May Real Estate Photo Fails

Effective real estate photography can help sell your home in a matter of hours or can raise buyers’ questions due to the lack of specificity in your photos. In a perfect world you would put your house on the market, set up multiple tours that day and receive an offer that day. The buyers will only come ready to buy if your photos have answered a majority of their questions without having to send them away to think about if your home is the right choice. Here are some real estate photos that raise more questions than answers.

I’m watching you… always watching

Curtains or tree shadow?

The cold doesn’t bother me anyway

The bend and snap in action

Not the right time or place

I’ve always wanted to live inside of a painting

I get two thirds of the house and you get the other third

My ocd is killing me

Can’t Quite tell if i’m looking at a mountain or a cloud

Now let’s talk about how to answer buyers’ questions with your photography. When buyers look at your photos they want to know:

1) Has your home been recently remodeled? If not, what shape is your home in?

Buyers want to know this so they can budget for a room/whole house remodel into their home budget. They also need to know this in order to choose a realistic move in date. If they want the whole house remodeled they are going to have to stay in their current home a while longer. The best way to answer this question for buyers is to take clear, well lit photos that show off the rooms as a whole, while also making details such as handles and door knobs easy to zoom in on.

2) Does your home have a view? If so, is it a view of the mountain, water, green belt, etc?

A view is a non negotiable for some buyers, while to others it’s an added bonus. If you have a magnificent view of a mountain, take a realistic photo that shows the view from a certain angle of the house. If you have a spectacular view of a body of water, make sure to include the body of water on a clear day into your photos. If your home is situated on a green belt, be sure to capture all of the lush greenery in your photos.

3) How big is the yard? Are there areas to maintain a garden?

Speaking of the lush greenery, make sure to include a picture that shows if your home has a designated yard area or if buyers will need to add in their own space. Especially in the summer, buyers want to be outside enjoying the sunny weather, so if you home has a built in garden show that in your photos. If your house does not have a yard, make sure to allude to that in your photos so a buyer does not have to drive all the way over to your home to see if you have a yard.

4) The size of your kitchen/living areas

A majority of time spent at home is in the kitchen along with other main living spaces (living room, dining room, etc). Your buyers want to see the space they are working with when they cook their meals and entertain their visitors. Make sure to include a photo that shows the size of your kitchen as well as how it’s connected with the dining room and living room.

Every buyer has a specific list of real estate questions for every home that comes with their own list of non negotiables. As a seller, doing your due diligence to answer as many questions as you can while showcasing your home will help you attract well informed and ready to buy buyers.