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At this point, it should be a real estate commandment that you always hire a professional photographer when you are selling a property. It doesn't matter if you are selling a $50,000 mobile home in the middle of nowhere, or a multi-million dollar McMansion overlooking the ocean. Seriously. Hire a photographer. Every. Single. Time. It makes that much of a difference.
We took the time to go in right after our own professional photographer and duplicate his photos with an iPhone 12 Pro. We've seen plenty of for-sale-by-owners utilize cell phone pictures for the listing, and unfortunately, we've seen plenty of realtors do the same. It needs to end!
Why Does It Really Matter?
Whether you are trying to sell your home yourself, or you're a real estate agent, professional photographs make a home look its best. It's the same reason you clean up your house, put away the clutter, or if you are very serious, have your entire home professionally staged.
You want to make a good first impression on potential buyers and show them that you have a home that has been well taken care of and is worthy of the price tag. If you try to make your house as appealing as possible to folks on a walkthrough, doesn't it make sense to make it appeal to those shopping online?
In fact, according to the National Association of Realtors, 97% of buyers utilized the internet to aid in their home search in 2020. That means almost every single person who becomes interested in your home will first see it listed on Zillow, Realtor, or somewhere else. That means your first impression is not the first walkthrough, it's the first click online!
Is It Worth The Expense?
The short answer is yes. Let's compare two likely scenarios. Also, keep in mind a photographer (depending on your market), only charges a couple hundred dollars.
Scenario #1:
You post your home for sale with the best cell phone pictures you can muster. Thanks to years of experience taking Snapchat selfies and videos of your pets, they actually turn out okay. At least you can tell it's a house right? You post the house for $350,000 and wait for the offers to roll in. You can sense the impending stampede.
Well, after a week you've gathered up three scheduled showings, one of which didn't show. Your open house was a moderate success with a couple of interested families, and plenty of interested neighbors. No offers. After nearly two months of repeating this cycle, you finally get an offer! $340,000 and they want you to fix the wobbly stairs on the back deck. You are tired of dealing with everything and begrudgingly accept. Congratulations, you sold your house!
Scenario #2:
You've hired a great realtor who's preparing to get your house on the market. They arrange for everything to be done, a photographer will come by for an hour, and your house will be up for sale the following morning! Your realtor thinks $350,000 is a great price to generate lots of interest and your house looks stunning online.
Within the first 48 hours, you have a few showings booked for the coming weekend. After a couple of walkthroughs, you have your first offer in under a week. That first offer comes in at asking price, but you want to think it over before deciding. While you stew on that first offer, your realtor was doing a bit of work and you have a second offer: $365,000. You jump at the offer and accept. Congratulations, you sold your house!
Why Does It Really Matter?
Yes, these scenarios are entirely hypothetical and a bit dramatic. However, the point remains that you will see an impact with professional photos. It makes the property far more marketable and enticing to potential buyers. Not only that, but at the very least it shows to buyers that you cared enough about selling your home to have it professionally photographed.
When it comes time to sell your home, do yourself a favor. Hire a professional photographer, and find yourself a great local realtor to make it all happen.
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