When it comes to real estate, the internet is a beautiful thing. It has revolutionized the real estate industry. Instead of spending countless hours [and dollars in gas] driving around looking at homes, the vast majority of buyers now sit and click through listings on sites.
As a seller, you are missing out on a huge pool of buyers if you don’t list your home on the web. Most sites are incredibly cheap, so listing on multiple sites makes absolute sense since you want to reach as wide an audience as possible. The only real issue you face is what to put in your listing.
There are many factors that need to be considered when it comes to creating a listing for your home. Nearly every real estate site on the web makes it easy for you. They simply demand you provide certain information before they will upload the listing. One area where things are still somewhat vague are pictures of your home.
The first rule of pictures and your real estate listing is simple – upload as many as you can. If the site allows 10 photographs, upload 10. If it allows 30, upload 30. People react to visual stimuli. The more you can give them, the better.
The second issue with uploading photographs is the order you place them in. The first paragraph or two must capture the interest of the viewer. Consider your pool of photographs carefully. Which ones offer the best view of your home? Create an orderly procession and upload the best ones first.
Many sellers have questions about the nature of the photographs. Simply put, should you only shoot pictures of the best aspects of the home or should you include pictures of areas that are maybe no so appealing? Generally, you want to take and post photographs of all aspects of the home. While you want the first photos the potential buyer sees to entice them, you want to give a fair representation of the overall home as well.
Remember, buyers are not going to make an offer on the internet listing. Sooner or later, they are going to come see the actual home. If the home looks markedly different in person, they are going to be disappointed and not make an offer.
I can’t emphasize how important it is to upload photographs to your listings on the web. Photographs sell homes. Listings without pictures are like personal ads on a dating site with no photos. You just aren’t going to get much interest.
Raynor James writes about issues faced by
FSBO sellers for FSBOAmerica.org where you can list your property for sale by owner for free for 1 month.
