Great Utah, real estate photos, are essential to selling your home for top dollar. Here are my tips for making sure your home is photo ready.
If you're selling your house, you should schedule plenty of time to prepare your home for the real estate photographer.
As a homeowner and full-time discount real estate broker, I know how crucial amazing property photos are to sell your house fast.
You will learn where to invest your time preparing your home for photos, how much real estate photos cost, who pays for the photographer, and if aerial photos are necessary.
Interior Real Estate Photography
TIDY UP KITCHEN COUNTERS AND SINK
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Clear the kitchen countertops to emphasize how much counter space the kitchen offers for meal prep and hosting parties with family and friends. Provide potential buyers a clean area to envision how they would use the space.
Eliminate clutter by removing coffee makers, cocktail mixers, and unnecessary decorations—thoroughly clean all surfaces, including appliances, the sink, and the backsplash.
Ensure bathroom sinks, tubs, and showers are spotless.
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Organize shampoo bottles, body wash, razors, loofah sponges, rubber duckies, and other items into a storage bin under the bathroom sink to make the tub look bigger. Homebuyers always look to see how large the tubs are, especially in the master bedroom.
Remove all items from the bathroom counter, including your toothbrush. Other than some hand soap, the bathroom countertop should be spotless.
Change Burnt Out Light Bulbs
Check all ceiling, garage, patio, and exterior lights to ensure they are in working condition. Burnt-out or missing light bulbs make the home look dark, and they stand out in property images.
Use lamps for additional lighting in dark areas such as the basement.
Turn On All Lights
Turn on every light in your home before the photographer arrives. Make the real estate photographer's job easy so they can focus on the best angle to take the perfect picture, not looking for light switches.
Open Window Coverings
I can't overstate how important providing the best light possible is to create MLS-ready images and video throughout. Lighting is one of the most important factors for a photo shoot.
Remove Bulky Furniture & Decorations
This is one of those situations where "less is more."
As an agent, requesting the seller remove large furniture like sectional sofas, oversized ottomans, large desks, end tables, and armoires into storage can be uncomfortable. Still, it is important to create an open, inviting space.
Remove Refrigerator Magnets
I suggest sellers remove magnets, calendars, children's drawings, and other personal items from the refrigerator. We all do it, but it doesn't make great real estate photography.
All Beds Should Be Made
This seems self-explanatory, but It's amazing how often sellers neglect to make their beds for real estate photography. Many prospective buyers will not even look at your home if they see a messy bed in the images. It seems extreme, but I hear buyers always comment on unmade beds.
Store All Footwear & Jackets In The Closet
Not only does a pile of sneakers, flip-flops, and jackets in the entryway look messy in photos, but it makes home buyers wonder if the house lacks storage.
Declutter Nightstands & Dressers
Nightstands and dressers are the junk draw's close cousins. We store phone chargers, Kindles, books, tissues, lotions, sleeping pills, and other personal items on our nightstands.
Remove everything except the lamp to ensure quality real estate photos.
Hide Pet Items
Pets make our lives better, but more often than not, they worsen our houses' conditions.
Even as an animal lover, I wonder about the home's condition when I see dog toys, dog bowls, and cat scratching posts in real estate listing photos. A single photo of a chewed-up dog bone is enough to prevent potential buyers from touring your house.
Exterior Real Estate Photography
Yard Work Is Crucial
The first photos potential buyers will see of your home while scrolling through real estate online are exterior images of your home.
You must showcase your home with quality exterior pictures before they skip your house and move on to the next listing in their desired market. One bad photo will turn off a finicky buyer.
Remove Cars From The Driveway
It's never a good idea to leave your cars, pickup trucks, RVs, trailers, boats, motorcycles, side-by-sides, unicycles, or whatever your preferred mode of transportation is parked in the driveway.
Photographers aren't magicians. Help them out by removing your vehicles from the driveway. Do everything possible to showcase your home to portray your house's unique vantage points perfectly.
Pro Tip: Ask your neighbors to remove their vehicles from the street.
Hide Your Garbage Cans
This should be self-explanatory. Garbage cans are ugly and not a feature to successfully market your Salt Lake City home listing. I recommend storing garage & recycling cans in your garage or storage shed.
Swimming Pools & Hot Tubs
Ensure the water is crystal clear and free of debris and pool toys. The buyer should see the hot tub and pool as a benefit for their friends and family, not highlight how much maintenance they require.
Remove the cover of your swimming pool and hot tubs. Turn on any lighting, jets, and waterfall to highlight upgraded features and create a more enticing property picture.
Clean Your Windows
Ensuring your windows are free from dirt and water streaks will make you stand out.
Most sellers overlook the importance of clean windows. This will make your home stand out; agents will quickly point out these small details to their clients while they tour your home.
Utah Real Estate Photography FAQ
How Much Do Real Estate Photographers Cost?
A basic real estate photo shoot in Salt Lake City, Utah, will be around $100.
Who Pays For Real Estate Photography?
If you're listing your home on the Utah MLS with an agent, then the property images will be paid for by your Realtor.
How Many Photos Will I Need?
The more, the better. I would recommend a minimum of 12 property photos.
How Long Will The Photographer Be In My Home?
An hour is usually enough time for most listings.
This depends on whether you upgrade to include real estate drone photography or aerial videos.
However, it depends on real estate professionals' photography package for their business. The property shoot (virtual tour) is one of the most important marketing tools for selling a home.
I recommend allowing the photographer as much time as needed. It depends on the home's square footage, the floor plan, and if your agent paid extra for quality aerial photography.
Is Drone Photography An Additional Cost?
Yes, real estate drone photography and aerial videos of the property and surrounding area are an additional expense.
You should expect to pay an additional $200 or more for all aerial images, videos, and photography.
Are Aerial Images Necessary?
Drones should be used in high-end homes, especially in areas like Park City, Utah. Clients in these price ranges expect to receive the best marketing to help sell their homes.
Why Do I Need Professional Photography?
Other than pricing your home correctly, an amazing property shoot (home tour) is the best marketing available to sell listings on the Utah MLS.
Great photos make your property stand out from the rest and equate to more showings. You won't sell your home for top dollar if your house isn't being shown to potential buyers.
Agents do their clients a great disservice if they don't pay for a professional photography package.
What Is Virtual Staging?
Staging helps sell your home but can be quite costly.
Virtual staging is an upgraded photo package. The photographer adds furniture to the property pictures so you can see what the home will look like with furniture in the home.
This article was all about real estate photography. Whether you live in Salt Lake City or Park City now, you know how to make your home stand out on Instagram and the MLS.
Posted by Discount Agent on
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