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The Likelihood of Living in a Haunted House in Cities Across the U.S.

Written by Assurance IQ Team
4 min. read
Header image for a blog about the probability of living in a haunted house in the U.S.

There’s no place like home, but what happens when you find out you have some paranormal roommates?

Just in time for spooky season, we took a hard look at the data to find the number of haunted or haunted-adjacent homes in 100 of the largest cities in the U.S., using Housecreep.com as our primary source.

We crunched the numbers to identify homes based on paranormal sightings and crime data. Next, we compared these numbers to the total number of homes in each city to determine the likelihood of living in a haunted house by city.

Homes with a paranormal past aren’t just a matter of folklore or fun conversations; they often carry a stigma that can impact their market value. Potential buyers may be reluctant to purchase these stigmatized properties, leading to challenges in reselling the house. Homeowners may also find it tricky to find accurate and fair insurance coverage for such properties.

Read on to uncover the odds that your new dream home could turn into a real-life house of horrors.

The U.S. Cities Most & Least Likely to Live in a Haunted House

U.S. map plotting out the cities where you are most and least likely to live in a haunted house.

When it comes to the haunted housing market in the U.S., not all cities are created equal — or should we say equally haunted?

Most Haunted Cities

  • At the top of our ghoulish leaderboard is Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a spine-tingling 329.78 haunted houses per 100,000 homes. Whether you’re looking for ghostly roommates or crime-related stigmas, Tulsa is your go-to haunt — literally.
  • Coming in second, but no less spooky, is Akron, Ohio. With 153.88 haunted houses per 100,000 homes, you’re likely to get a “boo” rather than a “how do you do” when exploring Akron’s real estate.
  • Closing out the top three is Little Rock, Arkansas, with 114.96 haunted houses per 100,000 homes. Between its historic landmarks and local legends, Little Rock may offer more Southern chills than Southern charm.
  • Floating in fourth place is Louisville, Kentucky, with 83.66 haunted houses per 100,000 homes. Better pack some sage and salt to go with your mint julep when you move here!
  • Fifth place is another Sooner State star: Oklahoma City, with 75.03 haunted houses per 100,000 homes. It seems like Oklahoma might just be the hub for haunts.

Least Haunted Cities

  • If you’re more into sunbathing than ghost-hunting, we suggest heading down to Miami, Florida. With only 0.83 haunted houses per 100,000 homes, the scariest thing you’ll likely encounter is a sunburn.
  • In a city that never sleeps, maybe the ghosts just can’t find a quiet place to haunt. New York City reports a measly 1.59 haunted houses per 100,000 homes, making it almost as rare to find a haunted house as it is to find an empty subway car on Halloween night.
  • In Albany, New York, ghosts seem to be taking a legislative break. With just 1.91 haunted houses per 100,000 homes, it appears the only spirits you’ll likely encounter here are those of lawmakers past.
  • Sneaking in at fourth least haunted is Rochester, New York, with a measly 2.03 haunted houses per 100,000 homes. It seems that Rochester’s ghosts might be more interested in the city’s famous garbage plates than in haunting homes.

Rounding out our list is Austin, Texas, where you’ll find only 2.11 haunted houses per 100,000 homes. In this music-loving city, the only spirits you’re likely to encounter are those served in a glass on Sixth Street.

U.S. Cities with the Most “Haunted” Houses

If you’ve ever wondered how your hometown stacks up in the realm of the supernatural, check out the full data above. This table ranks the 100 largest U.S. cities by their total number of “haunted” homes.

So, grab your flashlights and summon some courage — it’s time to delve into the numbers and see where your city stands in the ghostly grand scheme of things.

Closing Thoughts

The United States is a land of opportunity and mystery, offering homes ranging from warm and inviting to somewhat sinister. But whether you find yourself living in Tulsa, Oklahoma — arguably America’s most haunted city — or soaking up the sun in Miami with nary a ghost in sight, one thing is certain: You’ll need the right home insurance policy to cover your new (or new old) home. Assurance IQ can help you in find a home policy that will protect your dream house, even if it comes with a few extra “residents.

Methodology

To find the cities where you are most likely to live in a home that is “haunted,” we used data from HouseCreep.com regarding the number of stigmatized properties and other noteworthy homes in 100 of the most populated cities in the U.S. (“Haunted” Homes Factors: Crime, Homicide, Death, Famous Homes, Paranormal, Illegal Drug Lab, Damage, etc.)

We compared the number of “haunted” homes to the total number of housing units in each city, according to the U.S. Census, to find the cities with the most “haunted” houses per 100k housing units.