Killer Deals: Home Valuations for 7 Iconic Horror Movie Houses. 

Every agent has, at some point, had to find a polite term for “needs a total gut job” or describe a property adjacent to a six-lane highway as having “excellent transportation links.” 

But what’s the right MLS-approved euphemism for a house with a non-corporeal entity in the west wing and a bafflingly high turnover rate? This is the season for tackling the truly difficult listings — the ones where “unpermitted addition” refers to a new spectral resident and “motivated seller” means they were last seen fleeing in terror. 

For some spooky season fun, we’re diving into the properties that live in horror movie infamy, drafting the listings they deserve, and uncovering the very real stories behind them.

Just a disclaimer: Every property featured in this article is a private residence / business, and addresses have been intentionally excluded. As real estate professionals, we know you’re not likely to be trespassing creepers, but if this article falls into the wrong hands, be considerate, obey local laws, and don’t trespass on these properties or harass the residents. This is for entertainment purposes only. These are not real listings. 

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1. Stu Macher's Place – Scream

For Sale: Premier Woodsboro Estate for Unforgettable Social Engagements

Photo: SFGATE

This expansive residence, secluded within a desirable wooded enclave of Woodsboro, California, is an entertainer's paradise. The home offers exceptional interior flow, a gourmet kitchen perfect for preparing party snacks, and multiple points of ingress and egress, facilitating a dynamic guest experience. The great room, the site of a particularly memorable soirée, boasts excellent acoustics for... expressive communication.

The property's floor plan is ideal for elaborate party games and has a documented history of hosting events that become the talk of the town for years. The oversized garage offers unique flexibility for creative entrances and exits. This is more than a home; it’s a social landmark.

Special Note: The seller will not entertain any post-closing claims related to property damage resulting from trivia-based disputes or thrown electronics. A comprehensive security system is strongly advised.

The Real Story:

While the fictional town of Woodsboro, California provides a compelling backdrop for Scream's meta-commentary on horror tropes, the actual property is a stunning private home located in Santa Rosa, California. This architectural gem served as the bloody stage for the film’s entire third act and remains a pilgrimage site for fans. In a brilliant marketing move that Stu Macher probably would have appreciated, the residence hosts an exclusive tour and trick-or-treat on Halloween only (must be booked ahead, and they’re sold out for 2025), offering a unique experience for horror aficionados looking for a truly immersive encounter.

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2. The Myers Residence – Halloween

For Sale: A Haddonfield Landmark with Unforgettable Historical Significance

Photo: Los Angeles Explorers Guild

Presenting a unique opportunity to acquire a residence that is less a "house" and more a cornerstone of the local lore in Haddonfield, Illinois. This two-story traditional home boasts architectural integrity that has remained steadfast, even as neighborhood dynamics have... shifted dramatically. Its most notable feature is its unparalleled recognition; rest assured, no one will ever have trouble finding your address.

The interior layout provides excellent sightlines from the second floor to the street — perfect for the discerning buyer who values situational awareness. While the home requires cosmetic updates, the underlying structure is solid. Previous occupants showed a distinct lack of interest in long-term decor choices, offering you a truly blank slate. This property doesn't just have history; it is history, a conversation piece that truly comes alive every October 31.

Please note: The property is offered strictly as-is. The seller will not provide concessions for repairs, upgrades, or lingering emotional trauma associated with the upstairs hallway. Any and all questions regarding the structural integrity of closet doors will be met with a firm "no comment." Seller is motivated by an urgent, non-negotiable need for a change of scenery, preferably one in a different state.

The Real Story:

Of course, to sign the closing papers on this particular piece of Halloween history, you'd need to trade the Midwest for the West Coast. The actual house used for filming was a genuinely old, somewhat derelict structure in South Pasadena, California. In a move that mirrors the film’s own knack for survival, the house narrowly escaped a wrecking ball in the late 1980s when a group of citizens, recognizing its cultural significance, successfully petitioned to have it declared a City Landmark. The designation came with a catch: it had to be moved. The entire structure was hoisted onto a truck and relocated a few blocks away, where it now serves the community as a professional office. And for the purist who finds a chiropractor’s office insufficiently terrifying, a dedicated fan in North Carolina has built a full-scale, livable replica — proving that you can, in fact, go home again. Just maybe check who’s standing in the window first.

