What Are Listing Photos, and How Do They Impact Your Home Sale?

Photos are among the most powerful tools in your arsenal when selling your home, but over half of home sellers are unprepared to do a photo shoot of their own home.

People aren’t prepared because they don’t realize how crucial listing photos can be. Real estate photography can help your home sell faster and may raise the value of your home.

To truly understand how important listing photos are, you need to examine them from every angle. Keep reading–this article will explain what listing photos are, why they matter, and how to take them.

What Are Listing Photos?

First, we have to answer the question, “What is a listing photo?” A listing photo is a photo of your home that you use in the home’s real estate listing. It’s a picture for potential buyers to look at.

The term listing photo is broad. It includes both interior and exterior photos–you’ll want plenty of both when selling a home!

Not just any picture can serve as a listing photo, though. Listing photos exist to show off your house, so that should be the focus. Personal photos that you include your family and friends shouldn’t be used in a listing.

Listing photos should cover the entirety of your home. You should have at least one picture of every room; key areas like the kitchen and bedrooms might warrant multiple pictures from different angles.

The same goes for your property. Take photos of your yard, highlighting features like fences, pools, and anything else that might attract buyers.

Why Do Listing Photos Matter?

Most people look at real estate listings online before ever visiting a house. You can’t rely solely on curb appeal to draw in a buyer–listing photos are the best way to attract people to your home sale.

Photos are often the first thing a buyer looks for when they find a listing they’re interested in. By offering photos, you can call attention to specific parts of your home that will appeal to buyers.

Photos can emphasize things like high-performance appliances, spacious rooms, and so on. They allow you to control your house’s narrative and ensure that you’re making the right first impression.

Real estate photography also helps you build trust with potential buyers.

Most people won’t look twice at a home listing that doesn’t include photos; they’ll assume that there are problems with the home that the seller doesn’t want people to see.

On the other hand, professional photos make your home irresistible–the better your photos, the faster your home will sell. If you really want to sell your home quickly, read this page to learn about services that can help.

Types of Listing Photos

There are several categories of listing photos to consider. The most basic form is standard real estate photography–in other words, regular photos of your home taken with a high-definition camera.

Most of your images will fall into this category. You can take these photos yourself, but you may want to hire a professional photographer. They’ll have advanced cameras that can capture the true beauty of your home.

Professionals will also be able to touch up your photos after the fact, brightening images and making sure your home looks its best in the listing photos.

You might also use 2D or 3D photography. You can show buyers a detailed floor plan with 2D photography. If you want your listing to be an immersive experience, 3D photography can allow viewers to take a virtual tour.

Consider using drone photography to capture your home’s exterior. Aerial drones can capture images from angles that are impossible for a regular photographer.

Drone photos can highlight the natural beauty around your home and draw attention to exciting features like decks, pools, and balconies. Drones can also shoot videos.

How to Prepare for Listing Photos

Now that you know how important listing photos are and your options for them, it’s time to think about how to prepare your home. The first thing you should do is clean.

Your goal is to show your home at its best. Deep clean your carpets, sweep and mop your floors, wash your windows, wipe down your counters–do everything possible to make your home spotless.

At this stage, you should also look into home repairs. Take care of any renovations before moving on to photography; you don’t want people to judge your home based on outdated pictures.

Next, depersonalize your space. Your home should look like a blank canvas that prospective owners can project their style onto. If your house looks like it still belongs to you, people are less likely to get invested in it.

Reduce clutter and try to stick to neutral color palettes. If you’re having a hard time deciding how to stage your home, you can always look at other listings for inspiration.

Things to Avoid

While good photos help your home sell faster, bad photos might have the opposite effect. There are common errors you need to avoid when taking your listing photos.

The most common mistake people make is using low-quality photos. If you don’t have a camera that can take great pictures, hire a professional; low-resolution or blurry images will only drive people away.

Avoid dark images. Turn on your lights and open your blinds before taking any pictures. Proper lighting helps viewers get a clear look at your room, and it can even make the room look bigger.

Finally, don’t over-edit your photos. Photo editing can help a picture pop, but if you do too much, people will notice. They’ll assume you’re trying to hide something through digital trickery.

Get the Best Listing Photos for Your Home

Listing photos are a great way to make your home listing stand out from the crowd. Great pictures make a positive first impression on potential buyers. They ensure that people are looking at your listing, and they can even help you make more money!

Quality listing photos aren’t the only part of successfully marketing a home. You also need to fix your place up before putting it on the market. Visit our home improvement blog for ideas on making key home repairs!