Selling your home is never easy. It requires extra attention to cleanliness and tidiness and a willingness to let showings happen at the drop of a hat. Families often feel as though they are living in limbo wanting to be comfortable while knowing things must be kept nearly perfect at all times in order to sell the house. Well, if selling a house is stressful already, doing so at the holidays can be downright nerve racking. Here are a few tips to help you strike the careful balance between showing your home and keeping the family comfortable:

Most people don't have an empty spot waiting for the tree to arrive. No, bringing in the tree usually requires a shuffling of furniture to make room for this rather large yet temporary resident. As you rearrange your furniture, be mindful of the seating area you are creating. Are you maintaining an appropriate focal spot? The fireplace would be an ideal feature. Is there still plenty of space for traffic to flow around the room? You may need to put some pieces in storage so that you can maintain your visual square footage. Is the room evenly lit? If you don't have an overhead fixture, turn on the decorative lights and lamps to ensure there is even lighting throughout the room. Then, be sure to turn on your holiday lights for showings.


A fireplace is a great selling feature and also synonymous with the holidays. Please remember that it is the fireplace, not the decorations, that will be sold with the house. This is not the year to cover the mantle in a 6" thick blanket of garland, your entire Santa figurine collection, and spray the whole thing down with flocking. This is the year to go with a "less is more" approach. A lovely wreath over the fireplace adds to the decorations while also featuring your architecture. A pair of beautiful candlesticks or holiday hurricane lamps are plenty for the mantle. Also, be sure you don't hang so many stockings that your fireplace begins to look more like a closet than a fireplace. Be sure to light gas units for showings. If you have a wood burning unit, place an abundance of multi-height white pillar candles in the box and light them instead. This produces a warm glow without the hassle of hauling in wood and maintaining the fire.



If you have a formal dining room, an elegant centerpiece can go a long way in adding holiday decor and showing off your home's entertaining potential. The key is to keep it elegant. This can be achieved with a monochromatic display of well-placed ornaments or a few candles and some greenery. Again, keep it simple and elegant.





Keep outside decor simple and elegant. Please don't put the big plastic Santa sled and his reindeer on the roof or install any inflatable figures on the lawn. I'm sorry if this offends, but most people find such decorations tacky and they certainly take the eye away from the most important feature - the house. Simple white lights along the roof line or tastefully arranged on bushes and trees are enough. Another alternative is to hang simple green wreaths with lovely bows in the windows and then light the front of the house with a few well-placed spotlights. Notice I said "a few". We are not looking to be confused for an airport runway or be seen from outer space! Regardless of the yard decor you choose, it is definitely appropriate to place a beautiful wreath on the front door. Remember that buyers will be spending a bit of time at the entrance while their real estate agent unlocks the door. Be sure the paint on the door is in good condition, the windows nearby are clean, and the porch is swept and clean.

Bathrooms, bedrooms, kitchens, etc...leave them alone! Don't use the Rudolph toilet seat cover or Santa and his duckie shower curtain. Don't turn your guest room into the train set holiday village or your child's bedroom into the Land of Sweets. Don't line the tops of your cabinets with villages or strings of lights. Do keep these rooms clean and tidy and feature any exceptional selling points. If a potential buyer can't see the house for all the decor how will they know what they are buying?



The holidays are a prime time for accidents of all kinds. Keep your home and your potential buyers safe by considering the following tips:

1. Be cautious when placing scatter rugs about the house as they often cause trips and slips. Only use them where truly needed, such as entry doors, and use a slip resistant pad beneath them.

2. Many of us love to wrap our banisters in yards of garland, lights and ribbon however you are going to have a lot of visitors who are unfamiliar with your home. You don't want someone slipping on a step, reaching for the handrail, and falling down the stairs because they couldn't grasp the rail. If you can't hang simple decoration below the railing then skip the decoration completely. It's not worth losing a sale or, worse, being sued because someone injures themselves while visiting your home.

3. Except for candles placed in the firebox, don't leave candles burning unattended. You don't know if the potential buyer has children in tow who might burn themselves or someone could knock over a candle and start a fire.

4. Play soft, commercial holiday carols to add to the warm ambiance.

The holidays can be a great time to sell a home. As long as you remember the "less is more" mantra, there is nothing like the glow of a fire and twinkling lights to produce visions of happy family times. By keeping decorations in moderation, you can use the benefits of the holidays as well as the features of your home to really make a sale.