What started as a single spooky scene in a Glendale garage has grown into a 3,000-square-foot haunted house spread across 20 rooms, with 20-plus actors delivering live jump scares inside the McClellan family's own home. The 42nd Haunt, run by Rich and Stacey McClellan at their house near 4226 W. Park View Ln., has become one of the Valley's most elaborate residential Halloween attractions, pulling in roughly 8,000 visitors last year alone.
The haunt has been a family tradition for seven years, according to ABC15 Arizona, which reports it began as a modest garage scene before expanding into the sprawling walk-through experience it is today. Every year brings new features, and the McClellans weave in pieces of their own family history, including a 1969 wedding dress that belonged to Stacey McClellan's mother-in-law. Stacey told the station the preparation begins well before October and leans heavily on those heirlooms to give the haunt its personal touch.
Rich McClellan traces his love of haunting back to his father, who worked at a haunted house in the late 1970s. He told the station the behind-the-scenes effort is worth it because it gives young people something they cannot find on their phones. Images Arizona describes the McClellans' 3,000-square-foot walk-through and the craftsmanship involved in residential haunts.
Scare Hours, Donations, and Parking Rules
The 42nd Haunt is scheduled to run this October 16-17, 23-25, and 29-31, with a non-scare walkthrough from 6 to 6:30 p.m. followed by full scare hours from 6:30 to 10 p.m., per the same ABC15 report. Admission runs on a suggested $5-per-person donation, and the McClellans ask visitors not to block neighbors' driveways when they park. That kind of informal, community-based approach stands in contrast to the licensing demands facing commercial operators.
Nationally, Halloween enthusiasm is surging. The National Retail Federation surveyed 7,889 consumers and found that 42 percent plan to decorate their homes this year, part of a broader trend that according to the National Retail Federation is projected to push total U.S. Halloween spending to a record $13.5 billion in 2026, up from $13.1 billion the year before. Separately, the National Retail Federation says Americans are expected to spend $4.3 billion on Halloween decorations this year, underscoring just how central residential displays like the McClellans' have become to the holiday.
Why People Keep Coming Back for the Scare
Cynthia Pury, a Clemson University psychology professor who studies courage, fear, and anxiety, told ABC15 that knowing you are safe may explain why people enjoy jump scares in the first place. That psychological draw helps explain why the 42nd Haunt's attendance of roughly 8,000 guests rivals the crowd sizes typical of ticketed commercial venues, which according to industry group America Haunts average about 8,000 paid visitors per season, with 80 percent of professional attractions drawing between 7,500 and 10,000 guests.
The Haunted Attraction Association certified a record 74 commercial venues as Top Haunts in 2026, a designation that according to Morningstar requires at least $1 million in insurance, registration and inspection by state and local authorities, and completion of the C.H.A.O.S. safety program.
Other Valley Home Haunts Worth the Drive
The McClellans are far from alone in the Valley's home-haunt scene. Mount Mayhem, run by the Carrillo family at 1740 E. Purdue Ave. in Phoenix, has operated for 16 years, and the family spends over 150 hours yearly building props, according to Images Arizona. This season it runs October 16-18 and 29-31 from 7 to 9:30 p.m., with free admission, suggested donations, and a requirement that minors attend with an adult, per ABC15.
Hellbilly Holler, an actor-free Appalachian-themed display at 14601 N. 40th Way in Phoenix and the brainchild of artist Michaela Nastasia, was named Best Halloween Display by Phoenix New Times this year during what is set to be its final season. Unlike a typical walk-through, it skips live actors entirely; this year it runs October 18-30, with hours from 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 7 to 11 p.m. on weekends, offering free admission with donations accepted, according to ABC15.
Scottsdale and Tempe round out the Valley's haunt map. House of Haunts, a residential walk-through at 8325 E. Lincoln Drive in Scottsdale, runs October 26-31 from 6:30 to 10 p.m., recommends visitors be at least 16, and suggests a $5 donation. Nearby, Haunted Graveyard at 8414 E. Valley Vista Drive offers non-scary nights October 25-26 and scary nights October 27-31, both from 6:30 to 10 p.m., also on a suggested $5 donation. In south Tempe, Terror Nights at 511 E. La Donna Drive combines live actors with a walking trail and accepts donations from visitors, ABC15 reports.
Together, these homegrown attractions reflect a Phoenix-area culture where neighbors transform their own yards and garages into full-scale productions each fall. Industry group America Haunts estimates roughly 3,000 charity and community haunts operate nationwide each October, separate from the more than 1,200 commercial, admission-charging attractions that dominate the $300 million to $500 million haunted house industry identified by The Hustle. For families like the McClellans, the payoff isn't the bottom line, but the chance to hand down a tradition one room at a time.
