If you are looking to sell your home, you will want to make sure that the property is at its best when it comes time for the photographer to arrive. Preparing your home for real estate photos is not just about getting it clean and organized, but also an exercise in positioning things to show off what you want prospective buyers to see.
To make sure that people are drawn to the features of your property, you need to focus on how you stage it for photography. You should get rid of clutter, make sure that all the furniture is clean and tidy, and remove anything and everything that would distract someone. The last thing you want potential buyers to see is a dirty kitchen, instead of seeing what a great space it is for cooking! In this post, we will be going over all of the important steps you need to take to thoroughly prepare your home for a real estate photography session and to get the best photos possible so your home will sell quickly.
Exterior
- Move any vehicles from the front of the house
- Clean up trash, leaves, and branches
- Trim the grass and move the trash bins to the side of the house or inside the garage
- Put away kids’ or pets’ toys, bikes, etc.
- Wind-up the garden hose
- Clean and arrange your patio, deck, and porch furniture
- Remove your barbecue grill cover and hide accessories
- Clean windows and glass doors
Interior (all rooms)
- Remove all signs of pets
- Replace light bulbs and clean ceiling fans
- Hide electrical cords and cables
- Remove clutter on counters, desks, and furniture
- Put away extra clothing and blankets
- Hide remote controls and phone chargers
- Put away all toys for kids and pets
- Dust all TVs, computers screens, and furniture
- Clean hardwood floors and vacuum carpets
- Tidy gym equipment and weights
- Check/fix your gas fireplaces
- Hide garbage bins in the garage, closets, or pantry
- 15 minutes prior to your appointment time turn on ALL lights, open curtains, open blinds to a horizontal position, and turn off fans
Kitchen
- Put away all dishes, soaps, and scrubbers
- Clear counters of clutter and appliances
- Remove fridge photos and magnets
- Clean surfaces, streaks, and stains
- Sweep or mop the kitchen floor
- Staging is always great: consider bowls of bright-colored fruit or flowers
Bedrooms
- Make beds and fluff pillows
- Remove all clutter from nightstands
- Close closets
- Put away clothing
- Master closets may be photographed so make sure they are organized
- Remove valuables from view, cover safes
- Make sure items under beds are out of sight
Bathrooms
- Remove everything! Toothbrushes, razors, soap, all items inside baths or showers, wastebaskets, toilet brushes, plungers, perfume, medications. Decorative elements are fine.
- Decorative mats, rugs, towels, hand towels may be placed, but the photographer may remove them based on aesthetic
- Close toilet lids.
- Clean mirrors, glass, all surfaces, remove hard water spots.
Extras
- Casitas and ADUs – follow all previous instructions
- Fix/prepare any water features, such as fountains, pools, hot tubs, etc.
- Check any pool/spa lights
- Remove holiday and seasonal decorations
- Remove family photos as much as possible
- Hide pool equipment
- Hide any toys
- Remove bulk food/water items such as water bottles, sodas, pet food, etc.
- Let the photographer do their work and make the magic happen!
When you’re ready to sell and get great real estate photos, reach out to one of our amazing agents to get started! Below is a downloadable PDF of our ultimate checklist for photography prep, which you can also get by asking any of our agents.
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Contributor, designer & admin for JohnHart Gazette.
