Homeowners Reveal Frightening Facts as Halloween Approaches

About 29% of Americans believe they’ve lived in a real haunted house—up from 24% in 2022, according to a new study from Real Estate Witch. The report revealed that nearly 2 in 3 homebuyers (63%) would only offer below market value for a haunted home, with 1 in 3 (31%) offering at least $50,000 less and 1 in 9 (11%) offering at least $100,000 less.

Few Americans are wanting to live in a haunted house, but among homeowners who have lived in a bewitched home, some 36% regret it, and 60% wouldn’t recommend it to others.  The study shows some 52% of Americans would risk purchasing a haunted house, especially for a lower price. With high home prices and rising interest rates, ghosts are the least of homebuyers’ worries.

Key Findings:

• About 29% of Americans believe they’ve lived in a real haunted house — up slightly from 24% who said the same in 2022.
  Of those who have lived in a haunted house, 27% knew the house was haunted before they moved in and still chose to live there.
• A staggering 95% of Americans say it’s important to feel safe in their home, but 57% of those who have lived in a haunted house say it scared them, and 43% say their home caused them stress.
• More than 1 in 3 haunted homeowners (36%) regret living in a haunted house, and 55% would not buy another home they knew was haunted.
• More than 2 in 3 Americans (68%) say the government should require sellers to disclose a haunted home, but only 31% of sellers would willingly tell the buyer if their home was bewitched.
• In 2023, 11% of sellers wouldn’t disclose a haunted house even if it was required by law, compared to 8% in 2022.
• More than half of Americans (52%) would consider purchasing a haunted house in 2023 — down from 58% in 2022.
• Although a majority of buyers would purchase a haunted house, 72% would feel uncomfortable doing so.
  71% of Americans could be convinced to buy a haunted house to save money.
• Nearly 2 in 3 home buyers (62%) would only offer below market value for a haunted home, with 1 in 3 (31%) offering at least $50,000 less and 1 in 9 (11%) offering at least $100,000 less.
• Americans say the most terrifying aspects of homeownership are all financial in nature: unexpected costs (50%), high interest rates (46%), and an inability to pay their mortgage (42%).
• Ghosts are scary, but 93% of Americans are more afraid of home repair problems, such as mold (60%), termites (57%), and a leaky roof (54%).
• Nearly half of Americans (48%) would rather live with ghosts than purchase a home near a nuclear waste facility.
• More Than 1 in 4 Homeowners Believe They’ve Lived in a Real Haunted House
• Nearly 3 in 4 Americans (71%) believe some properties are inherently more likely to be bewitched. Although hospitals, graveyards, and theaters are prime haunts for ghosts, so are American homes.

More than 1 in 4 respondents (29%) believe they’ve lived in a real haunted house. Of those, 27% knew the house was haunted and still chose to live there—a slight decline from the 31% who said the same in 2022. Americans are more likely to believe they’ve lived in a haunted house if they already believe in the supernatural.

Millennials are the most likely to believe in the paranormal. Consequently, they are also the most likely to say they’ve roomed with ghosts. About 1 in 3 millennials (35%) claim they’ve lived in a haunted house, making them 2x more likely than boomers (15%) to say so. Haunted houses may scare off some homebuyers, but they can be surprisingly desirable to those who are more terrified of today’s high home prices.

A lower price convinced 40% of those who have lived in a haunted house to knowingly buy one, but that percentage is down from 69% in 2022. It’s possible that after two straight quarters of declining home sale prices, optimistic buyers are prioritizing homes that don’t come with unwanted roommates.

Americans also overlooked a few scary factors in exchange for:

• More square footage (38%)
• A larger yard or more land (38%)
• A better school district (34%)
• A better school district is the only factor that would make home buyers more likely to purchase a haunted house this year (34%) than in the previous year (28%). That’s because savvy home buyers know that houses in a good school district retain their resale value in case of a market crash.

To read the full report, including more data, charts, and methodology, click here.