Decorating For The Holidays While Your Home Is On The Market

Decorating For the holidays while your home is on the market

That time of year is coming around where we hear festive carols broadcast 24/7, see Santa on every corner, and the smell of cinnamon and pine lingers in the air. It’s a time for family, friends, parties, and gift-giving. It’s also the time we pull out all of our favorite holiday décor that’s packed full of memories and the joy of the season. However, if your home is on the market you may be wondering if you should be decorating at all? The short answer is…yes. However, you may need to do things a little bit different this year. You want to convince buyers that they could be enjoying their holiday celebrations here, not pulling up a chair to join you for your Christmas dinner. They need to be able to visualize the home as their own! Keeping things simple and neutral is a great way to highlight the home’s best features and keep the buyer’s interest. Here are some tips to help you draw in buyers during the holidays.

1. Holiday Decorating Does Not Replace Staging

Decorating and Staging are two completely different things. Decorating is kind of like the icing on the cake, whereas staging is the cake! In a home staging consultation, I go with you through each room of your home giving you vital information to showcase your home to its fullest potential. It is a marketing tool that helps you appeal to the masses. Decorating is those small finishing touches that make it feel like a home and connect with your buyers emotionally. Both are necessary, but one certainly does not replace the other.

2. Use Holiday Décor To Highlilght Your Homes Best Features

Holiday decorations are a great way to make your home feel welcoming and cozy. You can also use them to showcase and draw attention to some of the home’s best-selling points. Place a festive garland of greenery across the mantle to highlight your fireplace, put up a tall Christmas tree to draw attention to the high ceilings, or put out cookies or other treats to show off your large kitchen island. These are just a few ideas, and of course you will want to adjust according to your home’s features, but all of these are simple ways to make the home feel festive and inviting while also showcasing the best parts.

3. Keep Décor Neutral and Matching

Most of the time when we think holiday decorating, we think bright reds and greens. But when your home is on the market you will probably need to tone down the colors. Keep your décor neutral and natural. Think gold, silver, and glass ornaments, white lights and candles, natural elements such as pinecones, cranberries, or the greenery of a tree or wreath. You want your décor to add a touch of holiday cheer but also blend with the rest of the home and not feel overly distracting.

4. Less Is More

We all have our favorite holiday décor pieces and of course the cute ornaments and gingerbread house that our kid made in first grade, but you may need to keep those packed away this year. You don’t want to cover every surface of the home with decorations. It makes the home feel smaller and cluttered and it also detracts from the home itself (which is what you are trying to sell). Put up a size appropriate tree in the main living area that does not block the flow of the room and does not cover any windows, a garland across the mantle, a wreath on the front door, a beautiful centerpiece on the dining room table. Also, a few strings of white lights and a simple arrangement on the front porch are plenty for the exterior. Stay away from large blow-up displays and bright flashing lights. Stay focused on the larger, more impactful areas without overdoing it. And remember, keep it simple and neutral.

5. More Seasonal, Less Holiday

When choosing your décor, remember not everyone celebrates the same holidays as you. Try to keep the religious and holiday specific décor to a minimum and focus more on décor that is seasonal. Nice, wintery touches such as evergreen, candle arrangements, fluffy pillows and warm throws are perfect accents for the season. Again, we want to draw buyers in, and overly personal holiday décor can be off-putting and distracting.

6. Don’t Overdo The Scents

As much as you can, try to keep scents subtle and natural. Don’t go overboard on strong smelling potpourri, sprays, or candles. Try cinnamon scented pinecones mixed in to a display, evergreen or pine from your tree or some boughs on you mantle or in a centerpiece, light vanilla scented candles, or try mixing coffee beans in the bottom of a centerpiece. These are all great ways to add the light, natural scents of the season without overwhelming the buyer’s senses.

Selling your home during the holidays may seem like a challenge, but there are still a number of buyers who are looking for homes. Keeping your holiday décor simple, neutral, and tasteful will help ensure the marketability of your home and draw buyers in. I hope these tips are beneficial and if you need more assistance, I’m always happy to help!

Wishing you and your families a very Happy Holidays!!

Jessica Stuckey

CharBella Design Co.

815-298-6257

charbelladesignco@gmail.com

This blog was written by Jessica Stuckey of CharBella Design Co. in Machesney Park, IL.

She can be found on Facebook and Instagram at CharBella Design Co.

Pictures found on Pinterest.

Decorating For The Holidays While Your Home Is On The Market