I’ve been trying to find this book for years! I read it as a kid in the 80s and it was about a little girl and, I think, her father moving to a new house that seems at first to be haunted and scary but turns out to be homey and cosy. What made this book stick in my mind was the illustrations: really hauntingly beautiful large, rich watercolours. The new house was drawn on a hill and somewhat isolated and the little girl had long dark straight hair, looking perhaps Spanish. At first the new home is drawn very dark and spooky, but by the last page it is lit up and warm and the little girl is hugging her father, having come to love their new home.
I hope this is the book you are referring to!
Not the exact story you described, but this sounded close.
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and John Schoenherr
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/228696.Owl_Moon
Aww, that looks like a beautiful book but it’s not the one I’m thinking of, alas. Thank you for suggesting it, though!