When they’re difficult to see in person, evaluating properties from afar is especially essential. It’s easy to get excited about a beautifully-photographed home, but try to slow down and scrutinize each image with a critical eye. Real estate photography is a powerful marketing tool that aspires to present listings in their best possible light. The pictures may not tell the whole story, however, and you often find homes that can look better online than in person. Below are a number of ways we can study what’s available online to see a broader picture.
Photo credit: HD Visual Solutions, NC
Lighting is tough to trust in photos.
Most real estate photographers employ HDR (high dynamic range) techniques. Multiple, identical photos of a room are captured at varied exposure levels (from very dark to very bright) and then blended together with software to create one bright, high-definition picture. As you start to recognize the idyllic sparkle of HDR photos, they become hard to miss. Just keep in mind that it’s difficult to know how bright a home really is before you step inside. Healthy skepticism of glorious, bright listing photos is justified.
Pictures are usually taken mid-day when sunlight is optimal. Do any surrounding trees, buildings, or hills seem like they might hinder natural light throughout the day? Do you notice any significant moss growth that implies a lack of sunshine around the property?
Which direction does the home face? Southern-facing homes generally benefit from the most natural light over the course of a day. A north-facing home, surrounded by big trees or with a hillside behind it, is probably pretty dark inside (even if it seems bright and cheery in the photos).
This listing stinks. Can you spot all the clues? The Febreze? Blankets blocking the crack under the door?
How would ‘real’ living room furniture fit differently?
Photo credit: Clarity Northwest
Staging furniture is carefully selected by designers to invoke positive emotions and make spaces seem as big and bright as possible. Be aware of staging layouts that may not represent how you would realistically use the same space.
Smaller couches, tables, and chairs can be arranged to make a room feel bigger and the illusion of beds is commonly achieved with twin or full-size air mattresses. If you’re like many, your living room revolves around a television, but TVs are rarely featured in home staging. Consider how “real life” furniture might fit differently and how a queen- or king-size bed may take up extra space in a bedroom.
On the flip side, the absence of staging in photographs can make it even more difficult to gauge room sizes. Try using windows, doors, outlets, etc. as reference points to estimate lengths of walls and attempt to stitch listing pictures together in your mind for better context. (Pro tip: in unfinished basements of older homes, the washer/dryer can be used as a reference point for ceiling height.)
What isn’t shown?
Up to 40 pictures of a property can be uploaded to a listing on the NWMLS (recently increased from 25). Does it seem like important portions of the property are not being shown? Sometimes the answer is simply that an agent was tight on marketing budget or maybe a room was too full of moving boxes to shoot on picture day. But you can be darn sure of this: if a particular space is useful and even remotely attractive to the eye, it’s included in the photographs. If the listing is not showing you someplace significant like the basement, it could mean there are low ceilings, a dirt floor, foundation cracks, etc which they’d rather not call attention to online.
No interior pictures can mean a few things:
Significant damage/accumulation throughout
Home is currently rented and the tenant may not have been informed about the sale or maybe the house was dirty or cluttered to photograph
Foreclosed/bank-owned properties sometimes don’t bother with interior photos
During the Stay Home, Stay Safe Order, professional photography may have been delayed or difficult to schedule. Most agents will wait and list a property only once all pictures are available but a listing can technically be activated with just one exterior photo. Check back for more pictures if the listing is relatively new.
The absence of good exterior pictures may be an indication of disrepair or a yard that’s unappealing or unusable due to overgrowth or rough/steep terrain.
Privacy & neighbors
Take a virtual stroll up & down the street. How do neighboring properties look?
A well-framed photo can make it seem like a listing has no neighbor at all when, in actuality, the property next door might be an eyesore or too close for comfort. As you review the interior pictures, pay attention to what you see outside the windows. Oftentimes, you can get a good sense of how close neighboring homes sit and/or what views to expect from inside.
It’s also a very good idea to utilize Google Street View and satellite map images to better explore the lot, proximity/ condition of neighbors, and virtually wander the surrounding blocks. Signs of a desirable neighborhood include nice sidewalks/paved streets, well-maintained homes, tidy yards/gardens, and fun/useful amenities nearby. Buying next to a dilapidated house with piles of junk and rusty cars in the yard could cause headaches in the future and impair your ability to resell. How does street parking look for you or guests? Do you see any little old houses sandwiched by newer townhouses? This can indicate what types of development are permitted/zoned on the street and it’s prudent to expect more in the future. That’s not a bad thing, necessarily, but it gives you a glimpse of how the block might evolve over time.
How else are you digging deeper into prospective listings from home? Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you’d like to talk about anything at all (real estate topics not necessary). And I always love seeing funny or egregiously bad real estate pictures if you spot any in the wild.