Winter is officially upon us and whether you love or hate it you must understand as a seller there are things you should do.

Selling your home in the winter is different for obvious reasons in cold climates with snow, its cold and the foliage is not the same. Your once canopy tree covered home now is open enough for everyone to see, your windows are closed 24/7 to keep the cold out and the heat in, the differences are enough that we need to concentrate on “winter curb appeal” and staging the interior as well.

Lets look at the exterior first, trees are bare and the shrubs are brown and sparse so what can we possibly do? Give the front door that splash of color it needs anyway and it will draw the eye and give it a great effect against the overwhelming white landscape. Think about some colors that could be planted at the front door and survive in your climate. During the holidays think about some red dogwood and greens with a string of white lights to lead you up the pathway or welcome you at the front door you just painted, how about some color at the mailbox to lead drive by eyes to your property and not the one across the street for sale.

We have always heard curb appeal, curb appeal and yes it’s true, you need it. You also need interior appeal to match. Selling in the summer we often have windows open for fresh air, you’ve heard the saying in spring cleaning, “open the windows to let some fresh air in”, the saying is there for a reason. Don’t use too much air freshener while selling or smelly fragrances, they will only turn buyers off and become stronger in a home where we don’t have the occasional open window such as the winter months.

Keep it warm and keep it warm. I can not tell you how many properties I show that are either really cold or the heat is not even on, lets ask ourselves, do we like to shop in a mall where the heat is off? Of course not, buyers don’t like to look at cold home either, keep the heat on to at least 68 degrees.

Homes sell in the winter; December is NOT as some say a month homes don’t sell, not true. Homes don’t sell when they are priced wrong and not properly staged — period. For more tips or suggestions on selling in the winter feel free to contact me at (612) 282-7653.