The importance of good photographs when selling your home

Posted May 31, 2016

Just how important are the photos that an estate agent takes of your home when it comes to selling? Well, as the saying goes “A picture says a thousand words”. Estate agent photographs are the first impression potential buyers will get of your property and as you only get that one chance to make a first impression, make sure it is the right one.

Preparing your house for photographs

There are a number of key things you should do before the estate agent arrives to take those all-important photos.

Do You Have to Supply White Goods for Your Tenants?

There are no regulations or rules that stipulate that you must offer white goods to your tenants in your properties. It really is up to you. IT is worth noting though that most rented properties do include white goods. So, even though it is up to you whether you offer these, you could be scaring away countless tenants by not including these electrical appliances in your building. Therefore, it may be worth putting more money into your property and kitting it out with some of the most basic white goods, if it means you will attract a greater number of interested tenants.

De-clutter; whilst it is still your home it is also important to remember that potential buyers need to be able to imagine themselves living in it. So take this as an opportunity to get rid of things you wouldn’t want to take with you when you move. Clutter can make a room seem smaller, so consider putting some things in storage if they are in the way.
Make sure each room has a purpose – again it will help a buyer to visualise living in your property.
If you have a room that is looking a little shabby, consider a fresh coat of paint or new curtains, little things that will make a room look much more appealing in photographs.

The time and effort spent showing each room of to its best in the photographs will definitely pay off, as more photographs give a much better picture of your property to a potential buyer. Missing photos of key rooms, however begs the questions – why are they missing, what are they hiding?

Is now a good time to sell?

With mortgage rates at an all-time low and demand for housing greater than the supply it really is a good time to be selling, and well worth the extra effort to make sure that you show off your house to its full potential when putting it on the market. In a recent survey for Which Magazine a third of the 1,990 homebuyers surveyed indicated that they had paid over asking price for a property with competition cited as the primary reason.

According to the house price infographic from The Homeowners Alliance (last updated May 2016) house prices have gone up on average 0.7% it the last month and 7.2% in the past year so it would appear that now is a really good time to get your house on the market if you are considering selling.