BY JONATHAN DANIEL
HOME HOLIDAY SELLING
Selling your home can be a stressful experience no
matter what time of the year it is. Selling during the
holiday season can only add to that stress. However,
I am going to help you think through the holidays
and decorating your house, all while you are trying
to keep buyers interested in your home. Th ere are several key
points to consider when preparing your home for sale in regular
times, and also during the holidays. Th ere’s only a couple of differences
between the two.
No matter the time of year, the fi rst thing I always suggest to anyone
selling their home is to remove any personal items from sight
throughout the house. Taking down your family pictures and
removing other personal items will allow a buyer coming through
your house to visualize the home as theirs, and what the home will
be like if they one day live there. When you leave personal items
displayed, a buyer thinks more about the house being someone
else’s home, rather than envisioning the potential for their family
and their personal belongings in the house. As many of you are
reading this, you are thinking about all those personal items you
have around and how much they add to your home décor. Unfortunately,
this is one of those psychological pieces of selling your
home and allowing the next person to picture it for their family.
Aft er removing those personal items, you will need to declutter your
home. I know you are thinking, “But I need those things for my décor,
and it makes my house feel more like home with these things!”
Well, let me tell you, your decoration preferences and someone else’s
may not mesh. Th erefore, when you are trying to sell your house,
you must think of it as a blank canvas, and therefore treat it like
one. You want a potential buyer to be able to walk into your home
and not be distracted by all the “stuff ” in each room, but rather let
them create their own vision of what they will put in the house. So
as hard as it may be to do, you need to pack up the clutter for now.
Th ese two suggestions I tell everyone who is preparing to sell their
home. But as we enter the holiday season, the biggest question for a
seller is, “Can I still decorate?” My simple answer is “Yes!” However,
I’m not talking Clark Griswold-type decorations. Remember that
you don’t want the house to look cluttered with too many holiday
decorations that will stand in the way of the potential buyer seeing
everything the home has to off er. I say that if you love decorating
your home for all the holidays this season, go for it, but be
sure to reign it while your home is on the market. Obviously, your
family will still want to celebrate and make memories throughout
the various upcoming holidays, but scaling back the decorations
and leaving your home decluttered is going to help you sell your
home during this time of year.
If you’re interested in decking the halls of your for-sale-house this
season, here are some holiday decorating tips to keep in mind:
– Don’t overdo it: Don’t go overboard with your holiday décor.
Items that are too large or too many will distract a potential
buyer. Also, you may want to stick with more general fall- and
winter-themed décor versus those with a religious focus.
– Complement your color scheme: Make sure your holiday décor
complements your everyday décor. If your family room is paint-
ed a soft blue, splashes of bright red may clash. So instead opt for
white or silver adornments. On the fl ip side, perhaps your home
boasts a more earthy feel – if so, accent with rich tones like cran-
berry and deep green, highlighted with gold.
– Accentuate the positive: Maybe your living room features a
beautiful fi replace. Don’t cover it up with personalized stock-
ings, but rather highlight it with simple and elegant greenery
atop its mantel to draw the eye of a buyer.
– Create a feeling of warmth and coziness: Incorporate subtle
touches in your holiday decorating like displaying a bowl of
scented pine cones or potpourri, hanging an evergreen or fresh
berry wreath, or set a pot of simmering cider on the stove for an
inviting and festive feel (bonus – your home will smell won-
derful while potential buyers visit it during the holiday season).
– A little light can have big impact: Just because you love the look
of lots of lights doesn’t mean that your home’s next owner will
feel the same. Use simple string lighting or a soft spotlight to
illuminate your front door or feature that gorgeous holly bush.
50 CIRCA Magazine | October • November • December 2020 | www.circamagazine.com
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