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It’s all in the details

real estate photography-kitchen Real Estate Photography by michaellaurenzano.com This was a fun shoot. We used natural light as always. Waiting for the right time. With modern lines, crisp white walls and contrasty cabinets. We wanted the ambient light to be just the correct color temperature before we grabbed our brackets. We think this and the other shots will help sell the home quickly. We love what we do.

A well laid out and designed home office can boost productivity. 

They can also boost creativity. 

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Keeping organized helps your business run smoother. To be the best, why not look at what the best already does. Do yourself a favor. Search for "exotic auto manufacturing facility" or "luxury watch making" on youtube. The most valuable items produced are made in environments that are clean, laid out for efficiency, and can be cleaned in a matter of minutes. These factories clean as they work. You should adopt this philosophy as much as you can in business. Why not start with the place you do all of your thinking?  

Aerial Photography

When listing a home in south Florida on or near the intracoastal waterway, an aerial photograph is the only way to convey a properties location and entice buyers or even out of town buyers to schedule a showing for your listing. The fees for this type of photography are well worth the investment. As a matter of fact, at Michael Laurenzano Photography we include them in our estate package. Rest assure with our 20 years of UAS ( un-manned ariel systems ) flying experience we will capture your property both in the air and on the ground to get it sold FAST. 

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Why Hire a professional Real Estate Photographer?

So, should you hire a professional real estate photographer. That's a question I hear from many real estate professionals. Heck, retail stores, web and SEO companies. I get that question quite a bit. Without sounding like an evangelist I'm going to give you 7 real facts, not opinions if you are considering hiring a professional to photograph your listings for sale. My goal is to give you the confidence to grow your real estate business and be looked at in the real estate industry as a forward thinking, serious, professional sale agent. So, without wasting time let’s get started.

1) Redfin, a real estate company that uses technology and customer service to wow clients states, listings shot with DSLR professional photography receive 61% more online views than their competitor listings. That should be enough to make you pick up the phone and call a pro right now!

2) The quality of the images in your listings. 95% of people looking for homes start online. Studies show that on average a buyer looks at an image for 20 seconds and moves to the next. You have a short time to give them a reason to choose your listing as a potential option. Don’t lose them as a buyer and most importantly, give your seller more of a chance to sell their home, fast! We’ll get to that later.

3) Higher purchase prices from professionally shot homes for sale. The Wall Street Journal says that at the closing table homes can sell for $900-$116,000 more than a home not professionally photographed. Yes, you are reading that correct. Up to $116,000 more.

4) Redfin also did a study on how much quicker homes sold. Based on the results, homes that are photographed by a pro sold three weeks faster in the $400,000 price range. This increase in sales dates not only makes your sellers happy but you get paid faster and increase your odds of that seller referring you more business.  

5) Social media. When posting online to twitter, facebook, Google+, etc. You are putting your work out in the ether and trying to elicit a response.  I have agents that are known for their images. Believe it or not, people are watching and the mind share on the internet and the people you reach mean more than you know.

6) Lets be brutally honest here. Owning a professional DSLR camera does not make you a photographer anymore than owning a set of pots and pans makes you a chef. Professional photographers do photography for a living. They practice often, and they know lighting, angles and composition.  They know how to take an ordinary room and make it look extraordinary.

7) Image. Yes, the same reason agents need to dress well, have nice vehicles and speak with intelligence, etc. Image is everything in the real estate industry, listing homes using a point and shoot or cell phone camera are not only making you look unprofessional but not giving your clients the best service they could get from another agent. It’s about the whole package here folks. I hate to be the one to say this but it does matter. Trust me, the agents I shoot for have different reputations and treat their business as living breathing organism. Thier business is made up of the sum of all it’s parts. My passion runs deep as I am a member of my board of Realtors and an active agent as well. Trust me, I know what it takes and the difference is big. I know this might not sit well but I am here to tell the truth and not fluff roses.

This is all part of  growing your business and being the best agent your client can hire. After all, we are here to sell someones home. Don't you want to be the best?

Old MLS image size. 

FLexMLS size and quality. 

The two examples above are photographed by myself. A professional Photographer. Imagine you are a buyer, viewing a large properly photographed interior makes all the difference. Even small well shot photos look wonderful. A poorly taken photo increased to the upcoming FLexMLS size will only accentuate it's poor quality. 

As the listing agent, it is your job to present a sellers home in the best light possible. This is marketing 101. I'm not touting any pearls of wisdom. Agents aren't going to be able to get away with the standard point and shoot uneven photos in MLS. We all know that in the sales business how we present ourselves, i.e. dress, talk, walk, and conduct business has a major impact on the success of a sales person. Properly photographed listings is going to be the difference between selling a home and making a client happy while growing your real estate business and simply getting left behind. 

Selling your home in Florida. As a Realtor in Jupiter Florida I have come to appreciate the intricacies that are required in preparing a home for sale and appealing to buyers. The process must be as easy and seamless for the seller as it is for the buyer. I have compiled a short list of “must haves” or, “must do’s” if you are preparing your luxury home for sale in Jupiter Florida. Take a moment to write them down. They could be the difference between getting your asking price or any offers at all! So, here we go.

• Touch up interior and exterior paint as needed.
• Be sure carpeting and flooring does not appear worn or dated.
• Make sure the front is clean and spruced up as curb appeal will create a favorable first impression.
• Trim bushes and plants as needed, and make sure the lawn is kept mowed and trimmed. 
• Keep the interior clean, de-cluttered and odor-free. Eliminate evidence of pets.
• Minimize personal items such as family photos. You want buyers to see themselves living in the home.
• Consider putting excess furniture and belongings in storage. Now’s the time to clean out the garage and basement and sell, give away or throw away items you don’t need anymore.
• Consider engaging a professional stager to give your home the right emotional appeal.
• Get your home photographed by a professional real estate photographer. 

Now I know what your thinking. Michael, these sound obvious. Trust me when I tell you more often than not it doesn’t matter how large or small a home, sellers who don’t follow these simple rules have a difficult time selling their home. They wonder why it’s taking so long or think their sales agent isn’t working hard enough to sell their home.