Did you know that 87% percent of all statistics are made up on the spot? Ok…so that’s clearly not true, but here’s something that is. A ridiculously large percentage of homeowners receive their initial introduction to your home from photos online. If the photos are garbage…guess what…a majority of folks aren’t going to want to see it. Those are potential buyers you just missed out on because your agent decided to save a buck. That’s just a fact. I can’t tell you how many properties I haven’t shown to buyers because they didn’t like the photos.
Time for my rant…if you’re working with an agent to list your most valuable investment and they show up with their phone or an office camera to take photos, RUN!!! Well, maybe, don’t physically run, but for the love of all that’s good and holy, ask questions like, “When’s your photographer getting here?” or, “Seriously?!” You, the seller, are PAYING to have your home listed. Part of that is the agent HIRING a professional photographer so your home looks amazing when it is listed. Photogs don’t just take photos. They take said photos and run them through an editor to make sure colors are perfect, light looks good, shadows look good, composition looks good, etc. That’s worth something!
A professional photographer is vital to the sale of the home. I use one. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. It doesn’t matter what size property it is, the seller deserves that. Not only do I use a professional photographer, I pay to have the home cleaned and, if necessary, I pay to have a stager come in and give advice on de-cluttering and staging the home. All of this is for one reason and one reason only…to make sure that the property is ready to hit the market and we place our best foot forward from day one. PERIOD.
Whew…ok…rant over. Sorry about that. I tend to get a little passionate about what I do. Seriously though, this is your largest asset. It should be treated as such. You’re paying a substantial amount of money to get your home sold. You should be getting something for it.
