I am a house stager in the Twin Cities of St Paul/Minneapolis and at this time of the year I frequently get asked about the appropriateness of decorating for the holidays when a property is on the market.
In Minnesota the winter days are short and often times cloudy and the nights can be a little chilly and quite long. Because we need pick-me-ups whereever we can find them to get us through the winter we embrace holiday decorating completely in this part of the county. We use holiday lights to cheer us along for months. Literally, lots of times you will see the lights on houses still burning brightly in March. I think it is how we welcome ourselves home and convince ourselves to step out of our warm and comfy cars and into the night air after a long day at work.
So, in a nutshell, I am a big fan of holiday decorations. When you are not selling your property...go crazy with them if you want to. Here is one of my neighbors yards. You can see that they take the go crazy thing to a crazy extreme. Since they aren't trying to sell their property I guess it is ok.
(Actually it is more than ok...what you don't see in the picture is the Toys For Tots collection bin and the Second Harvest food donation bin. This holiday explosion draws many visitors and supports two great causes.)
If you are selling your home during the holidays then I would recommend you excercise a bit more restraint.
1 Do and 3 Don'ts Related to Holiday Decorating When Your Home is Featured on the MLS!
DO
- Do add a little personality to your property. People are accustomed to seeing a little yule tide cheer this time of year and your property may look unloved if you don't participate a little. To do it effectively don't dismiss the 3 don'ts that follow.
DON'T
- Don't be too specfic with the decorations. Instead of a Nativity Scene in the bay window you might add a vase filled with colorful ornaments
- Don't forget to edit out items before adding in the decorations. You still want your property to feel neat and uncluttered
- Don't leave the ipad you bought for your daugher and the laptop for your son prominently displayed under the tree. Christmas is a favorite holiday for thieves and you don't need to tempt fate.
My website if filled to overflowing (like your Christmas stocking I hope) with more staging advice and before and after photos of staged properties,
I wish you Holidays that are safe, warm and happy. If you can, please reach out to those less fortunate to help them have a safe, warm and happy holiday as well.
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