Tips For Decorating and Selling Your Home During The Holidays

Tips For Decorating and Selling Your Home During The Holidays

Selling your home during the holiday season will be no different than in the Summer if you follow these steps. I typically sell as many homes through the Fall and Winter as I do in the Spring and Summer. Last year November, December and January were very busy markets.

I truly enjoy seeing how other people celebrate the Holidays. Don’t be afraid to decorate just do it with taste. Remember that any decorations you put out for the Holidays should be tasteful and help promote the house. Use this as an opportunity to showcase your home and rooms and point out areas of the house that buyers might overlook if it wasn’t put on show by you.

Also read: Tips for Selling Your Home in Winter.

When I’m showing homes all throughout the year many Buyers will say something like “where will we put the Christmas Tree?” If you make the tree and room look inviting it could help Home Buyers make that final decision to buy.

Can I put up a Christmas Tree when selling my home?

Yes but tone it down. I’ve never had a buyer that I was showing homes complain about seeing a Christmas Tree in a  home. I recommend keeping the tree modest in size. Trees take up a lot of space in homes and usually cause a homeowner to move furniture around to get a tree to fit in it’s spot. Remember that you are trying to make your home look spacious and a fat tree in the middle of the room may not convey that feeling for your potential home buyers.

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Tree decorating with kids 101.

We all love letting letting the kids participate in decorating the tree but if your kids are like mine they grab handfuls of ornaments and hang all of them in the same general area of the tree. Celebrate when the tree is done and when the kids go to bed make some adjustments and rearrange the ornaments so the tree isn’t leaning and looks well put together.

Holiday Lighting on a home

Can I put my Menorah in the house when selling my home?

Yes, but please make sure that when you display your family heirloom Menorah in the front window that the windows are clean and bright. I suggest keeping the blinds open too. Luckily here in Colorado we do get snow but it is typically followed by a bright beautiful sunny day. Create the mood. Again, I’ve never had a client complain about Holiday Decorations. Go for it and enjoy your season for celebrating.

Don’t clutter after you de-clutter.

We all should be decluttering our homes prior to listing the home for sale. Keep all decorations so that they keep a warm cozy feeling throughout the house.  Resist the urge to fill the empty spots with more Holiday knick knacks. Keep the Christmas villages, stuffed santas and your favorite holiday candle holders in the box this year. You can bring them back to life next year.

Can I place Holiday and Christmas lights on my house when I’m trying to sell my home?

Yes, but don’t be the Griswolds. Tasteful holiday lights on a house can be awesome and will be enjoyed by all. Think like a minimalist. Less is good. Think typical rope lights around the gutters and eaves but you don’t need to spell out “Happy Holidays” on the roof. The 30 foot inflatable santa in the front yard should probably be stored until next year too. Curb appeal and kill a buyer’s perception of your property when they drive up for the first time. Save it for your new house next year.

“Remember that buyers will drive by your house at night to check it out (usually BEFORE they write an offer) so make sure the decorations and yard are looking good.”

Think about safety when decorating your home for the Holidays.

Please do not run excessive extension cords through the yard, over the driveway and across the front entrance walkway. Remember that home buyers will be walking in and out of the house and around the yard. Buyers and Realtors need unobstructed access to all areas of the house and yard. I have seen homes with large bundles of extension cords running up to the outlet at the front door. It’s a tripping hazard and unsafe so try to keep walkways clear. It can be a little scary when there is wet snow dripping all over the extension cords too.

Use the snowy weather to your advantage. Open the blinds and let the light in especially on snowy days. Walking into a dark home especially during the Holiday Season stinks.

Can I have gifts under the tree when selling my home?

Christmas Presents flowing from under your tree out into walkways is generally not a good idea. Aside from being a tripping hazard it can look messy. As with anything valuable I suggest keeping valuable gifts out of display and hiding them until Christmas. I highly doubt a buyer will walk out with your Christmas gifts but you never know.

Best reasons to sell your home during the Holidays and Christmas.

Think about this.

• If you have a buyer looking at homes during the Holidays they are serious buyers.
• There is much less competition from other sellers during this time so your chances for a good sale are greatly increased.
• Relocation buyers are the best buyers in the world since they must move and typically have a short timeframe to find a home. The Holiday season and winter months are prime relocation months.
• During the Holidays your home should look like a champ so show it off and make a sale. 

Steven Beam is a Colorado Realtor and is happy to walk you room to room and tell you exactly what needs to be done to get your home ready to sell. To setup an appointment call 303-941-4663.