  
Saint Joseph (San Jose in Spanish and San Giuseppe in Italian) is considered in the wider world of Catholic folk-magic, as the Patron Saint of real estate matters and home sales. The reason given for this belief is that he was a carpenter who taught his step-son Jesus the carpentering trade, and he always saw to it that Jesus was well housed.
The custom of burying a statue of Saint Joseph upside down in the yard while one's house is for sale goes back a long way in the United States.
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