How to sell your home before Christmas

SELLING your property before December 25 is possible and makes the present for vendors and buyers.

PHOTO SMART: Just in case your home does not sell before December 25, get all the photos taken before putting the Santa Car on the roof. Picture: Trevor Veale

AS TINSEL and fairy lights are going up all over town, vendors need to be show restraint if they are hoping to sell their home before the bloke in the red suit comes down the chimney.

What better present can there be to have bought your family a home of their own?

Or as the seller, knowing you can plan move on to the next stage of your life before the new year rolls in is priceless.

For vendors it is essential you choose an agent who is prepared to take call from genuine buyers leading up to and through the festive season.

Many people are on holiday, are in relax mode and have a bit more time and energy to focus on finding their new home.

(As someone who bought their first home on Christmas eve, I can assure you it does happen.)

Selling your home before the kids open up their presents under the tree is a win-win for everyone.

Tips to selling your home before 2019

Photo smart - Have your photos taken before the decorations go up. If your home doesn't sell before December 25, do you really want to be the seller of the house with the reindeer on the lawn and Santa on the roof in January? The average time on the market for Lismore is between 41 and 64 days depending the area and photos can date quickly.

Air-conditioning - Ensure your home is the cool and comfortable property during the open for inspection rounds, so when buyers pop into during the hottest time of the year, they walk in out of the heat and relax at your place.

Decoration de-clutter - You may love old paper angels the kids made at school years ago but to someone else they might look a bit tatty. Best to keep any festive decorations to a minimum. Choose tasteful decorations and use them sparingly, Remember you want buyers to visualise themselves in your home and not be overwhelmed buy your taste.

Decorate not renovate - Yes to painting any scraped trims and doors and cleaning the hell out of every room, but no to pulling out the kitchen to install a new one. Be realistic about getting tradies in at this time of the year as many are booked up now until after Australia Day.

Create space - Rent a storage locker and clean out your garage so a car could actually fit inside or that spare room full of junk, so you can fit a bed in there so buyers can see how spacious your home really is and not be put off by clutter.

Garden - Give the lawn a good weed, feed and water as soon as possible, then keep it trimmed and mown. Freshen up your garden beds with a trailer-load of compost from the Lismore tip to cover all the weeds and throw in some nice flowers and mulch, mulch, mulch.

Relocate - Smelly dogs or sulky teenagers who resist tidying their room should be relocated to an understanding friend or relation for the duration of the selling period. Trust me on this one.