Or should I say, “we wish you a merry moving”? The house hunt started in July or August. You thought for sure that not only would you have found your new home by Christmas, but that you’d be completely moved in and settled. Sure a new home is the ultimate Christmas present, but philosophically speaking, how exactly is Santa going to fit your newly purchased house down the chimney?
Sometimes the best solution for the December close is to first of all, not panic. No one can possibly expect your holiday activities to be at full throttle with an end of the year buy or sell on your hands. Just like having any other major life change in December, the only way to pull through is to not expect to keep up like you usually do.
The next step may be to drop everything and travel. As soon as the last box has been moved from the old house to the new one, take a huge breath, and head anywhere else in the world besides your new house. Just think – you will have a full twelve months to plan that cozy home for the holidays for next year. Even better, you can get back from your post move vacation and buy all those beautiful new decorations on sale.
It may seem non-traditional to avoid the holidays with non-family travel or an undecorated house; however, plenty of families get away with it without having any excuse at all. Of course, you don’t have to cut Christmas out altogether. If it pains you to take the traditions out this year because of children or your own preference, then there is always a way to scale down. Try gift cards all around for presents or online ordered gift baskets selected from the comfort of a winter beach house getaway. Whatever you decide to do, be sure to give yourself a break from both the tremendous experience of dealing with a real estate transaction and from the pressures of what we can try, more fully, to make the best time of year.