The fears Americans harbor about homeownership include unexpected costs, bad neighbors, and high interest rates. But the list of scares doesn’t end there.
Nearly a quarter of Americans said the scariest thing about owning a home is the possibility that it’s haunted, according to a new study from Real Estate Witch. For a surprising percentage of people, living with an otherworldly presence isn’t entirely theoretical. About 19% said they’ve cohabitated with ghosts in an actual haunted house.
While 24% of millennials and 30% of Gen Z think they’ve lived in a haunted house, only 10% of boomers said the same. Yet even 26% of boomers have experienced something unexplainable in their home, suggesting some have lived in a bewitched property but are averse to the “haunted house” label.
A Majority of Americans Believe in Ghosts
Just a fifth of Americans said they’ve lived in a real haunted house, but 76% believe a home can be haunted. Furthermore, 82% said they think haunted houses are a lot more common than most people believe.
Living in a haunted house can be stressful, according to those who have done it. About 52% of haunted house owners said they’ve lost sleep over having a supernatural roommate, and 49% said their home has scared them. Even more unnerving, 45% said they’ve avoided certain rooms of their home because of supernatural concerns, and 41% have felt unsafe.
However, haunted homeowners have surprisingly few regrets, and very few tried to sell their house quickly. Nearly three-quarters said they have no regrets about living in a haunted house, and half said they’d knowingly buy another haunted house.
Liza Dimarco, a real estate agent based in Savannah, Georgia —long known as one of the most haunted cities in America —believes she once lived in a haunted home and didn’t mind the experience.
“I have personally lived in a haunted property,” she said. “I never saw the spirit at all. It would just wake me up with a noise every once in a while.”
While some people don’t mind living in a haunted house, others argue there is a real-world benefit: 39% said their home cost less than others in the area.
Ghosts Are Scary, but Not as Scary as This Market
Homeowners are so reluctant to venture out into today’s real estate market that many would stay in a haunted house. Although 57% said they’d be uncomfortable living in a haunted house, 74% said they wouldn’t move immediately if they discovered their house was haunted.
About 32% would try to cleanse the home, 16% would conduct an exorcism, and 12% would make the home more comfortable for the ghosts.
If those measures failed, most haunted homeowners would tough it out. Roughly 68% said they wouldn’t pack up and move even if they saw a ghost in their home, 67% wouldn’t move even if they saw an unknown reflection in a mirror, and 60% wouldn’t move even if they saw objects moving or levitating on their own.
A Chilling Effect
Most Americans would be open to buying a haunted house, but there’s a catch.
Of the 52% who said they’d purchase a haunted house, 73% said they’d only do so if they could buy it for a bargain. Many buyers clearly see a haunted house as a way to save money, and 68% of Americans said they’d offer below the asking price for a bewitched property.
But most sellers of haunted houses are determined to get market value for their house, ghost or no ghost. Only 32% of haunted house owners said they’d expect to sell below market value, although 63% conceded their home could be harder to sell. For haunted house sellers who can’t find a suitable buyer in the open market, companies that buy houses for cash can be a good option to fall back on.
Although a haunting can be inconvenient, it can also be a great marketing hook. Dimarco hasn’t found the presence of a ghost to be a hindrance — quite the opposite, in fact.
“Haunted homes are fascinating to people,” she said. “They pay a lot to visit the haunted attractions in Savannah. When people ask if a house is haunted, I usually reply, ‘If it is, the price would go up substantially,’ which gets a laugh. People don’t seem to have any concern if they are haunted.”
Putting It in Perspective
For all this talk of ghosts, only 6% of homeowners said they are the scariest aspect of homeownership. The other 94% are more afraid of home repair problems such as mold, termites, and asbestos.
Digging into the data, however, reveals a more complicated picture. Fifty-seven percent of respondents said ghosts are more concerning than radon, and 47% said a haunting is more concerning than the presence of lead paint.
Generational breakdowns found an even greater disconnect. Among Gen Z, 75% were more concerned about ghosts than radon, 64% were more concerned about ghosts than asbestos, and 49% were more concerned about ghosts than mold.
Concerns like radon and lead paint must almost always be disclosed, but only four states — New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Minnesota — require sellers to disclose a haunting. This raises the possibility that, in the vast majority of U.S. states, anyone could unknowingly buy a house with ghosts, and they’d only find out after they started hearing spooky noises in the night.
Although Dimarco would likely disclose any supernatural presence, she’s mindful that she’s under no obligation.
“We are not required to make a haunted house known in Savannah,” she said. “But I would say most homes [in Savannah] are haunted in some way. This town is so old.”