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10 Powerful Tips to Prepare Your Home for the Best Real Estate Photos

Real estate photos can make or break the sale of a home. Our society has become largely focused on images, and real estate photos are no exception.

Of course, having the right photographer is going to help make your photos stand out. However, there are some things that can be done to prepare for real estate photos properly.

Here are ten tips for making sure that a home truly stands out when it is photographed. 

#1 - kitchen Counters

We all have clutter on our kitchen counters. Although most people know enough to wash the dishes in the sink, it is essential to get the counters clear of any clutter. If you normally put your coffee pot, toaster, and blender on the counter, put them in the cabinet. 

There are a few reasons for wanting to clear these counters off. The first is that it will make the kitchen appear cleaner. Clean and new often go hand in hand, and people will associate the clean counters with a more updated kitchen. 

Clean kitchen counters also look bigger than those that are cluttered. When real estate buyers shop for a home, they want to get the most for their money. This includes a home with very large kitchen counters. 

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#2 - Open Window Treatments

Although window treatments are excellent for privacy, they also block a lot of light. When you have real estate photos taken, you will want to show all of the natural light that a home has. People get leary of homes that lack natural light as they tend to also be damp, dark, and sometimes cold. 

If you have curtains or blinds, try and open them as wide as they can go. It is fine to leave the blinds up as they can also be a selling point. When blinds and curtains are open, potential buyers will also be able to see the approximate size of the windows.

Making sure that windows look as large as possible is essential to make the photos more impressive. 

#3 - Sweep Porches and Decks

Remember that when you prepare a home for real estate photos, it will have to include the interior and the exterior of the home. Take a minute outside and look at any porches, decks, or walkways that the home has. 

Try and blow these off with a blower, or at least sweep them. Real estate photos with a path to the front door, covered in leaves, will certainly turn people away. A lot of leaves covering walkways will remind potential buyers of all the work they will have to do. If there is a considerable amount of work to be done, consider hiring a lawn care service.

#4 - Remove vehicles from the driveway

There should be no cars in the driveway for real estate photos. One of the main reasons behind this is that the driveway will look much smaller. People tend to like larger driveways that give them plenty of room for at least two cars. If you park your large SUV in the middle of the driveway, it gives it a much tighter look. 

In addition, parking a car in the driveway covers the condition of the driveway. Was the driveway just power washed? Let people see what they are getting with your driveway a bit more exposed. 

Finally, people will make assumptions about the house and the area based on the type of car that you have. This is not something that should happen; however, it does. Keep cars out of the photos, and you won’t have to worry as much about incorrect assumptions. 

#5 - Remove Pets and pet items

We know how much your pets mean to you, but chances are the next buyer does not need to know about your animals just yet. If you have a dog crate or a visible litter box, put it away for the photos. Some buyers will not even come to look at a home if it had once been inhabited with pets. 

However, if the pet items are not seen in the picture, they may still come for a look and potentially end up liking the house regardless of the pets that lived there previously. Your dog or cat may be the most well-behaved animal in the world, but potential buyers will worry about carpets, scratched floors, urine, and more. Simply hide your pets and their belongings for the day of the photos.

#6 - Clear Appliances

The 42 magnets on your refrigerator holding up last year’s holiday cards need to go. Pictures of a refrigerator covered in personal photos are too overwhelming for potential buyers. People need to start to picture themselves in the home if they are going to buy it. With the personal magnet collection on the fridge, this can be hard to do. 

Additionally, all of the memorabilia and notes on the refrigerator comes off as clutter. Clutter makes the room feel smaller. 

You can also remove anything like a kitchen towel that hangs on your stove, or even some salt and pepper shakers or a teapot that may sit on the stovetop. Make sure that all appliances are completely clear of any accessories or clutter.

#7 - Make the beds

It’s essential to make your bed every day. It gives you a great start to the day, and it’s a nice treat to come home to after a long day’s work. Sometimes bed-making is simply be pulling the comforter up over the mess of sheets when you’re in a rush. Unfortunately, when you make beds for real estate photos, you are going to have to take a bit more time. This is where you will want to make sure that the sheets are coordinating. Ensure that the comforter is laid out on the bed squarely and that all pillows are properly fluffed. 

If you never use the decorative pillows on your bed, now would be a good time to put those back on. Make your bed look as though it is something out of a catalog. This should be done for all bedrooms, especially children’s bedrooms. Your home will look organized and well taken care of.

#8 - Hide unnecessary furniture

If a home seller already has a new home to move to, it may be worth moving some of the furniture from the current home to the new home. Typically speaking, a more clean looking decorating style is currently trending. People like wider open spaces and less clutter. 

If you have rooms with large pieces of furniture and not much room to move around, try and take some of the furniture out. A great real estate photographer will tell you that a room with less will undoubtedly look better than a room with too much. 

Getting rid of furniture can sometimes be done by rearranging where things are located in the house. Reviewing photos of other homes for sale should give you a general idea.

#9 - Shoes and Jackets

Having a mudroom or entranceway with shoes, jackets, backpacks, and more is part of everyday life. However, in real estate photos, this is not something that people need to see. All shoes and jackets should be put away. 

Remove the jackets from any visible hooks and put them in closets so they are not visible in the pictures. It is fine to have empty hooks showing. In fact, people will like seeing the empty hooks as they will associate this with the home having lots of storage space. 

Shoes should never be visible in a real estate picture. If you keep them by the front door or in a bedroom, simply put them in the closet out of the way.

#10 - Clear Personal Items

Last but certainly not least, you should clear personal items from your home. Removing all belongings from your nightstand or bathroom counter, except decorative items. This is important because it will make the home look neater. However, it will also encourage people to start looking at the home as if it is their own. 

Some Realtors like personal items packed away for showings as well. When you decide to sell your home, it may be worth taking out a small storage unit and keeping things neatly stored away until it is time to move. Better yet, if you have a garage or attic, extra items can be stored there temporarily.

If you have a table filled with picture frames holding family memories, it is also a good idea to put these away. This process should only take a few minutes to complete, but it will make a world of difference when you look at the final real estate photos.

Conclusion

If you need extra guidance when you prepare for real estate photos, you can download our free Home Prep Checklist.

A great real estate photographer can give you some additional guidelines for making sure that the home looks perfect. If you want to get the most for your money, you need to put some time into cleaning and preparing before the photographer arrives at the house. When you pay for real estate photos or videos, the end result must help you to sell your home. As always, if you are in the Middle Georgia area, Gate Images can answer any of your questions or concerns about the best practices of real estate photography. Please give us a call today!

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