While it is a little tougher to sell houses during the winter, it is not impossible. The key to selling homes during the winter is to make sure that the house is inviting to buyers and looks appropriate for the season. Here are some tips from veteran real estate agents to make your winter open house more successful:

Make the House Look Welcoming

Pull out all the stops to make the house look welcoming to potential buyers. Make sure that all the paths and the driveway are clear of snow and well salted so that they are not slippery. Add a festive wreath or other decorations to the front of the house. Put some solar lights on the path to the door so that the path is easy to see. Holiday decorations and lights are a nice festive touch.

Make Sure the House Is Warm Enough

It is cold outside to make sure that it’s cozy and warm inside. Set the heat to at least 70 degrees so that people will want to take off their coats and spend some time in the house. If it’s a particularly cold day or if the house has drafts you might want to turn the heat up to about 72 degrees so that the entire house will be warm when the buyers are walking around the house.

If the home has a fireplace make sure that there is a roaring fire. That will add to the warmth of the home and show buyers that the fireplace is fully functional.

Decorate For the Holidays

Potential buyers will be thinking about how the house will be for entertaining and having family holidays. So play up the holiday theme. Add a decorated Christmas tree in the living room with lots of lights. Set up a dining table and chairs in the dining room and set the table for a holiday dinner. Add holiday themed throws and pillows around the house. And use holiday-themed mugs for offering coffee and tea and hot chocolate.

Get the Oven Going

Nothing says holidays like the smell of holiday cookies or pies baking. Bake a batch of sugar cookies or heat up a pumpkin or apple pie in the oven so that potential buyers are greeted with warm and familiar holiday scents like cinnamon and vanilla when they walk in the door. That will make the house instantly feel like home and make buyers visualize what it would be like to host their own holiday gatherings in the home.

Play Festive Music

Background music should be kept low, but it can definitely help the mood in the home. Play seasonal carols or light classical music to welcome buyers and encourage them to stay and look through the house. 

Homebuyers are getting tired of cookie cutter granite counters and cutesy accents. Today’s buyers are looking for modern design elements and avoiding outdated trends like kitchen desks. Get a jump on selling in 2018 by learning more about the design trends that experts are predicting home buyers will be flocking to in the coming year like:

Quartz Countertops

Granite has had its day. Now granite is played out and home buyers are looking for kitchen counters that are more durable and less hard work to take care of. Quartz countertops are inexpensive, durable, and look great in any kitchen. Expect buyers to be looking for homes that have updated kitchens that include quartz countertops in the coming year.

Colorful Kitchens and Bathrooms

Neutrals are out, especially in kitchens and bathrooms. Buyers want a retro looking colorful kitchens and bathrooms now. Remember those 70s kitchens with Avocado Green and Harvest Gold appliances? They’re back in a modern and updated way. Design experts also predict even more retro kitchen styles like the 20s and 30s era red, blue and even pink kitchen colors will be in high demand. Since the kitchen really is the heart of the home these days buyers want fun family friendly colors in the kitchen and not glaring white walls and stainless appliances. Black appliances will be more in demand than stainless. In addition, in the bathrooms fun colors are popping up on all the high-end designers must have listed.

Black Accents Everywhere

Buyers have had enough of generic brushed nickel accents. Black is the in color this year for everything from lighting fixtures to floor tiles to shower molding. An unexpected pop of black is a lot more appealing to modern buyers than brushed nickel or silver hardware. Changing out light fixtures and hardware is an easy an inexpensive way to get buyers more interested in a new home.

Painted Brick

Exposed brick is lovely, but buyers have had enough. Painted brick is the next big trend in homes that have exposed brick. Whitewashed brick or brick that has been painted a bright cheerful color is going to be a lot more appealing to buyers than a plain exposed brick in the coming year.

Geometric Patterns

Now that replaceable wallpaper has become cheap and easy to find geometric patterns are going to be everywhere in 2018. Buyers will be looking for fun geometric backsplashes in kitchens and bathrooms as well as geometric tiles on the floors in those rooms. Adding a few bright colored geometric tiles is easy to do and will make even an outdated kitchen look more appealing to modern buyers. Accent walls with geometric wallpaper sheets or walls that have painted geometric borders are what will be bringing in the buyers in the next year. An easy way to get this designer look is to use a patterned paint roller and a bright accent color paint.