Homebuyers Fear Bad Neighbors Most, Poll Finds

A Clever Real Estate Halloween poll of 1,000 people ranks neighbor concerns above haunted houses and other homebuying fears.

Updated on Nov. 1, 2026 in Residential

Homebuyers Fear Bad Neighbors Most, Poll Finds

Live Poll

Is now a good time for you to buy a home?

Clever Real Estate's annual Halloween poll found that 49 percent of 1,000 surveyed people fear having bad neighbors. Other top worries included unaffordable repairs at 48 percent, and both rising local crime and property taxes at 45 percent each.

Why it matters

The results show that everyday costs and neighborhood conditions weigh more heavily on prospective homebuyers than the supernatural. For buyers across the country, financial and safety concerns may shape home search decisions more than ghost-related issues.

The Clever Real Estate poll surveyed 1,000 people, with 49 percent citing bad neighbors and 24 percent citing haunted houses as top fears, while 57 percent said they would choose a haunted home in a dream location over a ghost-free home in a poor neighborhood. The poll does not indicate how these attitudes influence actual buying decisions.

The players

Clever Real Estate

Clever Real Estate is a U.S. online real estate company that publishes consumer housing research, including an annual Halloween poll on homebuyer attitudes.

The details

Respondents also cited unaffordable repairs at 48 percent, rising property taxes and local crime at 45 percent each, high mortgage rates at 39 percent, and unaffordable homeowners insurance at 32 percent. Nineteen percent said they believe they have previously lived in a house occupied by spirits.

Halloween 2026: Clever Real Estate released its annual Halloween poll on homebuyer fears.

Residential Context

Four states, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Minnesota, already require sellers to disclose known hauntings, placing the poll's supernatural concerns within existing disclosure rules. Most of the fears respondents named, however, relate to everyday housing costs and neighborhood conditions.

Homebuyers who worry about neighbors, repairs, and taxes can weigh those factors early in their search. Buyers in states with haunting disclosure rules can also ask sellers about any reported hauntings before making an offer.

The takeaway

Prospective buyers often focus on financial and neighborhood factors more than on the paranormal. Reviewing neighborhood safety, insurance costs, and tax rates before shopping can help avoid the concerns most often cited by buyers.