6 Signs Why this should be your Last Holiday in your Existing Home

The holiday season is in full swing and with the excitement of decorating, eating delicious home-cooked meals, and seeing friends and family, comes the not-so-exciting reality of hosting in a home you’re no longer in love with. Here are some signs it might be time to the move to a home better suited to fit your needs.

#1 You can’t get to or find your holiday decorations.

It’s finally time to deck the halls! Now you have to gather up your favorite holiday decorations. Are they in the tiny attic that needs a rickety ladder to access? Under the bed in the guest room or the top shelf of the hall closet? No, that’s what is in those plastic bins in the garage stacked to almost toppling… you think! Instead of decorating as a family one Sunday afternoon, you spend the first week of the holiday season hunting down where you hid your décor. Rather than having to store the décor in any and every possible space in your home – or for those apartment-living who may be using disposable decorations because you have no spare spaces, take time at the start of the New Year to look at home with ample storage and an attic with a drop-down ladder access and maybe even a hobby room where you could unravel your Christmas lights in comfort.

#2 Your neighborhood curbs the bright lights.

You want to be the home that everyone drives by to be awed by the bright lights of Santa and his reindeer, Mr. and Mrs. Snow, the North Pole Penguin family and enough lights to be seen from the International Space Station. One problem, the Homeowners Association Grinch is about to blow a fuse and impose a blackout. Time to move to another neighborhood where you can have the best and brightest yard on the block and celebrate like a star!  

#3 Your kitchen just isn’t cooking up the holiday spirit

Big family dinners should be a time of excitement and celebration, not an episode of cutthroat kitchen. If your small oven is making you choose between pie and stuffing, you’re forced to microwave the turkey, (which you can do, according to Butterball) and you keep trying to figure out a way to make more counter space, but always end up with the same amount (not enough), you might be trying to make something work that can’t. Buying a new home with a large kitchen island, up-to-date appliances, ample prep and serving surfaces doesn’t have to be a dream. It’s really very possible to find a kitchen where you can prepare, cook, serve every big festive meal AND the dessert and hors d’oeuvres.  Then, you can have your pie and stuffing and eat it too!

#4 There’s no room for the whole family.

Arguably the best thing about the holiday season is gathering the entire family. The dining table has the leaf added, the card table and folding garden table and chairs are set up, but the lack of space means you have to open the sliding glass doors and the head of the table, Grandpa, is physically seated out on the lanai. Not to mention that the kids aren’t just at another table, the table is in another room altogether. What’s the point of all coming together if you are forced to separate just so everyone gets a seat? Instead of banishing family members to the outdoors, consider how to upgrade your eating arrangements with a dining room to accommodate everyone. Holiday gatherings around the table create the greatest of memories, it’s time for the youngest, and everyone in-between, to hear and enjoy the amazing stories the family elders have to tell.

#5 Too many cars, not enough carolers

There’s nothing like holiday cheer to unite people, especially among neighbors. Whether it’s enjoying each other’s lawn displays or sharing Christmas cookies. And while your neighbor’s ugly sweater party is filled with festive cheer, it makes it almost impossible to park on your street. Not to mention the fact that the holiday cheer stays inside. You miss the old days of familiar faces singing door to door.  A change of scenery means you can find the type of community you can sing alongside. 

#6 You simply don’t want to host anymore

Like the turkey, you’re done! You’ve paid your dues! As your kids have left and started nests of their own, it’s time to let the younger generation take over. The new memories you make in their homes will become just as important as the old ones. Plus, downsizing allows you to choose what’s most important to take with you and what you need to pass on or just leave behind. You can fully embrace the start of a new life in a new environment.

New Year New Home

Consider giving yourself the present you actually want, a new home with all the bells and whistles you deserve and need to really enjoy being home for the holidays.

HOMM Real Estate Services can help you find exactly what you want on your wish list, no holiday magic needed.

HOMM Real Estate Services, located in the Brandon, Florida area of Tampa-Bay focused to Hillsborough, Pasco, and Polk Counties. As a full-service general real estate company, we specialize in general real estate, home buyers, home sellers, new home construction, rentals, tenants and landlords, and property management.

Learn more about Marie Negron, her team and HOMM Real Estate Services. Call 813-684-5954 or email info.hommsales@gmail.com to get started.