Vaughn Hazen is committed to Halloween. Though his annual cemetery-themed yard display in Montreal, Canada begins at the start of October, planning it is a much longer affair. The production includes decorations both purchased and homemade, and features a mausoleum, pumpkin patch, and a Nightmare Before Christmas section complete with a 13-foot Jack Skellington. 

“We don’t consider Halloween to be a day of the year,” says Hazen, who began going all out for the holiday when he and his wife became empty nesters. “It’s kind of a way of life.”

Hazen is not alone in this. Halloween seems to come earlier each year: from grocery store aisles filled with costumes in July to viral decorations selling out the first week of October, shoppers and retailers alike are no longer waiting to embrace the holiday spirit. 

For many the holiday is an excuse to indulge in outlandish outfits and Instagram-worthy home items—but the festivities come with a high cost. …