Home holiday checklist 1. Check the fireplace
How to get your house ready before the guests arrive
The holiday blitz has arrived, which means it’s time to get your house in order. With meals to cook and gifts to buy, you don’t want to be scrambling at the last minute getting a wonky oven fixed or removing stains from the living room carpet.
Here are five projects to tackle before the holiday guests come calling. The roundup includes price info from HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide to help keep your holiday budget in check. Before you fire up the yuletide log, make sure your fireplace is safe and sound. If it has been years since your last chimney sweep, consider bringing in a pro for the job. A clean sweep will remove built-up soot and creosote, which left unchecked can pose a serious fire hazard.
You should also inspect the firebox for cracks, since they can create a pathway for stray embers into your home’s structure, another serious fire risk.
You can expect to pay between $124 and $328 to clean the chimney, and between $175 and $3,000 to repair fireplace cracks, according to HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide.
2. Do a deep clean
If you don’t use a cleaning service throughout the year, it might be worth splurging on one before the holidays. A standard cleaning will have your home looking and smelling fresh for guests. You can also go deeper by having your carpets, furniture and windows cleaned.
You can expect to pay between $116 and $235 to hire a maid service, between $121 and $233 to clean carpeting, and between $149 and $291 to clean the windows, according to HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide.
3. Enhance lighting
Exterior light fixtures offer the chance to burnish your home’s architecture while also making the front entryway safer and more inviting for holiday guests. Take advantage of existing wiring so you’re not paying an electrician to run new lines.
Did you know you can also hire a handyman to hang holiday lighting on your home’s exterior? The pro help will free up your weekend and eliminate the need for you to climb up on ladders and roofs. You can expect to pay between $151 and $805 to install a light fixture, and between $202 and $594 to hang holiday lights, according to HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide.
4. Paint the interior
A fresh coat of paint in a few key areas — say, the foyer, living room, powder room and guest bedroom — will help make the entire home feel clean and fresh. Winter is the slow season for many professional painters, so you shouldn’t have trouble booking the project, and you might also be able to negotiate the price, especially if it’s a big job covering multiple rooms.
You can expect to pay between $380 and $790 to paint an averagesize room, according to HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide.
5. Get appliances in order
Your kitchen appliances are about to go into overdrive, especially the refrigerator and range. Inspect them for early signs of trouble. With the fridge, buzzing and humming sounds, as well as inconsistent temperatures, are indications of potential failure. As for the range, broken burners and uneven heat in the oven are issues you need to deal with sooner rather than later.
You can expect to pay between $200 and $400 to repair a refrigerator, and between $100 and $200 to repair a range, according to HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide.