Plentiful, High-Quality Photos are a Listing MUST-DO: So Find a Good Photographer
It’s safe to say that most real estate agents aren’t professional photographers. Most do, however, carry smartphones with them – phones with cameras.
It’s all too tempting to skip the expense of a professional photographer and snap photos of a listing with that handy dandy iPhone.
So, while your clients work their fingers to the bone to get the home ready for the market, in walks their real estate agent, breezing through the house snapping phone photos, then slaps them on the MLS and calls it a day.
Listing Photos DO Matter
Let’s get into the statistics. The National Association of Realtors has found that 92 percent of homebuyers start their search for a home online. Of those people, 98 percent say that the listing photos are the most important information they find.
Nearly all of them!
Then there is the study from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA’s Institute for Behavioral and Experimental Real Estate. This study finds that the typical homebuyer won’t even look at a listing that doesn’t include photos, and when he or she does look at a listing, the first thing viewed is the photos.
Finally, another study finds that listings that include professional photography get 61 percent more views than those with agent-generated photos.
So, ok, we know that listing photos are an important aspect of generating interest in a home that’s on the market. But there’s more.
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Pro vs. Amateur
Now, here’s the study that should make you pay attention. A while back, the Wall Street Journal reported that “At the closing table, listings with nicer photos gain anywhere between $934 and $116,076 . . . over listings using photos from point-and-click cameras.”
Your listing clients are paying you to market their homes so that they make the most money possible in the shortest amount of time. The value of hiring a professional photographer is obvious.
How to choose a real estate photographer
As you gain experience as an agent, you will hope that home sellers will ask you about your past marketing efforts. So, ask the photographers you interview the same question. Ask for recent listing photos. Then, request the following:
- Names and phone numbers of agents they’ve worked for.
- An itemized list of what his or her fee includes. Pay close attention to how much of the post-production work is included in the price.
- If a licensing fee isn’t on that list, ask if the photographer charges one and how much it is.
- Ask if he or she will retain the copyrights to the photos.
Don’t neglect your due diligence; call those agents that each photographer has worked for.
Choosing the least expensive photographer is easy, especially as a new agent with limited funds. Keep that temptation at bay by understanding that listing agents who use professional photographers earn more money at closing than those whose listing includes bad photos. (Redfin)
Welcome to the world of real estate!
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