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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Urgent- What did you wish you’d done for your pre-sale photoshoot

57 replies

Goostacean · 09/04/2021 08:26

Quite urgent as photographer is coming in 3.5hs! What did you wish you’d done to prepare? What obvious points might I have missed? I have limited/no time to pop to the shops, but all ideas welcome!

OP posts:

Leavethedooropen · 09/04/2021 09:01

Yes take some photos yourself now quickly. It’s amazing how you see things differently eg skew whiff cushions, untidy bedding, uneven curtains etc.

RhubarbFairy · 09/04/2021 09:03

@SnarkyBag

Be careful with the lights on advice as I often see people post on here that they view this quite negatively as it implies the house is naturally very dark.

I agree. I'm always suspicious of photos that show lights on.

Good luck OP.

ineedaholidayandwine · 09/04/2021 09:03

Check your art work, one house we looked at photos of had a large canvas of a woman's naked body, the agent didn't blur it out 😂

ThatsShitTryHarder · 09/04/2021 09:07

We’ve just sold our house four days after going on the market. Adult DC aren’t living here at the moment and when I sent them the listing they both said it was so tidy, it didn’t look like our home!

We’re lucky in that we have a garage that we half emptied before going on the market so lots of clutter went in there.

Any random clutter in the kitchen I shoved in the dishwasher and microwave just before the photographer came .

But it’s true you can just move things while the photographer is there. We moved the coatstand into the garden while the downstairs photos were being done.

ISaidDontLickTheBin · 09/04/2021 09:12

Clear everything off windowsills

Don't move any big/heavy furniture at the last minute if you have carpets - we did this and the dents in the carpet where the furniture had been stood showed up really strongly in the picture.

fizbosshoes · 09/04/2021 09:15

Hide your toilet brush. Oh I forgot, this is Mumsnet no one has a toilet brush. 😂

After reading loads of MN critiquing I noticed some properties my Dsis was looking at on RM had not replaced the toilet roll! I said she should ask for 10k off the asking price for that misdemeanor!😂

YorkshireIndie · 09/04/2021 09:15

Echo what pp have said make sure the beds look immaculate. I had a cover that went over the duvet and pillows which made the bed look unruffled and not slept in. I removed all clutter from the work tops and dresser and put a lot of things including the dog in the car whilst the pictures were taken. The estate agent who did the pictures was the same who came to value and he said it looked really good. Do not be afraid to ask for pictures to be retaken. I asked them to come back and take pictures of the front of the house including the newly planted flower bed

Endofmytether2 · 09/04/2021 09:21

My friend did the same as the pp with her kid's toys that didn't fit in the storage boxes (too big). She simply moved them and a few other bits out of the room whilst it was photographed and then put them back.
Tidy kitchen, remove clutter and paperwork and stuff from on top of cupboards etc...just chuck it all into a box if necessary and remove it from the room to sort through later....put it into car/shed etc or just remove it from the room for when the photos are being taken, returning it afterwards (if space/storage is tight).

Same in the bedrooms: smooth sheets/duvet and declutter floor and sides.
Remove toiletries from around bathroom, again store in a box or bag and just remove for photos if you have no where else to store them. Make sure shower screen is clean or pushed back if a fabric one.
Make sure garden is clear/tidy and that the front of the house is welcoming, even if you put some pot plants from your back garden to the front just for the photos.

Roodicus21 · 09/04/2021 09:24

Take a picture yourself of each room then review and see what stands out/ is glaring and remove where possible.

Endofmytether2 · 09/04/2021 09:25

We sold our house the 1st day it went up to the first buyers that saw it (3 times over the course of 3 years as we could never find anything to buy ourselves or ours fell through due to gazumping or buyer deciding not to sell). Each time we had made our buyer aware that we wouldn't go through with our sale if we couldn't find anywhere.
The 1st couple that wanted it the very 1st time (but were outbid) eventually bought it the 3rd time we went to market, again sold on the 1st day.

TwoLeftSocksWithHoles · 09/04/2021 09:28

Perhaps once the photos have been taken and your property is listed you could post a link so we can give you marks out of ten?

Original poster

Goostacean · 09/04/2021 09:38

I’d love that, although should probably have name changed to share the link.... Let’s see! How important are the flowers??

