In today’s hot real estate market, effectively marketing your home is essential to garnering the best possible sales price. A critical piece of the promotional puzzle is the time-honored curb appeal, said to increase a home’s value by as much as 17% in some instances.
But while curb appeal is easy to achieve in the spring and summer months when the grass is green and flowers are abundant, creating that eye-catching quality can be a bit trickier in the cold weather months. Consider this to-do list for generating winter curb appeal from the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI).
Make sure your home is accessible. Climbing over piles of snow or negotiating a slippery walkway may turn away would-be buyers before they ever get to your front door. Be sure your driveway, paths, steps, stoop, etc., are fully cleared of ice, snow and wet leaves at all times.
Play up winter foliage. Just because flowers may not be blooming doesn’t mean there’s nothing to show off in your yard and garden. Prune evergreen bushes and trees to create a neat, attractive landscape, gather holly and fir branches in strategically placed planters, and hang a wreath of mixed greens on the front door.
Upkeep your lawn. While you may not have a bed of velvety grass covering your yard, keeping your lawn impeccably clean goes a long way toward winter curb appeal, so be sure to remove all stray branches, twigs and leaves.
Clean the gutters. Since clogged gutters can trigger a whole host of problems, make sure yours are cleared of all debris. This is easier to spot in winter and will make a good impression on buyers.
Up your lighting game. Nothing warms up a dark, cold winter setting like properly placed outdoor lighting. Enhance your pathways, driveway, front entrance and back patio with soft lighting, or showcase striking winter trees with spotlights.
Hang a birdfeeder. Birdfeeders not only add an attractive decor element to the outside of your home, they also serve as a harbinger to spring as birds gather ’round. This will add a sense of warmth and life to otherwise dormant winter settings.
Photo by Marco Secchi on Unsplash
