back in 2003 as i did my research, and now we are still. Irrational the fear of many is one area innate in lots of people – and also at a very important liminal moment which include choosing a house, we’re certain to have the irrational take control of. Heading off that fear by reduction of the phone number 13 at source appears like a wise go on to me.

Of course, Britain is not only country that does not like certain numbers. We have all had the pub conversation regarding how the vagaries of your tonal Mandarin language has meant whole swathes of Asian hotels and tower blocks skip from the level Less than 6 (the idea of for “four” sounds very like the word for “death”). Italians get weak-kneed with the sight of 17, and several Afghans can’t stand the cell number 39.

Is there grounds to fear numbers anymore, or is it a relic of your society which used religion and the occult?  More pertinently for Guardian Northerner, are Durham county council as being a lot of Southern jessies? As always, we’re keen to know your notions.

Chris Stokel-Walker is really a freelance writer from Gateshead.