Listing Prep Part Five: Day of the shoot

This is the final part in a five part series on preparing a real estate property for listing. In this post, I’ll be covering my favorite part, the shoot day! If the goal is to make the most profit off the sale, these blog posts will highlight the major steps you must take before the home becomes available for showings. Even if you just want a quick sale without much effort, some of these tips will be very useful to make sure you still earn top dollar for your effort. The past topics covered have been decluttering, upgrading, repairing, landscaping. and cleaning.

The day has finally come. All the prep work over the past few weeks and even months is about to pay off. With the majority of clients viewing their favorite listings for the first time on Zillow, the pictures will be the first impression. We all know about the importance of a good first impression. So what final steps are needed to ensure the photoshoot goes as smoothly as possible?

For the sake of this blog post, the photographer will arrive at 1pm. This will give you time before they arrived to complete the following tasks. Here is a guide that you can use that breaks each area of the home down. It touches on past blog posts, but you can attend to these areas now or skip them if completed previously.

Here is a downloadable PDF of the following guide!

GENERAL PREPPING TIPS

  • Make all beds

  • Turn Televisions off

  • Turn ceiling fans off

  • Turn on all interior lighting

  • Turn all computer screens off

  • Thoroughly clean whole house

  • Remove personal photographs

  • Replace all burned out light bulbs

  • Remove realtor sign from property

  • Use bulbs of the same temperature

  • Place all shoes and clothing in closets

  • Remove all vehicles from the property

  • Open blinds & curtains to let in outside light

  • Remove small floor rugs to reveal actual flooring

FRONT EXTERIOR

  • Close garage doors

  • Remove cars from driveway and front of home

  • Clean up landscaping (mow, trim shrubs, clear leaves)

  • Remove empty planters

  • Use broom to remove cobwebs from eaves and door frames

  • Remove visible water hoses

  • Remove toys, sports balls, basketball goals, soccer goals, etc.

BACK YARD

  • Clean porch, tidy up outdoor tables/chairs/cushions

  • Pillows/cushions should be fresh, not faded

  • Clear out kid's toys, balls, frisbees, etc.

  • Clean pool

  • Remove pool vacuum/cleaner hose

  • Hide pool cleaning supplies

  • Turn on pool fountains/water features

  • Remove visible water hoses

  • Remove trash cans

KITCHEN

  • Clear countertops completely. No knife blocks, baking supplies, mail, etc.

  • Leave out max of one small appliance (ex. coffee maker)

  • Clear outside of refrigerator of magnets, papers, photos, etc.

  • Hide garbage cans in pantry or closet

  • Remove dishes from sink, place in dishwasher

DINING ROOM / TABLE

  • Clear table, dust and polish the table top

  • Use decorative place setting if available

  • Feature one center piece such as a bouquet of flowers

  • Straighten all chairs and space them evenly

  • Remove child seats/booster chairs

LIVING / FAMILY ROOM

  • Remove stacks of magazines, papers, mail, etc.

  • De-clutter fireplace mantel/hearth (no more than 5 items, including art)

  • Clean interior of fireplace and re-paint if needed

  • Fluff and arrange furniture pillows

  • Remove kid's toys

MASTER BEDROOM

  • Make bed, including decorative pillows/shams if available

  • Press bed linens and bed skirts

  • Clear nightstands of all personal items

  • Store away phone/tablet charging cables

  • Remove all clutter from top of dressers

  • Remove family photos from walls

  • Clean under bed, removing items that may show in the photo

KID/GUEST BEDROOM

  • Remove personalized names from walls

  • Remove wall stickers/posters

  • Remove diaper genies

  • Clean under bed, removing items that may show in the photos

BATHROOMS

  • Clear countertops completely. No soap, toothbrushes, medications, deodorant, etc.

  • Put toilet seats down

  • Close closet doors

  • Remove shampoo, soap, loofahs, etc. from showers and tubs

  • Remove dirty towels - leave out only new, unused towels

  • Remove floor mats

PETS

  • Place food and water bowls in pantry or closet

  • Place pet beds/toys in pantry or closet

  • Use lint roller on furniture to remove pet hair

  • Contain pets in hidden crate or outside

  • Clear back yard of pet waste/toys