Use decorations you can keep out beyond New Year’s. It can feel very laborious spending a day festooning your house knowing you’ll be taking the decorations down again in a couple of weeks. How about replacing your felt Santas or Christmas baubles with less holiday-specific decorations, such as garlands of pine cones, acorns, and evergreens that can stay for the whole winter season?

Bring in the flowers! Substituting flowers for the tinsel will not only give your house a beautiful facelift, it’ll also help you cut down on the clutter once the holidays are over. No more boxes filling the attic, just some stems to add to your compost.

Don’t put things out for the sake of it. Let’s be honest: some decorations are beautiful, while others can seem tacky, generic, or a little boring. Don’t feel you have to put out as much as possible just because it’s what everyone else does. Only choose the things you truly love having around the place or things that you genuinely find beautiful.

Resist the urge to buy new decorations if you don’t truly need them. Chances are you already have plenty left over from previous years that will have been kept for a reason! Bring the festive spirit to the house by making use of what you already have.

Consider which traditions you actually enjoy and which ones you don’t. If you know you’re no good at preparing a turkey or holiday decorating is not your forte, don’t feel you have to force yourself to do it just because it’s what you’re used to. Drop the tradition and replace it with something you and the family will love.

Customize your holiday dinner. There’s always something on the plate certain family members can’t stand, whether it’s Susan who hates stuffing or anti-parsnip Peter. Instead, why not ask each member of the family to choose a food to add to the menu instead and not limit it to “holiday foods”? You may end up creating a masterpiece.

Substitute new experiences for gifts. Sometimes you find the perfect gifts that’ll blow your loved ones’ minds. Other times, you can find yourself totally stuck for ideas, especially if you have family members who don’t want for much. If that’s the case, think about instead taking them to try something new and exciting, whether it’s a night at the theater, a ride on a steam train, or a day of go-karting.

Around edges, small bubbles will appear. Mixture may begin to steam.

Turn heat to low and stir in chocolate until melted completely.

Divide among four mugs. Top each with whipped cream and a cinnamon stick.

Serve.

Note: Milk chocolate may be used instead of dark chocolate.

When home prices took a big dive in the mid-2000s, many owners were forced to stay in place because of little to no equity in their homes. This pushed the five-year average tenancy up.

The length of homeownership among younger families, who typically relocate about every five years, has not caught up with older generations, who live considerably longer in their homes.

The size of homes has been increasing for the last 40 years, and in conjunction with that, family household sizes have been getting smaller. As a result, the need to keep moving up to larger homes has greatly diminished. Many find that after several years of owning the same home, their needs are still satisfied.

Today, some homeowners are not anxious to give up a comfortable loan balance with a good interest rate after having benefited from good appreciation and historically low interest rates. Staying where they are is more appealing. Other homeowners who may have an interest in selling may be dissuaded by the lack of supply of homes to buy and not being able to find a replacement residence.

Today’s credit standards are tighter, making qualifying for a mortgage more difficult for some of those who do wish to sell and buy another home. When homeowners are less likely to qualify for a new mortgage, they are more likely to have to stay where they are, contributing to the average length of homeownership in the market.

Many factors contribute to choosing to stay in a home or not. If you are considering buying or selling a home, call or email us today, and we can help you navigate each of them so you can make the decisions that are best for you.

Don’t commit to things you don’t want to do. Ask yourself if you will actually enjoy or benefit from partaking in something or whether you’re only doing it because it’s “tradition.”

Cut down on the decorations. It’s easy to go overboard with decorating for the season, meaning you end up with a house that feels more cluttered than festive and encumber yourself with a huge time commitment in getting them up and taking them down. Only put up the things you really love to have out.

Don’t spend money just because you feel like you have to. During the festive season, advertisers do their best to make us feel like we’re missing out by not purchasing their festive items or latest gadgets. Don’t spend on things you don’t need just because it’s that time of year.

Refrain from comparing your festivities with anyone else’s. The grass is always greener on the other side. Don’t laden yourself with unnecessary stress or FOMO by worrying about how other people my be having a better time than you.

Don’t feel obliged to send holiday cards. You’ll save time, money, and the environment. You can find much more meaning in having a simple phone call or video chat with your loved ones rather than a generic greeting on paper.