Here's Where You Can Visit The House From Amityville Horror
While most people's natural instincts would tell them to avoid a haunted house at all costs (and while pretty much every horror movie ever made confirms exactly why this is a good idea), the eyes of history buffs and horror buffs alike light up when they learn that one of their favorite horror movies is based on a true story; often leaving them with the desire to learn the truth behind the accounts that inspired the film by experiencing it firsthand.
While most horror fans know that their favorite films are only very loosely based on true events (and we mean very loosely), that doesn't stop the chill of excitement they get that runs down their spines when the theater goes dark, and the movie finally starts, only for a message to appear on the screen telling audiences that the film they are about to watch is based on a true story or inspired by true events, (the latter of which SYFY claims allows studios to get away with taking even more creative liberties). Unfortunately, with decades of countless horror movies claiming to be a reflection of true events, it can often be difficult to discern fact from fiction and history from Hollywood.
While many horror movies fall short of being historically accurate, the real story behind The Amityville Horror might be even more terrifying than the film; because the real Amityville house where the real DeFeo family was murdered still stands today.
The real story behind the Amityville Horror house
On November 13, 1974, the Long Island residence that would later come to be known as The Amityville Horror house was the scene of a real-life terror film. In that house, 23-year-old Ronald J. DeFeo Jr. brutally murdered his parents and four siblings while they were asleep in their beds, with a rifle, according to Biography. DeFeo Jr. was sentenced to six 25-year-life sentences and claimed at the time of the murders that he had been hearing voices urging him to murder his family.
Biography reports that just over a year after the DeFeo family was tragically murdered in the home, the Lutz family purchased it for $80,000 below the asking price since it's no surprise not many buyers wanted anything to do with the property once they heard about the horrors that had taken place inside. However, just 28 days after purchasing the home and moving in, the Lutz family reportedly fled the residence, claiming to have experienced paranormal events in the house.
The events that took place during the Lutz family's short occupancy in the home, as well as the even greater mystery surrounding the tragic murder of the DeFeo family, are shrouded in secrecy and have gone on to inspire countless movies, most notably the 1979 film The Amityville Horror, starring James Brolin and the 2005 remake of the same name starring Ryan Reynolds.
Movie magic and paranormal activity
At the time of the DeFeo family murders and the Lutz's reported paranormal experiences, the real Amityville house was located on 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York, according to History vs Hollywood. However, the address has since been changed to 108 Ocean Avenue to throw off the constant influx of tourists and horror movie fans hoping to get a glimpse of the famed haunted residence and prevent them from invading the privacy of the current owners.
Moreover, the Amityville Horror films were not actually shot at the real Amityville house where the DeFeo and Lutz families lived. History vs Hollywood reports that the movie was instead filmed in a home located at 18 Brooks Road in Toms River, New Jersey, and the movie team built a structure around that house's exterior to resemble the actual New York-based haunted property.
And while no movie magic actually took place at the house in Amityville, fascination with the idea that paranormal events perhaps did is what makes the real Amityville Horror house one of the most notorious properties on Long Island — and one of the most popular real-life haunted properties among fans of all things horror. The house has been sold four different times since the murders (including to the Lutz family). It was most recently listed for sale in June 2016 before being sold in March 2017 for $605,000, according to property records obtained by The New York Post.