How to prepare a house for listing photos

Much of what makes listing photos look clean is done before the photographer arrives. The camera records what is in the room, so the mail on the counter and the car in the driveway end up on the MLS and Zillow along with the kitchen.

The short checklist below is the one on my real estate page, where agents can copy it and send it to their sellers. After it come the reasons, and a few more things worth doing room by room.

What should sellers do before listing photos?

Ten minutes of prep the morning of the shoot shows in every photograph:

1. 01Every light on, including lamps, under-cabinet lights and the range hood
2. 02Blinds and curtains open, all to the same height
3. 03Kitchen and bathroom counters cleared — soap, sponges, small appliances, mail
4. 04Cars out of the driveway and off the street in front of the house
5. 05Toilet lids down; towels folded neatly or put away
6. 06Ceiling fans and TVs off
7. 07Pets, bowls, beds and litter boxes out of sight for the visit
8. 08Family photos, prescriptions and valuables put away

Should every light be on for real estate photos?

Yes. Turn on every lamp and ceiling light, the under-cabinet lights and the range hood, even in rooms that get plenty of daylight. A room with its lights on looks lived in and evenly lit, and a switched-off lamp in the corner of a frame reads as a dead bulb.

Replace burned-out bulbs a few days before the shoot. If a room has a mix of warm and cool bulbs, make them match, because the difference shows in photos as patches of yellow and blue. Ceiling fans and TVs go off: a turning fan blurs, and a TV screen shows up as a black rectangle or a reflection.

Open the blinds and curtains to the same height in every room, so the windows look even from one photo to the next. The photos are HDR, with the windows balanced so the view outside shows, and that works better when nothing is covering the glass.

How do I get the kitchen and bathrooms ready?

Counters are where clutter collects, and kitchens and bathrooms are photographed up close. Clear the counters completely: soap, sponges, dish racks, small appliances and mail. Take the magnets, photos and papers off the fridge, and put trash cans, dish towels and cleaning supplies under the sink.

In bathrooms, put the toilet lids down and either fold the towels neatly or put them away. Clear the bottles and razors off the tub and shower ledges, and pick up the bath mats.

What should I put away before the photographer comes?

Anything personal or valuable: family photos, prescriptions, jewelry, and mail or paperwork with your name on it. Listing photos are public for as long as the house is for sale, on the MLS, Zillow and social media, and anyone can look through them.

Pets, and their bowls, beds and litter boxes, go out of sight for the visit. If a pet will be in the house, say so in the access notes when you book.

Past that, less is better. Clear nightstands, dressers and coffee tables down to one or two things, make the beds, close the closet doors, and put away toys, shoes, cords and remote controls. A room with less in it looks bigger, and it leaves a buyer room to picture their own things in it.

How should the outside of the house look?

The front of the house is usually the first photo on a listing, so give it the same attention as the kitchen. Move cars out of the driveway and off the street in front of the house. Put the trash and recycling bins, hoses, tools and toys out of sight, close the garage door, and sweep the porch and walks. If you can, mow and edge the lawn a day or two before.

Twilight exteriors, if the agent adds them, are a second visit at dusk, when I turn on every light and photograph the house against the evening sky. Leave the outside as tidy for that visit as for the first.

If the neighborhood has a pool, clubhouse, park or trails worth showing, community and amenity photos can be shot during the same visit. If an amenity needs a gate code or key, put it in the access notes.

What should I tell the photographer before the shoot?

When you book on the real estate page, the form asks for the things that shape the visit:

• Whether the house is occupied or vacant.
• When it goes on the MLS, which helps me order the edits.
• Access notes: gate codes, pets, anything I should know. Lockbox codes can wait until I confirm the time.

Once you pick a day, the form shows roughly how long I will be at the house for the package and size you chose, so the seller knows how long to plan around. If the light suits the house better at another time of day, I will say so when I confirm.

Should the seller be home during the shoot?

That is up to the seller. A shoot goes quickest with people and pets out of the rooms being photographed, so if the seller stays, pick one room to wait in and have it photographed last.

Then book the shoot on the real estate page, or read what a listing shoot costs first.