How to Handle the Holidays When Your Home is on the Market

For most people simply living in your home can be a challenge while you are showing it; keeping things neat and tidy clean and inviting is not something everyone can achieve with ease. Entertaining and decorating for the holidays might seem impossible particularly if you plan on having out-of-town guests or adult children home for a visit.  While the task of decorating and hosting when you are actively listed on the market seems daunting, it actually can work in your favor if you follow a few simple tips and tricks to ensure your success.

1. Celebrate the holidays by hosting a festive party and share the joy of the season by inviting a few new guests. The plus side to entertaining or hosting events in a home you are selling is the increased exposure.  Perhaps your guests will know someone looking for a home and will mention it to them after enjoying a lovely party that you’ve hosted. 

2. The splendor of the holidays, regardless of your customs or heritage, can bring a lot of clutter into a home, making rooms feel smaller and more crowded. Be aware of the scale of the décor items you choose, and consider taking other items out. Choose decorations to showcase great features of the home – if you have a high ceiling with crown molding, following the lines of a holiday tree can illuminate this asset. However, if the room is small, ensure that the tree you choose does not overpower the space; consider a tasteful table-top tree with smaller ornaments instead. Home-made decorations may be beautiful, but consider the over-all look before unpacking everything. Be strategic as well as nostalgic this year. The fine features of your home can really shine with some well-placed seasonal decor to artfully accent your great dining area, fireplace hearth, or garden patio.  Use this to your advantage to create a memorable showplace for prospective buyers.

3. Hosting events in your home, especially around the holiday season, creates a natural time for good smells. People won’t laugh that you are luring them in with cookies, because many people really do a lot of baking during the season. However, watch out for overpowering smells of other food and scented candles that can make it seem like you are masking odors.

4. During the winter months, live greens are wonderful smelling, but present issues if your home is dry and warm – the browning needles may drop from trees and garlands, so ensure you have a broom or vacuum handy and keep that live tree watered well.

 5. Out-of-town Guests – making some simple changes in advance to reduce the impact of their stay and encouraging them to be co-conspirators in your efforts to keep things tidy will keep things flowing smoothly. Provide small covered hampers for soiled clothing, baskets for sundry items on dressers, empty drawers and closets so they can stow items easily will aid your efforts. When guests have to sleep on couches or hide-away beds, plan to help them tidy the room in the morning and set up accommodations again each night. Explain in advance that you might be doing this, if your guests are used to being able to spread out without a care; an honest word of your desire to host, while stressing the importance of selling your home can make a lot of difference.

Holiday events that are well-planned, decorated, and successfully executed might be just the thing to do and actually help you to gain exposure and interest in your home around the holidays!