Curb Appeal 2.0

Curb Appeal in real estate terms used to be the appeal of your home when a potential buyer gets to your curb. It was the first time they were seeing your home and it sets the stage for the rest of your home. But this has changed with the use of internet sites such as facebook and other social networks, as well as real estate websites. The appeal comes long before a buyer gets to your front door - it starts online. The drive-by of today is on the internet. And it is not just your front door, it is your entire house that the buyer can see before ever getting to your home.

With the online marketing for your home it has suddenly gone from being shown to a few buyers by a few agents to thousands of potential buyers. And for the listing agents some of those buyers might not have a real estate agent and will call you directly based solely on your photographs. But if the photos aren't representative of your home's appeal then the buyer will never get to your front door. There is another house just a mouse click away. But when done effectively it draws people to your actual curb, where they are lured inside for more.

My suggestion to every home owner is to make sure the photographs are taken by a professional photographer who specializes in photographing homes for sale. There are too many mistakes that can be made by someone who doesn't understand what the photographs must convey (i.e. light, space, design, etc.). And for home stagers, it is a must to stage the home so it will be photographed well, not just as it will be seen in person. I will even add something after the photographs are taken so that when the buyer shows up, they are pleasantly surprised that it is better then they imagined or saw online.

So before the For Sale sign ever goes up on your home photographs must be taken for the internet For Sale sign to go up. Then your total curb appeal is ready for your buyers.