Should You Decorate Your Home For Sale During the Holiday Season?

As the months grow colder and neighbors wheel out the lights and inflatable snowman, you might wonder – as a home seller – if it’s wise to decorate for the holidays. On the one hand, you want to express a feeling of community by keeping up with the themes in your neighborhood. Consequently, too, an excess of garland and gaudy displays could reduce the amount of offers you receive in December.

It’s expected that prospective homebuyers are likely to take a month or so off toward the end of the year to deal with other issues. In this time, real estate agents may go on extended vacations, and some sellers may even consider shelving their intentions of selling until the next year, when heads are clearer and people are ready for a change. However, if you feel the need to soldier through the holidays and sell your home, it’s important to consider what kind of decorations, if any, should be placed on your lawn.

The Personal Touch?

When it comes to Christmas home decorations, some people opt for a simple string of lights around the eaves, while others dive head first into a display worthy of the Grizzwalds. Giant inflatable cartoon characters dressed as Santa, animated and brightly lit Winter Wonderland displays, and the legendary leg lamp from “A Christmas Story” may provide amusement to passersby, but if one of those people is serious about buying a home they may just walk past to the next one. While showing your festive side is not a bad thing, overwhelming decorations could obstruct your home’s better qualities – if it’s too gussied up, people may not be able to properly look at your decks, air units, or roof.

Some home buying experts, too, argue about whether or not to display faith-based object in and around a home, at any time of year. While it’s your right to keep Christian or Jewish iconography in your home, some real estate expert theorize that this personal touch may make prospective buyers uncomfortable. This is something to ponder if you have a Nativity scene you normally display on your lawn in winter.

For the purpose of presenting your home as an attractive buy, if you feel the need to decorate do so tastefully and in a minimalist manner. A nice wreath on the door, electric candles in the windows, and perhaps a string of solid-color lights along the eaves. Simplicity and elegance will lend a pleasing look to any home you plan to sell in a busy time.

Modern Home Office Decorating Ideas

A home office might not get a lot of non-work related use but just because you have to work in there doesn’t’ mean it can’t have great style! Here are some home office decorating ideas that will give your room sleek modern style.

The first thing you need to consider is the color palette and there’s nothing worse than a bland office. Choose a modern color palette such as black, tan and white colors as your color scheme. If you want something more colorful pick one bright color like red or orange that you can use for accents to really make the room pop.

There isn’t a lot of accessories that one associates with a home office, but you can make the room interesting by buying neat modern pencil holders, trash basket and in boxes. For furniture, stick to a modernistic style with dark or light stained wood furniture. Careful selection of accessories and furniture will benefit your modern decorating look. Make sure you pick ones that have plain but interesting shapes.

Window treatments can really add to your modern home office decorating ideas and choosing a style that is somewhat minimalist is key. Try enhancing your windows with sheers or some good quality blinds. After you get the ideal look on your windows, you might realize the walls are bland by comparison. To get your walls looking as great as your windows, consider adding black and white photos in sleek dark frames.

The ideal lighting can also help to accentuate your decorating theme as well as make your work tasks easier. offices usually have desk lamps as lights but you also need good overhead lighting as well as some accent lights for guest seating. Buy lighting that is chrome and funky or sleek chrome to augment the modern home decorating style design approach.

Another key component that will help give the room designer appeal together is flooring and adding wall to wall carpet to your modern office can make the room look great. The ideal kind of flooring for your stylish and sleek style is shag or medium pile in white, black or beiges.

The finishing touches give your room a unique appeal so think about enhancing your modern style with sleek aluminum accents, a bamboo plant in a low vase combined with stainless steel bowls, angular pieces, and some retro kitsch to make the most of your interior decorating scheme. For a softer look add pillows that are simple with solid colors In addition to greenery and plants.

You can get more modern home office decorating ideas by looking in magazines and decorating books. The key is coming up with a plan for your color palette as well as the items you will need to buy. Make sure you follow your plan and buy the best items and your room will have the feel of a sleek designer home before you know it!