Selling your home in the winter means paying careful attention to staging techniques. Why not take advantage of the drop in temperature (and perhaps a sheet of fresh snow) to help make your home feel warm and inviting? Be sure to notch up your furnace a few degrees and get the fireplace roaring to woo potential buyers.
1. Put your best foot forward
Fill urns and planters with natural materials like punchy red dogwood branches, lengths of birch and cedar boughs. Hang an oversized wreath from your local nursery on your front door or create your own with found objects like birch twigs, cedar and feathers. Make a fragrant grapevine herb wreath with bay leaves, lavender and sage for a twist.
Replace worn doormats with a fun winter-themed sisal welcome mat and be sure to have a boot tray inside ready for soggy footwear. But first, make sure your driveway is plowed and any pathways and steps are thoroughly deiced for excited foot traffic. Exterior lights will warm a house even if the sun hasn’t set—when skies are as grey as wool socks, be sure to illuminate as much as you can.
2. Set the mood
Copper string white fairy lights and LED candles can help set the mood for an enchanted visit. Choose music that lends well to wintry days, but don’t let the soundtrack overwhelm buyers. Think of your favourite coffee shop and the subtle music that encourages reflection. Need a quick primer? Here’s a suggested list of top 15 snow day records.
3. Diffuse wintry scents
If you don’t have time to whip up a batch of cookies (a tried-and-true tactic), diffusers can help in a pinch. Think bergamot, cinnamon, nutmeg, pine and peppermint.
4. Offer tasty treats
Keep all the senses in mind—even taste. Stack homemade marshmallows in a large apothecary or Mason jar alongside jars filled with hot cocoa powder.
If tea is more your thing, set up a similar station on your counter in a curated way. Display a colourful teapot with a few silk bags of ginger tea or loose leaf in clear shot glasses on a sleek tray with a jar of honey or raw sugar cubes. What could be more tempting on a bone-chilling day?
5. Create a cozy nook
Arrange cozy nooks with all the staples: a faux-fur throw, pouf, seasonal pillows (think winter more than holiday themed) and a stack of books or magazines. Turn on end table lamps so potential buyers can visualize themselves curled up in the space.
6. Display your winter blooms
While lilies and tulips brighten a spring windowsill but don’t forget to drop into your nearby florist for winter flowers like gardenia, gerberas and poinsettias. Rosemary trees are an indispensable choice for the kitchen, too. When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with simple white roses or winter greenery.
7. Show off a luxurious bathroom
The math is simple: cold day = hot bath or shower. Showcase your master bathroom with new sigh-inducing Turkish towels and a bamboo tray. Display simple yet luxurious products like sugar plum scrubs, charcoal bars or mango butter for a spa-like experience.
8. Gear up and get outside
If you live in a rural area or on an acreage, set out snowshoes, a pair of binoculars and hand warmers for those eager to see the extent of your property, despite the snowfall or cold.