Great Real Estate Photography: Don’t ignore it.
“You only get one chance to make a first impression.” That is true in most situations, but it is especially true in selling real estate. 92% of home buyers are looking online. According to Homelife.com, 51% of buyers purchased a home they found online. Great photos helped properties sell an average of 32% faster.
The National Association of Realtors 2017 study illustrated the difference with omes with only one photo averaged of 70 days on the market, compared to 32 days for homes with 20 images. There is also evidence that homes ($200k to $1 million) sell for $3,000 to $11,000 more with great photos.
Homes that use a professional photographer for their listing on average sell $11,000 over market value and sell 50% faster than homes with standard photos. Studies have shown that 98% of homebuyers judge whether or not to walk through a property by first seeing the listing photos online.
Feelings. It’s about the emotions
Home buyers are fueled up and running on emotions. It is a huge decision and they have the weight of all of their future dreams resting on that decision. Just watch anyone viewing a property. You’ll hear, “I can see the kids playing with friends in the yard”, “image having the family over for holiday dinners”, “I will use that bathtub every night!”, or “summers around the pool are going to be epic.” It’s is all emotion and what the house do for them and their families. USE THAT EMOTION!
Tips for creating and engaging with potential. buyer’s emotions
- Know your market. If your house is on a quiet cul de sac with lots of kids, you wouldn’t try to make it seem “funky” to attract millennials. Just as you wouldn’t market a 3 floor townhouse in the hipster neighborhood as a retirement option. Once you have a clear picture of your market, research the trends in decor and colors. Have your home spruced up and staged for photos. Try to make it look like it came out of a magazine or home decor catalog.
- Staging. Staging. Staging. Since you are investing in a good real estate photographer, be sure your home it ready for the photo shoot. Remember class picture day in school? You put on your best outfit, fixed your hair and were primed for that photo. It would live forever and that is how you would be remembered. Its the same for you home’s big picture day. So put the socks and clutter away!
Choosing the Right Photographer
If your real estate offers to take pictures with their cell phone, FIND ANOTHER AGENT! They clearly don’t understand the value and process of quickly selling a home.
What Good Real Estate Photographers will do and consider:
- Understanding proper staging and angles.
- Composition. It changes from small bathrooms to large spaces.
- While good equipment is important, knowing how to use it is more critical.
- Understanding lighting, natural, ambient and artificial.
- Creativity and “highlighting” design or architectural elements.
- Provide you with guidance and suggestions throughout the process.
Highlight the design features and unique aspects of your property
Let’s face it, boring photos of empty rooms don’t create any excitement. Be sure to mix in some highlights and vignettes into your listing and marketing.
Kitchens, Bathrooms and gathering areas what people are looking at. Show of those features. Here is an example of a faucet. It’s not a standard faucet and definitely evokes some emotion. Yes, emotions over a faucet!
A railing. Not just a functions, it has form and design. This is a small example of how these things can be overlooked. A good photographer will capture these aspects.
Investors, Rehabbers and Flippers
If you are ready to market your property, call me! I can turn photos around very quickly, usually within two days in the Pittsburgh and western PA region. You can view my portfolio online. Contact me to set discuss your needs and time frame.