Preparing Your House for Sale: The Importance of Real Estate Photography

When it comes to selling your home, first impressions are everything. And with most home buyers starting their search online, having high-quality, professional real estate photography is more important than ever. In this article, we'll discuss the steps you should take to prepare your house for sale, with a particular emphasis on the role that real estate photography plays in the process.

home interior design

Preparing Your House for Sale

Preparing your house for sale involves more than just listing it on the market. To make a lasting impression on potential buyers, it's essential to ensure your home is clean, well-maintained, and visually appealing. By taking these key steps, you'll be setting your property up for a successful sale and attracting serious offers.

1. Clean and Declutter

The first step in preparing your house for sale is to give it a deep cleaning and declutter. This means removing all personal items and excess clutter so potential buyers can envision themselves living in the space. It's also important to make sure that all surfaces are spotless and that there are no lingering odours.

2. Make Necessary Repairs

Next, you'll want to make any necessary repairs. This could include fixing leaks, painting, or replacing worn carpets. The goal is to make sure that your house is in the best condition possible so that buyers can focus on the positive features of the home rather than being distracted by any flaws.

3. Stage the House

After you've cleaned and made repairs, it's time to stage the house. This means arranging furniture and decor in a way that highlights the best features of the space. Staging can make a huge difference in how buyers perceive a home, so it's worth investing in a professional stager if you're not sure how to do it yourself.

The Importance of Real Estate Photography

Once your house is clean, repaired, and staged, it's time to take professional real estate photographs. High-quality, well-lit photographs can make a huge difference in how buyers perceive your home. Here are a few reasons why real estate photography is so important:

1. It shows the Home in the Best Light

Good real estate photography will show your home in the best possible light. This means using a wide-angle lens to capture the entire room, as well as using professional lighting to highlight key features.

2. It Provides a Sense of Scale

Professional real estate photography also provides a sense of scale, which is especially important for buyers who are viewing the home online. This can help buyers get a better sense of the size and layout of the space, which can help them decide whether or not to schedule a showing.

3. It Helps the Home Stand Out

With so many homes on the market, it can be difficult to make yours stand out. Professional photography can help to set your home apart, by showcasing its unique features and making it look as attractive as possible.

4. It Builds Trust

Finally, good real estate photography can help to build trust with potential buyers. When buyers see high-quality photographs of a home, they are more likely to believe that the house is in good condition and that it's worth scheduling a showing.

Conclusion

Preparing your house for sale can be a daunting task, but with the right approach and the help of a professional real estate photographer, you can make sure that your home makes a great first impression. By focusing on cleaning, repairs, and staging, and by investing in high-quality real estate photography, you can increase your chances of selling your home quickly and for the best price possible.

Why Virtual Tours should be in Your 2024 Marketing Plan

In today’s market, virtual tours offer a convenient and immersive way for agents to provide prospective buyers with a detailed tour experience. These tours allow buyers to explore properties from the comfort of their own homes, saving time and enhancing the overall home-buying process.

House Virtual Tours

What are Virtual Tours?

Virtual tours are a series of scans stitched together to form a 360 degree experience of the property. This virtual experience can be viewed online - whether that’s via computer, smartphone or laptop. 

Viewers of the house can take a tour through the house, as many times as they like, from the comfort of their own homes. It’s a 24/7 touring experience. 

Blankcanvas Production provides 3D walkthroughs (matterport) at a cost of $379.

The Benefits of Virtual Tours

1. Save your time and energy

Virtual tours allow buyers to see if the property is a right fit for them before proceeding further through the buying process. This saves the agent a lot of time and effort as they’re not dealing with buyers who aren’t serious about purchasing the property. That way, you can spend all your time and energy building connections with actual prospects. 

2. Remote properties 

Some prospective buyers might be from out of Auckland and thus can’t travel into Auckland to view the property. Virtual tours allow buyers to view the property from anywhere in the country. Buyers can click on the kitchen, living room, bathroom, bedrooms or any other rooms in the house to experience a 360 degree view of the room. Virtual tours also benefit properties in remote places as people can get a good sense of what the house looks like before committing to travelling there. 

3. Developments

Virtual tours are also great for showing buyers what projects will look like once they’ve finished. It can be hard for buyers to buy something that hasn’t been completed yet or rely on plans to form an impression of the property. 

Ask Agents

Virtual tours can only provide so much information to buyers. After all, they are viewed online and not in person. That’s why it’s so important for buyers purchasing remotely to ask agents about things they can’t get a sense of through virtual tours, such as the neighbourhood, views from the property, storage and materials. Pairing your virtual tour with a chat to agents, lawyers and other professionals gives you a more complete picture of the house and what exactly you’re getting into. 

Real Estate Institute’s Jen Baird says that while virtual tours allow buyers to get a good sense of the property, they should always ask questions directly to the agent. 

The Benefits of 3D Rendering for Real Estate Agents

With the rise of new builds being developed throughout New Zealand, 3D rendering is fast becoming a new way to create exceptional visual experiences for potential buyers before the project has even been completed. 

3D Rendering

What is 3D Rendering?

3D rendering is a new technology that turns a 3D model of a property into a 2D image. These designs capture the interior and exterior of the property in a photorealistic and detailed manner. In fact, more and more buyers are purchasing million dollar properties off the plan, making 3D renders incredibly crucial in communicating what the end product will look like. 

So, how does 3D rendering benefit real estate agents?

1. Perfect for storytelling

With 3D rendering, potential buyers can form more of an emotional connection with the property than they can with blueprints and plans. That’s because 3D renders include intricate details such as texture, light, colour and shadows to bring the property to life. What’s more, these renders will allow you to showcase materials, appliances and overall design of the home. This easy-to-digest visual will prompt potential buyers to envision themselves living there. 

Additionally, exterior renders can highlight the surrounding area i.e. gardens, roads, green spaces and parking. This helps ignite potential buyers’ imagination and drum up interest in the project. 

2. Attractive and aesthetically pleasing

High quality 3D renders are immersive, eye-catching and pop off the screen (and page). These 3D visualisations are perfect at highlighting the most beautiful aspects of a home, and communicate its biggest selling points. This will help draw in a large number of views and potential buyers. 

3. Close that sale

3D renders make for fantastic marketing as they’re versatile and can be used in a range of marketing materials, such as brochures, magazines and digital marketing. By attracting the attention of more buyers, 3D renders can increase agents' ROI and finally close that sale.