A couple had just moved into a new home when they found a gallon-sized zippered bag buried in their backyard. The people who had owned the house had a little boy, so the couple had been finding all kinds of random toys around the backyard, but what was in the bag turned out to be something very different.

Inside the bag was a figure that looked like he was right out of the nativity scene. The couple thought he might be a saint, but since they were not religious, they had no idea who he actually was.

They later learned that the figure was St. Joseph, and that the purpose of burying him was to help sell the home faster. Catholic tradition states that St. Joseph is the patron saint of farmers and workers, and he is known for his real estate prowess.

Though no one knows where the idea of burying a statue of St. Joseph to sell a home comes from, it became very common in the U.S. to do so around 1990, “with realtors buying plastic saints’ statues by the gross.”

Tradition dictates that the St. Joseph statue should be buried upside down in the front yard facing the house. Those who don’t have a yard can bury St. Joseph in a pot near the front door.

Even non-Catholics have been doing this. Author and home owner Erica Orloff says that she is “an atheist, or at least a very cynical agnostic,” but she grew up with grandparents who were strict Catholics.

“I have my grandparents’ crucifixes on my walls, and carry Mass cards and assorted Catholic items in my purse. So it felt like a natural thing to me, a cross between superstition and a talisman,” she said.

Erica’s home had been on the market for eight months when she finally buried St. Joseph in her yard.

“It sold in an all-cash deal in under a week,” she explained.

If you’ve been having trouble selling your home, give burying a St. Joseph statue a try!