Just in time for Halloween, this is what it actually costs to plant roots in the real-world towns behind classic horror movies.
On the silver screen, these rural hamlets and quiet woodlands served as the unsettling backdrops for cursed witches, possessed children, and machete-wielding psychos.
In real life, however, horror cinema’s most notorious filming locations tell a far more welcoming story—one anchored by tight-knit communities, preserved landscapes, and surprisingly accessible home prices.
Just in time for Halloween, this is what it actually costs to plant roots in the real-world towns behind classics such as "The Blair Witch Project," "Friday the 13th," and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre."
In these towns made famous by classic horror movies, the local scenery is breathtaking, the neighbors are friendly, and the housing markets are anything but a nightmare.
'The Blair Witch Project': Burkittsville, MD
- Median home price: $539,974 (Frederick County)
- Median income: $93,250
- Population: 142
Picture this, three students hike into the mountains behind Burkittsville, MD, to shoot a documentary about a local myth called the Blair Witch, and they're never seen again except in the terrifying footage they leave behind. That was the premise of the 1999 sleeper hit "The Blair Witch Project," which put tiny Burkittsville on the radar of horror fans everywhere.
For full-time residents of the area, however, Burkittsville is simply a quiet farming town with a strong community and colorful history.
Established in 1824, it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its ties to a major battle during the Civil War. And now, it's known for being the location of one of the highest-grossing independent films of all time ($248.6 million).
"The residents find it curious and are somewhat entertained by the 'Blair Witch' notoriety. But if you grew up in Burkittsville or lived there for generations, you do not view the town as the movie presents it," says Gary Geston, a Certified Historic Maryland Properties Specialist (CHMP) and agent with Long & Foster Real Estate Inc.
"Few properties change hands in Burkittsville," says Geston, who currently has one of only three active listings in Burkittsville, which aptly went live just days before Halloween. "It has history and charm, and families living here tend to stay."
This home that backs into South Mountain where "The Blair Witch Project" takes place just hit the market for $275,000. (Re/Pro Photography) 'Children of the Corn': Whiting, IA
- Median home price: $220,000 (Monona County)
- Median income: $73,333
- Population: 745
If you've ever done a Maize Maze, you know there is nothing scarier than a deserted cornfield after dark. Unless that cornfield is also filled with possessed children trying to murder you.
The 1984 movie adaptation of Stephen King's terrifying "Children of the Corn," starring a pre-"Terminator" Linda Hamilton, was shot mostly in and around Northwestern Iowa—including Sioux City, Hornick, Sergeant Bluff, and Whiting, IA.
"They wanted to film it in a small town that they could literally shut down, and they found Whiting," Leslie Beneda tells Realtor.com®. Beneda was a child extra in the movie when she was in sixth grade and attending the elementary school there.
"Every morning, we would go to school dressed as 'Children of the Corn,' and each grade would line up outside the school, and they would pick who they wanted and bus us to wherever they were filming that day."
Pretty much anyone living there who was interested in being in the movie got their shot, and they even invited the whole town of Whiting to a big pre-release screening at the Orpheum Theater in Sioux City.
"You grow up in a small town in Iowa and not a whole lot exciting happens, and it was a really cool experience," says Beneda.
Today, the town embraces its horror film past, but Beneda says most days it's just a cute small town in Iowa. And homes in these areas are still spacious and affordable—but yes, probably located near a corn field.
'Pet Semetary': Bangor, ME
- Median home price: $359,450
- Median income: $59,942
- Population: 32,518
Lest the children be the only ones scaring moviegoers, horror author King made sure to include some creepy cats in his book "Pet Semetary."
Filmed in Bangor, ME, which was coincidentally the author's primary residence for almost 40 years, the movie serves up a heap of horror, and thanks to King, the town attracts a lot of fans.
"Living in Bangor means living alongside a piece of pop-culture history, and locals truly embrace our spooky claim to fame," says Peter McPhail, broker and owner of United Country Lifestyle Properties of Maine. "Between taking photos by Stephen King’s wrought-iron spider gates, walking the historic Mount Hope Cemetery where 'Pet Semetary' was filmed, and touring our stunning Victorian and Greek Revival homes, the horror connection adds a fun, legendary charm to an otherwise warm, tight-knit Maine community."
Homes in the area are also on the more affordable side in this current climate, and many sport gorgeous Victorian details. If you can handle the fear factor (and winter), it's a market with lots of opportunity.
This multifamily home for sale in Bangor, ME, has Victorian charm, three bedrooms, and two separate apartments for $399,000. (Peter McPhail) 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre': Bastrop, TX
- Median home price: $399,500
- Median income: $81,551
- Population: 14,125
In 1974, the slasher film "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" hit theaters and changed the landscape of the horror genre. This classic helped birth several scary movie tropes, including the masked villain and assorted tools as murder weapons.
It also introduced people to Central Texas as a movie location, with many of its key scenes filmed in and around Austin, including a cemetery in Leander, a farmhouse now in Kingsland, and a gas station in Bastrop.
It turns out that Bastrop is also a potentially nice place to live in real life (fictitious cannibals aside).
Located about 30 miles east of Austin, this charming historic town is home to the Lost Pines Forest, which sounds scary, but is actually filled with unique loblolly pine trees that are thought to have originated during the Ice Age.
Birding and outdoor activities are as popular as antiquing. And homes are still available under $400,000, making this a horror town with historic charm and a rich cinematic terrain.
'Friday the 13th': Hardwick Township, NJ
- Median home price: $550,000
- Median income: $124,625
- Population: 1,423
If you like your horror flicks with a side of camp, then you’ve probably seen "Friday the 13th." The original 1980 movie that introduced viewers to Jason, that infamous hockey-masked butcher, was filmed mostly at Camp NoBeBoSco in Hardwick Township, NJ, a still-active Boy Scouts camp founded in 1927.
Though it was called Camp Crystal Lake in the film and tours are available only when real-life camp isn't in session, the natural beauty of the surrounding Kittatinny Mountains (minus the machete-wielding menace) is another big draw for people to the area today. In fact, 75% of Hardwick falls within some form of land preservation, including 95 acres of a butterfly habitat and limestone forest within the Hardwick Limestone Greenway.
As such, pop-culture pride aside, residents of the area are treated to a rustic and relaxing rural environment on a day-to-day basis, while still being close enough to New York City when they need a culture fix (it's about 65 miles away). Though there is good available inventory at the moment and housing prices are in the more accessible category, with all it's got going for it, one thing you probably won't see slashed in Hardwick Township, NJ, is future home values.