How to Prepare Your Las Vegas Home for Real Estate Photography
So you’ve decided to hire a real estate photographer to help you sell your Las Vegas home... Congratulations! After carefully reviewing all of the pros and cons, the choice is clear: professional real estate photography can seriously improve buyers’ interest in the home, and almost always increases the final sale price. Before the photographer visits the property, you’ll want to make sure that it is completely ready to be photographed. The photographer’s time is limited, and let’s face it, so is yours. Properly preparing the home for the professional photographer to work their magic will make life easier for both of you and maximize the ROI of your pro photos. Here are some tips for getting started.
Clean, clean, clean.
Unsurprisingly, making sure that the home (or commercial property) is sparkling clean is essential to get the best photos out of your session. High-resolution photos allow buyers to see all of the details of the home… all of them. Make sure that surfaces, particularly those in kitchens and bathrooms, are clean and free of unsightly marks that might show up on camera. If the home hasn’t been cleaned recently, go around with a duster and some window cleaner and eradicate unsightly dirt and dust.
If the home is occupied, spend some time decluttering the space; the last things buyers want to see are your sellers’ fridge magnet collections and grimy, mostly-empty shampoo bottles. Make the beds, remove the knick-knacks, and if possible, clear the closets. It’s also best to store any personal photos or childrens’ art away, as they can be distracting and even deter certain buyers. Basically, remove or hide most of the items from the home besides furniture and matching generic décor — let’s call it DIY staging. Learn more about professional staging in one of my other posts.
Fix the Lighting
Even though the photographer will probably have their own flash equipment and ideas for proper lighting, there are a few things you can do to set them up for success. Windows are an important feature of any home; open all of the blinds and curtains so that the windows are in full view. If the home has electricity, turn on all of the lights. Replace any burned out lightbulbs, and make sure that none of the light fixtures are broken. Lighting is one of the most important aspects of professional photography, so it’s best to make all of the lighting options quickly available to the photographer.
You’ll also want to make sure that all of the TVs and computers, ceiling fans, or any other moving objects and screens are turned off. Pro tip: unplug everything besides the lighting and stow the cables for even more effective decluttering.
Prep the Exterior
While many Las Vegas homes won’t require much exterior prep for photography, give the property a good once-over for any exterior tidying that may need to be done. As mentioned in part one of this post, declutter the yard and exterior — no children’s toys, car parts, or old rusty grills! If the home has gravel landscaping, make sure that it looks even and undisturbed before the photographer arrives. For homes that have vegetation or trees, remove any dead plants and rake fallen leaves that may be lying around the yard. Prep the pool by retracting the cover and cleaning all of the debris out of the water. If possible, try to have any cars parked in the street or driveway temporarily moved for the duration of the photo shoot.
Hiring a professional real estate photographer to market your Las Vegas property is one of the easiest and most effective ways to sell a home more quickly, and for a higher price. Get the most out of your photography session by properly preparing the home, and watch the offers pour in!
Ready to get started? Contact us to schedule a photo shoot.
