Your timing couldn’t be worse. Your house is ready to go up for sale on the market and it’s your turn to host the relatives for the holidays. How can you keep your home open house ready while still creating a festive holiday atmosphere?
Keep The Weekends Open
You can still cook that delicious turkey and host your family on Thanksgiving, but leave your weekend free so you can host an open house. If your out of town guests will be staying over a weekend, plan an activity that gets everybody out of your house during the weekend afternoons. With Christmas on a Wednesday this year, that following weekend might be prime for an open house.
Ask For Clean Up Help
Your family and guests know your home is on the market, so don’t be afraid to ask for a little extra help cleaning. Close family members will have no problem stripping their bed before they leave your home or helping you mop the floors after the festivities have wrapped up.
Scale Back The Decorating
If you typically go all out and have a tree in every room, this is the year to just put up one tree. Some of your favorite decorations might not make the cut either. Think elegant and sophisticated with your decorating. Not every light, ornament and strand of tinsel needs to be on your tree. Next year, in your new home, you can go Christmas crazy again with your decorating.
Confine The Decorations
Consider decorating just a single room for the holidays instead of bringing the celebration to the kitchen, the powder room and all of the bedrooms. Less is more when your house is being shown during an open house. Holiday décor is very taste specific and it can be hard for a buyer to envision their things in your home if it’s a winter wonderland in every room.