Skip to main content

Your Home on the Market: Avoid Turning Buyers Off During the Holiday Season

By U.S. News & World Report

It’s that time of year again, when your neighborhood, maybe even your home turns into a festive display of holiday decor, but there is a fine line between tasteful and cluttered. Welcoming buyers into a home for sale covered in holiday decor with a life-size bloody Frankenstein, bats flying above and a dreary cemetery in the front yard isn’t something most buyers want to come home to.

Sometimes it’s hard enough to get sellers to agree to remove certain objects or tone down accessories in their home or front lawn. So when it comes time to decorate with ghosts and goblins around Halloween, gourds at Thanksgiving, or put out the menorah or Christmas lights and trees in December, how can you show off your holiday spirit without going overboard or offending buyers?

In many cases a buyer will get distracted with the holiday decor and overlook the curb appeal. While holidays like Thanksgiving and New Years are celebrated by most, Hanukkah and Christmas are religious holidays that buyers could discriminate against.

It’s important for sellers to consider the neighborhood they live in before decorating. If a neighborhood is festive during Christmas, then a buyer would expect Christmas decorations in the home for sale. On the other hand, if the home is in a more politically correct neighborhood with a mix of religious beliefs, use more generic decorations to promote season’s greetings rather than a specific holiday.

Some sellers may feel it’s easier to take a home off the market during this time of year, but can you afford to lose those months? Keeping a home on the market can be beneficial because there is usually less inventory, and those looking to buy are serious. If the plan is to keep that “for sale” sign up during the holidays, make sure to limit decorations to get a maximum return on a home’s investment.

[See: Current Design Trends That Will Date Your Home.]

Here are some tips to keep the home festive despite being on the market.

Exterior Decorating

— Keep the tinsel, garlands and most of those blow-up characters in storage.

— The entrance should be simple.

— Use more natural elements: For fall add pumpkins, stacks of hay, cornstalks and don’t forget to plant some mums (you can also prepare the home for spring now by planting daffodils and tulips).

— For winter, group poinsettias and use evergreens to create floral arrangements.

— Door wreaths welcome all to your home and set the stage for celebrating.

— Use holiday colors that work with your home’s exterior colors.

— Use a few strands of white lights for elegance or keep to a color scheme. Forget about the multi-color strands this year.

— Most importantly, refrain from objects attributable to specific religions.

[See: 13 Photography Tips When Shooting Your Home to Put It on the Market.]

Scene Stealers Inside

During staging it’s important to make focal points stand out, so don’t block or cover up fireplaces, stairs, stained-glass windows and any other features that are unique to the home.

Rooms filled with decorations can feel smaller and will stop the buyer from visualizing themselves in the space. Choose specific areas to stage with festive themes. We want buyers to see themselves celebrating their holidays in the house — to do this create a simple, clean, cozy space with decorations.

— Set the formal dining room for Thanksgiving or Hanukkah dinner.

— Bring in a Christmas tree, but make sure it’s not oversized.

— Use natural elements to bring in texture and interest like an evergreen garland or pinecone centerpiece.

— Color is also important to keep in mind and make sure you keep within a color scheme. Red is not only the color of Christmas, but it’s an emotionally appealing color that can be used in the space.

— Don’t forget to think about what the holidays mean, then create the scene in your home. Would your buyer love decorating the tree? Creating a gingerbread house? Or sitting by the fire?

— Play into using the five senses — sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste — to make buyers emotionally connected to the space and feel at home.

[See: 10 Ways Millennials Are Changing Homebuying.]

Though as a seller you may not be able to decorate as they would like to this holiday season, you can still celebrate those traditions, take part in holiday activities (on or off the property) and show off your holiday spirit by welcoming buyers into what can potentially be their new home.

More from U.S. News

9 Easy Ways to Boost Your Home’s Curb Appeal

10 Unorthodox Ways Your Real Estate Agent May Market Your Home

Weird Home Features That May Confuse Homebuyers

Your Home on the Market: Avoid Turning Buyers Off During the Holiday Season originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
Read Next Story

Related News

Frustration grows in Venezuela as earthquake death toll reaches 1,430

Israel and Lebanon sign framework agreement with US in ‘first step’ toward peace, Rubio says

Trump-endorsed populist poised to become Colombia’s next president as rival challenges vote