Dive Brief:
- RealtyTrac released its list of the most "haunted" housing markets in the U.S. this week after analyzing public record data and tracking homes that are vacant and have a previous owner who is now deceased.
- In the U.S., 22,000 single family homes meet that "haunted" criteria, which averages out to one in every 5,973 houses nationwide. However, RealtyTrac found 20 ZIP codes where that ratio is less than one in 175 homes.
- Mobile County, AL — ZIP code 36610 — topped the list, where the area has 69 haunted homes, or a ratio of one in 89 properties. Following Mobile are Mahoning County, OH; Wayne County, MI; Jefferson County, AL; and Lake County, IN.
Dive Insight:
While builders in these housing markets might expect a higher ratio of "haunted" houses would make their area less appealing, recent reports have found some buyers seek these types of mysterious dwellings, and most aren't deterred by them. In fact, a 2013 National Association of Realtors survey found that 62% of prospective buyers would consider buying a haunted property.
And homebuyers in a Trulia survey last year reported they were more afraid of living near a trailer park than they were of sleeping in a house where someone had died.
Other sectors of the real estate industry have capitalized on this desire to find out about a house's possible haunted qualities. The new app DiedinHouse, for example, lets prospective buyers know if any murders, suicides, suspicious or natural deaths occurred at a particular address, as well as meth lab activity or fires — for a fee.
Real estate professionals and sellers in RealtyTrac's most haunted housing markets can choose whether they want to capitalize on the haunted trend and market a home in that direction, or downplay any mysterious occurrences in a house's past.
