Gothic Halloween Displays Are Trending, But Will They Ruin Trick-Or-Treat? Block Talk

Americans plan to go big again this year for Halloween

They’ll spend about $4.3 billion on Halloween decorations this year, and 42 percent of consumers surveyed by the National Retail Federation plan to decorate their home or yard.

Grotesque decorations are having a moment this year, according to a scan of Halloween specialty and other store websites.

High-tech home decorators are using motion-activated animatronics with realistic sound effects to add terrifying depth to yard displays this year, pushing the boundaries of what’s acceptable in some neighborhoods.

Imagine this is your route on trick-or-treat night:
Skeleton hands reach from light-up stakes along the sidewalk, seeming to beckon you into the darkness. Beyond them, fog rolls through a graveyard of realistic tombstones, while life-sized skeletons and zombies glow under black lights as if they’re clawing their way out of the grass.

Can yard displays be too scary or inappropriate for the neighborhood? We’re asking for Block Talk, Patch’s exclusive neighborhood etiquette column. Just fill out the survey below. As always, we don’t collect email addresses.

About Block Talk

Block Talk is an exclusive Patch series on neighborhood etiquette — and readers provide the answers. If you have a topic you’d like us to consider, email beth.dalbey@patch.com with “Block Talk” as the subject line.

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