In today’s competitive market, a nosy homeowners association, peeling wallpaper, and creaking flooring are just a few of the things that purchasers may overlook. What if there were a few voices in the night that were not embodied?
A LendingTree survey of 2,000 American consumers found that 8% of them would pay more for the experience, and 30% would think about purchasing a house they thought was haunted. Views on exposing paranormal activity, the percentage of Americans who think they have lived in a haunted house, and more are examined here.
Key Findings:
- Haunted houses aren’t just for Halloween. 35% of Americans say they’ve lived in a home they believed was haunted, and 50% of them believe their current home has some paranormal activity. This has real consequences, too, as 59% of those who’ve lived in a home they felt was haunted have considered moving because of it — including 19% who have done so.
- Some Americans would live with ghosts if the price was right. 56% say they wouldn’t consider buying a home they believed was haunted, while 30% would — though most would require a steep discount. 59% of those who’d consider it say the home price would need to be at least 11% lower. Just 8% admit they’d pay extra for the spooky factor.
- Secrets and spirits can make real estate decisions trickier. 73% of Americans think sellers should be legally required to disclose if a home is believed to be haunted. 37%, though, admit they wouldn’t disclose a haunting as a seller.
- When it comes to housing headaches, some Americans would take ghosts over real-world problems. 47% say they’d rather live in a haunted house than deal with mold, while 41% would prefer hauntings over bad neighbors, and 39% would choose spirits instead of structural issues.
Haunted Homes & Those Who’ve Lived in Them
Ghosts are more than just a holiday attraction for some Americans. Indeed, 35% of respondents claim to have resided in a house they thought was haunted. For those with children under the age of 18, that number jumps to 49%.
Although 19% of this group didn’t think their current house was haunted before moving in, 50% of them think it is.
In the meantime, 15% of Americans have sought guidance from a medium or psychic regarding a haunted house, and 16% of Americans claim that there is a room in their own house that they are terrified of.
Sixty-five percent of respondents report having encountered paranormal activity in their home, regardless of whether they think it is haunted. The most frequent paranormal encounter is feeling a presence when no one is there (24%), which is followed by pets responding to something invisible (22%), and hearing strange noises (22%). Additional paranormal encounters consist of:
- Seeing an apparition or shadow figure (19%)
- Hearing voices or whispers when no one is around (17%)
- Being physically touched or grabbed by something unseen (15%)
- Hearing unexplained footsteps (13%)
- Noticing objects disappearing and reappearing (13%)
- Noticing objects moving on their own (13%)
- Feeling unexplained temperature changes (12%)
- Noticing unexplained electronic malfunctions (12%)
- Experiencing time anomalies (9%)
Hauntings can have serious repercussions as well. 59% of those who have lived in a house they believe to be haunted have thought about moving as a result. Notably, 19% of people migrated for this reason.
That makes sense, according to Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst at LendingTree and author of “Ask Questions, Save Money, Make More: How to Take Control of Your Financial Life.”
“You want your home to be a sanctuary, a place where you can feel safe and comfortable,” said Schulz. “Believing your home is haunted could make that impossible, so it makes sense that someone would want to leave. Fear of the paranormal likely doesn’t compare to changing jobs, expanding your family or wanting to change school systems when it comes to the most common reason for leaving a home, but our survey shows it isn’t unheard of either.”
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