Should You List Your Home During the Holidays?

"Should we list a home during the holidays?” I've been asked this a lot lately.  Probably more due to market conditions, but do people really buy during this time?  And if a house is put on the market, do we decorate?

This is a holiday staging no-no. The tree dominates the room, taking up valuable square footage.

Homes do sell during the holidays and staged homes stand out from the crowd. Buyers spend more time in a home that has been staged for the holidays envisioning spending their next holiday season in the home.

Let’s look at some facts.

The real estate market is no longer seasonal, where families wait for the summer to move because of their school-aged children. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more people, especially those over the age of 45, are moving after the school year has begun. Empty nesters, for example, tend to move in late fall and late winter. Many of these buyers are actively looking for homes during the holidays, and they’re serious buyers.

 Nontraditional buyers are an increasingly important factor in the home buying market. According to the National Association of REALTORS®, 18 percent of home buyers are single women, 11 percent are single men and 5 percent are unmarried couples. Add the year-round school families and corporate transfers, and the pool of buyers becomes even larger.

To sellers, this means the winter months can be a great time to put a home up for sale because there are fewer houses on the market. Less inventory can mean less competition.

Combining the romance and sentimentality of the holidays with a staged home gives you the recipe for a successful sale. Staging during the holiday appeals to all the senses: sight, touch, sound, smell and taste. 

It is important to keep decor subtle and avoid over-decorating.  Next week, I'll publish some more in-depth staging tips, but here's a few to get started…

Switch out regular white light bulbs with amber-colored lights in the home for a rich, warm glow and feeling. Use seasonal items, such as poinsettias, evergreen branches and colored ribbons, but avoid displaying religious icons.

Add velvet and silk to table tops for softness. By seeing smooth textures in the home, the brain registers the feeling of warmth and softness.

Play gentle, well-known music without words. Music makes the buyer feel light and happy, and sets a positive mood.

Simmer cider with orange slices and cinnamon and layout fresh-cut evergreen branches. Avoid using artificial sprays, however, because many people have reactions to the chemicals.

And since the sense of smell contributes to the sense of taste, treat prospective buyers to chocolate chip cookies or cinnamon muffins taken out of the oven an hour before showing.

Jeri Pischke
www.TenderHeartTransitions.com