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3. The Bates Motel & Residence – Psycho

For Sale: Turnkey Hospitality Business with On-Site Manager's Residence
 Photo: Atlas Obscura

An exceptional investment opportunity awaits in Fairvale, California. This portfolio includes a 12-unit roadside motel with a reputation for privacy and a stately Gothic Revival manager's residence offering commanding oversight from a nearby hill. The motel caters to a clientele that values discretion, with guest amenities that include private, recently renovated bathrooms with… unforgettable fixtures.

The main residence is a monument to family legacy, featuring a spacious fruit cellar for inventory management and a unique, live-in management structure that has been in place for years. This is an ideal venture for a proprietor who enjoys a hands-on approach and doesn’t mind a quiet, solitary work environment.

Caution: Prospective buyers must be comfortable with the existing co-management arrangement. Do not, under any circumstances, attempt to alter the current staffing. The "No Vacancy" sign is functional and should be used judiciously.

The Real Story:

The Bates Motel and home from Psycho exists less as a piece of real estate and more as a triumph of psychological set design. The iconic house and motel were purpose-built on the Universal Studios backlot in Hollywood. The house's design was famously inspired by Edward Hopper's painting House by the Railroad (which was in turn inspired by a real home that has currently been converted into apartments), giving it an immediate sense of American Gothic isolation. Because it is a working set, its appearance has been altered for various productions over the decades, but its menacing silhouette remains a fixture of the Universal Studios tour — a piece of studio infrastructure that continues to generate revenue and nightmares in equal measure.

It’s been theorized that the Maitland-Deetz residence from Beetlejuice (pre-renovations, of course) was also inspired by the Bates home.

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4. The Thompson Residence – A Nightmare on Elm Street

For Sale: A Home That Truly Gets Inside Your Head

Photo: Architectural Digest

Located on the idyllic Elm Street in Springwood, Ohio, this classic two-story residence offers a living experience that is anything but sleepy. The property features a traditional layout with generously sized bedrooms, a charming blue front door, and a surprisingly active and efficient HVAC system in the basement. This home is perfect for the buyer who feels that modern living has become too disconnected, offering an immersive environment that truly engages with its owner on a subconscious level.

The home’s unique liminal spaces and permeable reality make it a standout in a cookie-cutter market. Previous residents have noted the property’s tendency to encourage vivid, unforgettable dreams.

Caution: Seller makes no warranties regarding the property's influence on REM cycles. An industrial-grade coffee maker is a recommended fixture. All sales are final, both in this reality and any other you may happen to drift into.

The Real Story:

While the fictional address in Springwood, Ohio, is seared into our collective memory, the actual home from A Nightmare on Elm Street is a lovely private residence in Los Angeles, California. It has become an icon, proving that not even a persistent psychic stain can depress property values in a hot L.A. market. The house was famously sold in 2021, fetching a premium price and generating headlines that leaned heavily on dream-related puns. Interestingly, for many years its famous blue (and also red door in Freddy’s Revenge) was painted black, a rebranding effort that, while chic, felt like a missed opportunity.

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5. The Bramford Apartment Building – Rosemary's Baby

For Sale: A Tenancy Has Become Available at the Prestigious Bramford
 Photo: House Digest / Roy Rochlin / Getty Images

An exceedingly rare opening in one of Manhattan’s most exclusive and architecturally significant residential buildings. This sprawling pre-war apartment offers baronial high ceilings, intricate woodwork, and the attentive services of a deeply invested residential community. Your neighbors will take an immediate and profound interest in your well-being, your career, and your dietary habits.

The unit is ideal for an ambitious couple looking to start a family, with a second bedroom perfectly suited for a nursery. The building’s co-op board is known for its... unique welcome baskets and commitment to preserving the Bramford’s long and storied traditions.

Caution: Prospective tenants should be amenable to a bespoke wellness regimen provided by the neighbors. Broker's fee is a non-negotiable 6.66%. All Tannises and their roots must be approved by the board.

The Real Story:

Here, the fiction and reality are terrifyingly close. The Bramford from Rosemary's Baby is none other than The Dakota in New York City, a building whose real-life history is almost as gothic as the film's plot. Located on Central Park West, its staggering exclusivity, fortress-like appearance, and roster of famous residents (including John Lennon) have long fueled its legendary status. While director Roman Polanski filmed the iconic exteriors on-site, the ornate interiors were meticulously recreated on a Hollywood soundstage. The true horror may be that securing a unit in the real Dakota likely requires a process even more mysterious and arcane than joining a coven.