We have no garden/shed, and the car is full of buggy, so little space there. I think it’s all okay now except the kitchen... we’ve done the windows, the bed will be made properly...

OP posts:

carolinesbaby · 09/04/2021 09:48

Everything absolutely immaculate and sparkling. Clean the windows.

Get rid of all the clutter - toys, clothes, bath mats, lots of ornaments, toiletries. Be wary of taking down pictures especially if it's a while since you painted the walls.
Turn all the lights on, even on a bright day.
Open the blinds.
Bunch of flowers doesn't go amiss.

BigSkyLife · 09/04/2021 10:03

Pull your duvet flat and taut, plump up your pillows and stand them up on top of the duvet.
I really dislike seeing crumpled bedlinen in estate agents pics, makes the room look unnecessarily untidy, and feels a bit unwashed.

RosesAndHellebores · 09/04/2021 10:28

This has reminded me that I ran the iron over the duvets - on the beds, before the photos were taken.

MrsTophamHat · 09/04/2021 10:31

Beds really sharply made and pillows looking plump. I can't stand it when people don't know how to make their bed for a photo.

Kitchen counters as empty as possible.

No clutter at all. Get it all in carrier bags if needed and hide it

Original poster

Goostacean · 09/04/2021 10:50

Just the kitchen left now... everything else looks great. Cleaner has made the bed look like a hotel. Bathrooms are spotless. Couple of small piles to be removed from two of the rooms in turn, but that’s all. Making great progress!

OP posts:

Pootles34 · 09/04/2021 10:55

The boot of your car is a very useful place to stuff all the crap that has no where else to go. When we had viewings I used to take the laundry basket around the house, chuck any mess in there, straight in the boot.

KetchupOnTheFloor · 09/04/2021 10:58

Unplug stuff if you have a cable that is visible so that it isn't trailing across the room or out from behind a table.

Large blue Ikea bags, chuck anything that doesn't hide away into those or something similar and just remove it from the room for the photo, or shove it in the car on the seat for 20 minutes.

I once had a friend comment that my lounge always looked spotless when she came round, I opened a massive rattan chest where I chuck everything in when company come round

Stand in the doorway and really look at what you can see. Hide anything visible that looks untidy. Lots of people shove stuff under beds but don't realise you can see it all in a photo.

And good luck!

Miljea · 09/04/2021 11:11

Hope it went well!

I sold our house myself in Australia 20 years ago. We hired storage and shifted a third of our belongings into it! It was a big, airy house so needed to look uncluttered with clear lines; and house selling laws are such that the process is much more straightforward- you can't Gaza people or gas under, for instance. You commit, you sell. Or buy- thus I knew we wouldn't have to live like that forever!

Sold in 10 days, but I did spend DAYS getting it ready for photography.

The last house we sold (from the UK so I couldn't do it myself), all the photos had what we called The Stunt Cactus in them 😂 - The photographer moved it from room to room for each picture.

Original poster

Goostacean · 09/04/2021 11:19

Ha! Still got 40mins til they arrive so just doing the finishing touches. As a pp, now I’m wondering why we’re moving- it’s lovely when it’s spotless and empty!

OP posts:

fluffygreenmonsterhoody · 09/04/2021 11:19

Kitchen - lob everything into cupboards, the oven... anywhere that it’s out of sight! You’ve got this OP!

BackforGood · 09/04/2021 11:19

You’d deduct money because some didn’t make the bed🤣 I love the levels of ridiculous on MN

Quite

Lightingail · 09/04/2021 11:21

@DeeplyMovingExperience

I ran around in front of the photographer, emptying rooms of EVERYTHING that could clutter the shot. Even if this meant chucking stuff into another room then taking it back out again for next shot.

Think show-home magazine set up. I bought loads of flowers. Put on all the lights - you need as much light as possible.

If you have open fires, light scrunched up newspaper just prior to the shot so it looked like a big roaring flame.

Make sure your windows are clean, and that the beds look like they would in a hotel.

Good luck!

I remember doing this too! 😆

Thatwentbadly · 09/04/2021 11:30

Don’t forget the garden.

Hide access clutter in the car.

Take your own photos so you can see what needs to be changed.

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