Worst MLS Photo Of The Day – Why We Publish Them
Before we start a whole new year of “worst MLS photos” I’d like to review the reasons we do this.
a) About 80% of buyers look at homes on the internet. They hand pick the homes they want to see based on the PICTURES! Even if the agent does the picking, they use the pictures to determine the homes that will most impress the buyer. Rarely have I ever met a buyer who wanted to rush right out and see a cluttered kitchen, or dirty bathroom.
b) Agents who list homes have an obligation to the seller to promote the home in the best light. No, they don’t have to be professional photographers, but they do need to take pictures that show the features of the home, not the furniture of the seller. They need to move the clutter out of the way (and get the seller to clean it up). They need to actually think about angles, and light and what they’re trying to show. They need to learn to use the photo editing software that came with their camera.
c) No pictures at all is even worse than bad pictures. I just flashed thru every listing taken so far in 2008. There are 450 new listings that were uploaded since January 1st. 172 of them have NO PICTURES AT ALL. 91 of them have only one photo of the front of the house. 40+– have garbage cans or cars in the picture.
d) Most of the bad pictures are outright embarrassing to the agents like me that really take our business and our seller’s interests seriously.
e) Some of them are hysterically funny, and we all need a good laugh as often as possible.
The only thing worse than a bad picture is NO PICTURES AT ALL!