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6. The Perron Farmhouse –The Conjuring

For Sale: Historic Rhode Island Farmstead with an Iconic Occupancy History
 Photo: Collider.com

This secluded, historic farmhouse is situated on a vast, private lot and offers a truly authentic, off-the-grid living experience. The property has a remarkably long and well-documented chain of title, with numerous past residents who have left a lasting impression. The home’s most notable features include original wide-plank hardwood floors, a cavernous cellar, and unique acoustical properties perfect for a game of hide-and-clap.

This is a property for the buyer who isn't just looking for a house, but for a story. It has an energy all its own, including unconventional, geothermal-free cold spots.

Disclosure: The property is being sold "as-is," along with any and all non-corporeal residents, attachments, or curses. The seller strongly recommends consulting with a paranormal investigator and a priest during the inspection period.

The Real Story:

Here, the property portfolio splits into two distinct, yet equally iconic, assets. First, there's the source material: the actual, historically haunted farmhouse in Burrillville, Rhode Island. This is the site of the paranormal claims that inspired The Conjuring, a property with a reputation that precedes it. In a brilliant example of repositioning a distressed asset, this home was purchased by owners who fully embraced its legacy, turning it into a thriving paranormal-themed small business offering tours and overnight stays.

Then there’s the cinematic stand-in: a picturesque privately owned farmhouse in Currie, North Carolina, which served as the filming location for the movie's exterior shots. This photogenic property, it turns out, has a surprisingly varied résumé for a character actor; it was also featured as the home of Julie James in the 1997 slasher classic I Know What You Did Last Summer. So while one house owns the intellectual property of the haunting, the other holds the screen rights, creating a fascinating dual-asset haunting.

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7. The Freeling Family House – Poltergeist

For Sale: Premier Offering in the Cuesta Verde Master-Planned Community
 Photo: PoltergeistHouse.com

Discover the suburban dream in this beautiful single-family home, perfectly situated on a desirable lot with a mature backyard tree. This property offers a dynamic, self-rearranging open floor plan and state-of-the-art electronics with unusually high viewer engagement. The children's bedroom features a unique portal-style closet, offering unparalleled storage solutions.

This home is ideal for a family that craves a lively, active environment. The property's energy ensures there is never a dull moment. It’s more than a house; it’s an experience. 

Disclosure: Prospective buyers are advised to conduct their own due diligence regarding prior land use and cemetery relocations. The seller will not be providing a swimming pool.

The Real Story:

The platonic ideal of a California suburban nightmare was filmed at a very real, very normal private home in Simi Valley, California. The house, a monument to 1970s residential architecture, provided the perfect blank canvas of normalcy upon which the supernatural chaos of Poltergeist was painted. It looks remarkably unchanged today, a quiet testament to good design and the idea that horror is most effective when it erupts from the mundane. Thankfully, its real-life history appears to have been significantly less eventful, with no reports of malevolent spirits or being sucked into other dimensions.

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How to Land a Haunted Listing (and Every Other Kind)

While you're unlikely to get a call from the Freeling family or see the Myers’s house pop up in your MLS hot sheet, every agent has properties in their database with a story that’s hard to tell. It’s one thing to find the market value for these iconic (and infamous) properties — a task we handled using Fello’s own valuation tools — but it’s another thing entirely to know how, or when, to approach the homeowners living within. After all, what’s the right script for a seller whose primary motivation is a persistent poltergeist?

That’s where working smarter, not just harder, makes all the difference. Before you can even think about what to say, you need to know the real story behind the spooky facade. Fello’s platform can automatically enrich your database to uncover missing addresses, equity position, property history, and MLS data, giving you the full picture on any home. More importantly, Fello’s AI monitors behavioral signals, tracking every interaction to create a comprehensive Lead Score. Those frequent, late-night checks on their Fello home value dashboard are the equivalent of a hair-raising scream; it's a real-time alert the homeowner is signaling they’re ready to get out.

And when that moment comes, you need to be prepared. With Fello's Ask AI assistant, you can instantly generate call scripts and talking points tailored to any situation. Whether you're handling objections about a noisy neighbor or tactfully asking Norman Bates if his mother needs to be on the title, Fello provides the intelligent support to have better conversations. 

Your database is full of opportunities, even if they aren't this dramatic. Fello gives you the data-driven insights to find them and the intelligence to convert them.