Ghosts Aren't a Dealbreaker for the 54% of Americans Who Would Consider Buying a Haunted House
EmitenTrust.com - 9 in 10 Americans (91%) are less afraid of ghosts than mold, termites, asbestos, and other home repair problems.
ST. LOUIS, Oct. 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As high prices haunt house hunters this Halloween, more than half of Americans (54%) say they would consider buying a home they knew was haunted, according to a new report from Clever Real Estate, a nationwide discount real estate broker where sellers can compare full-service, low-commission real estate agents near them.
A lower price would convince 62% of would-be haunted house buyers, followed by lower property taxes (41%), the home being their dream home (40%), a safe neighborhood (37%), and a lower mortgage rate (37%).
In fact, 53% of Americans would live with ghosts if it meant no mortgage payments, and 57% would choose a haunted home in their dream neighborhood over a non-haunted home in an undesirable location.
Buyers are also more fearful of bad neighbors (49%), rising crime (45%), and rising property taxes (45%) than of ghosts (24%).
Americans are more likely to call a home next to a data center (38%) or within a mile of a nuclear waste facility (48%) a dealbreaker than a home confirmed to be haunted (32%).
Ghosts may not be a dealbreaker, but 46% of potential buyers would still offer below market value for a haunted home even if it checked all of their boxes, down from 68% in 2025.
Nearly 1 in 5 Americans (19%) say they've lived in a haunted house, and 34% say they still live with the spirits solely because they can't afford to move.
Most Americans (71%) would not immediately pack their bags if they discovered their home was haunted. The majority (57%) would pay to have their home cleansed, including 18% who would be willing to spend $1,000 or more to avoid moving.
Two-thirds of Americans (67%) would not willingly disclose a haunting when selling, including 10% who wouldn't even if the law required it. Nearly half (48%), however, would consider suing a seller who knowingly sold them a haunted house. Only four states (New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Minnesota) have specific laws on disclosing haunted homes.
Read the full report at: https://listwithclever.com/research/haunted-house-real-estate
About Clever Real Estate
Clever Real Estate allows sellers to compare top-rated discount real estate brokers and low-commission realtors in their local area. Clever's content reaches over 12 million readers annually, and its nationwide agent matching service has a 4.9-star Trustpilot rating across more than 4,600 customer reviews. Since launching in 2017, Clever has reached over $17.5 billion in real estate sold, matched over 280,000 customers with realtors, and saved consumers over $260 million on commission fees. Clever's network spans over 13,000 agents across all 50 states.
CONTACT:
Nicole Lehman
Clever Real Estate
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724-719-0406
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SOURCE Clever Real Estate