Not happy with estate agent photos!!

[Sellingmyhousesoon]

I posted previously with pictures of my house and trying to make it look nice. The photographer came today and I hate their photos! Is it just me or has everything become a very stark white and cold and you can't tell where certain things start and end? What did they do to my house! Please reassure me that they're not that bad...

The red border pics are the estate agents, next to mine for comparison....

The estate agent photos are a terrible representation of your home. They make your house look very stark and cold and bland. Whereas your photos make your house look warm, cozy and inviting. I would not be happy with their photos at all.

The EA photos hurt my eyes!

Can you ask them to put up your photos?

Definitely get them to either take yours or go back out and take better pictures. I was letting out a house years ago and the pictures were awful. Literally a corner of a bedroom was shown in one pic.

I think it might be cultural. To me your photos make the place look dark, pokey and over-furnished. The estate agent's ones are too bright and clearly altered because you can't easily work out where the corners are, but they make it look like a bigger, brighter, more modern house. It depends what your target buyer audience is. Older, suburban/rural =yours; younger and urban=theirs.

Yours are better - just use yours? When we sold our house I told the estate agent from the get go that I’d be taking the photos - I sometimes look on Rightmove and think ‘why have you allowed that photo of your house on there - your intention is to sell it,,,,,right?!’

Thats a really interesting viewpoint and worth considering. I do see what you mean.

I have the new pictures from the estate agent. Will put them in my next post.

these are their new photos. Please tell me what you think! Are they good enough or are mine still more appealing?

Anyone? I don't know what to do!!

Your photos are so much better.

I think yours definitely make the house look warmer and cosier. The only issue I see with yours is how many lights you have on. In some rooms there a table lamps, floor lamps and ceiling lights all on at once which would make me wonder if it is a particularly dark house.

Other than that it is a lovely house and personally I appreciate the minimalist look with no clutter!

There is barely any difference between the old set from them and the new set! Your photos are still loads better. There does seem to be an issue with not enough natural light in the house, but their photos make it seem way worse than it probably is because it looks like they took them all at night with cold white lighting on. Not cosy or inviting at all.

I would be so annoyed with them I would be considering changing agents unless they had some redeeming photos or drone shots like the other poster mentioned.

I still think yours are far better - even than the new ones -@Sellingmyhousesoon!

Re what @SoThatsTheWayItIs said about the lights/lamps being on in your pics, every EA/professional photographer we've used (have sold around ten times) have put lamps and overhead lights on before taking the photos, so I'd expect this. Or maybe our houses have all been dark caverns!

Wow @Sellingmyhousesoon your photos are like a totally different house! Sorry but I wouldn't be running to book a viewing with your agent's photos, but I certainly would with your photos! The difference is stark; the agents photos are overexposed and "cold", whereas your photos make your home look lovely, cosy and inviting!

So i can see they've turned the exposure/brightness whatever it was down a notch so I can actually see where the walls and ceilings start and end. So that is an improvement. But I completely agree about the cold lighting. It's a small victorian mid terrace so it's not going to be the brightest house ever. However I dont want it to look like someone has shined it all up with the bright cool LED style lighting. I think it looks so cold and uninviting.

I have sent them my pics instead and have asked them to do a version of the brochure with those instead, so i can compare...

Thank you for the comments everyone. This is where mumsnet really shines😍

I did a bit of research before taking my pics and looked at a load of local houses on rightmove and all the ones with lights on (which was most) looked best imo!

As I said it's a tiny victorian mid terrace so whatever i do it's not going to be flooded with light!

Thank you!!! Thats exactly what I think. I feel so reassured.

Good job for standing up for yourself. I think you are doing the right thing. Best of luck with the sale! ✨💖✨

They’re still not as good as yours. Don’t accept them!

Every room looks the same. White walls and wooden furniture. I’d scroll past the EA photos and discard the house. There’s no character or detail to them.
Definitely insist on yours being used.

Yours are FAR better. Your home looks cosy, warm and inviting. The EA pics have drained it of any of that x

New agency I think, I wouldn’t trust them after that second set.

Unfortunately in the terms and conditions it says if I pull out in the first 14 days (which im still in) I would have to pay them for any work they have completed for me. So id have to pay them for the photographer, the floorplans, the description for the brochure etc.😔

Otherwise I would swap for someone else.

You need to insist on your photos being used and not theirs!

After all, you are the customer and will be paying them if/when they sell your house (which is extremely unlikely if they persist in using the photos they have taken!)

Therefore you have every right to demand that the photos used to market your house are the ones you are happy with.

Previously we have more or less completely rewritten the EA's description as it was full of overblown nonsense and supplied additional photos (to a different agent) when their agreement with the professional photographer they used was for only eight photos regardless of how large/many rooms the property had. In both cases they were happy to oblige.

Good luck!

I’d echo others views that I wouldn’t be at all interested based on their photos, but I’d be booking a viewing based on yours!

Yours look cosy and inviting, whilst still being neutral, theirs is cold and bland! Definitely insist on your photos being used and stress that you’re unhappy with the service they have provided at this stage