Selling your Home With Images

Pictures sell houses, that's a fact, and if you get this part of self selling your home wrong, it could jeopardise your sale.

Yes, that sounds harsh, but that is the reality of the matter unfortunately.

Poor pictures are unfortunately all to present in the real estate sector, whether that's images posted by private sellers or even some real estate professionals. So let's look at how to take great pictures that will enhance your property, even if they are taken with a phone.

Firstly it's not about the quality of the images these days, as almost all modern day phones are equipped with cameras good enough to take great pictures. It's about subject matter. Exactly what are you taking pictures of and more importantly, why?

You need a great kerb shot of your property. Below are two kerb shots of houses for sale, but which one is the best?

It's fairly easy to see that the second image is the better picture, as it clearly identifies what the property that is for sale looks like, the first doesn't. Yes that's a basic observation, but we are building a picture here.

The pictures inside the house are equally, if not more important than the outside. 

Here are some rules when taking internal photographs and yes they are common sense, but you will see hundreds, if not thousands of these mistakes online. 

Rule number 1       

Tidy the house, and by this we mean clean it, a huge clean and remove all of the clutter you have and put it away, somewhere out of site.

This is a genuine real estate picture of a house published for sale.

See what we mean? You must tidy up.

Rule number 2

Stage the room you are photographing.

Be careful how you stage your room, its not always easy. It needs to be friendly and warm but ensure you remove your quirky ideas of what suits you and think more mainstream.

This is not what you need to photograph, even in a deeply religious country.

Rule number 3

Remove your pets.

Yes we know, we all love our pets, but pets in photo shots, pet beds, pet tanks, pet feeding bowls etc, are a huge no.

It's clearly not rocket science, but it's surprising how many times people get it wrong outdoors too.

Really?

So, you get the idea, your property, if it's going to receive viewings, needs photographing in the best possible taste. Sorry, but you need it to look like something out of a magazine unless you are in an area where demand outstrips availability.

Add some plants to your rooms, take pictures from the outside through open windows to enlarge how a small room appears. Only take pictures of your best rooms. Take your pictures when it's sunny. Remember, you are selling the dream, not just a house. If photographing pool areas or patios, water them first as it brings up the quality in the pictures. Take pictures of your garden when it is in bloom. Pictures taken in the rain or in winter are not the best, so if you have to, use pictures taken the previous summer.

If you have a pool please don't take a picture like this.

It won't help your ratio of site viewings that convert to actual viewings. It really won't. In fact, I'd go as far to say it will probably result in it zero viewings.

So we hope you've learnt a little about how to market your property through great images. 

If you need help taking images or deciding which ones to show, please contact us for some free advice and help. Contact