Halloween to Give Economy a Much Needed ‘BOO’st this Fall

An economy that was once shattered by the collapse of one housing market may in fact be resurrected by another – the haunted housing market. According to the Haunted House Association, and America Haunts, a collective of the most successful and renowned haunted houses and attractions in the country, money spent this fall on national Halloween Attractions are expected to pump over $1 billion dollars into the American economy.

Halloween Attractions can best be described as haunted houses, hayrides, corn mazes and other related activities with each attraction requiring as many as several dozen paid employees to staff them – which equals much needed jobs for the unemployed. The Halloween Attraction Industry surpasses all other forms of Halloween entertainment during the September/October months, including Hollywood movies, and according to retail data, over 18% of Americans will visit a haunted house this season.

“Ten years ago people might have snuggled up in the dark watching horror movies but today they have the option of going to massive, terrifying new attractions that will scare even the bravest of visitors,” said Larry Kirchner, board member of the Haunted House Association. “Modern haunted houses use professionally trained actors and the latest technology to transport people into an insane, realistic and horrific environment. Visiting a haunted attraction is like stepping onto a full-scale Hollywood-quality horror movie set and we are expecting unprecedented crowds of people to re-discover the thrill of the Halloween season.”

Halloween is now the second biggest retail holiday in America behind Christmas with Americans expected to spend over $7 billion this year on costumes, candy, attending parties and much more. Over the past three years, the popularity of Halloween has tripled and the tremendous influx of money spent on its celebration will hopefully jumpstart an otherwise struggling economy.

Courtesy of Forbes and PR Newswire All rights reserved.