Grab Bag Real Estate Blog
While I probably have about a million things I could write about, I'm suffering from a bit of writer's block, or maybe it's exhaustion, which could really amount to the same thing!
So this blog is going to be more of a string-of-consciousness, grab bag, here's what I've been seeing lately, kinda article.
It includes a small rant about real estate photography, an only slightly snarky shout out to those that can do this job and always look amazing in their super business-y attire, and a recommendation for an awesome Dog Rescue!
WHAT IS GOING ON WITH REAL ESTATE PHOTOGRAPHY NOWADAYS?
Bad real estate photos have about as much appeal as duck lips.
Okay, sometimes people really need to get their homes listed for sale quickly and you gotta use what you got. I absolutely understand that. But, it feels like half the listings lately are going up with some seriously not-awesome pictures.
This seems extremely counterintuitive. With technology being what it is, even cell phone pictures should be pretty good, right?
Well, it takes more than a 12-megapixel telephoto sensor (I'm lookin' at you Galaxy S9) to snap even a halfway decent interior picture. But, many of the exterior photos are also... not awesome.
And that really makes no sense. I could dust off my old 2005 A510 Canon Powershot and get a pretty gosh golly darn good exterior photo!
But, it's not the camera that makes the photo.
Why aren't people shelling out a relatively small amount of dough to hire a professional home photographer? A few hundred dollars for the benefit of selling a home, potentially for many thousands of dollars more than you would otherwise, seems like a pretty solid ROI.
One argument for why this is happening is that it's a seller's market, so spending money on good photography isn't necessary.
I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW MUCH I HATE THIS REASONING
First of all... we're in a very visual era. While I appreciate all my readers, I fully recognize that my high-density, wordy blog posts will never hold a candle to Instagrammers with a million followers going bananas to produce one photo that people will look at for about 3 seconds*.
I'm not much of an Instagrammer, but I'm a BOSS at downloading no-cost, royalty-free photos. Usually.
People need to be engaged by great photos so that they move to the next step of looking at the data, and eventually go and view the home for real!
*Sorry, I made that last stat up. I wanted to find the real statistic, but, while there are hundreds of other social media stats easily accessible, that's not one of them.
Second, average days on market (DOM) in the Portland metro is 42 days right now (I didn't make this up, source is the latest RMLS Market Action Report). This is the number of days it takes for a home to go from Active to Pending. Even in a low inventory market, it takes time for homes to sell. You know, cuz it's kindof a big purchase!
Third, we're in the height of the spring market and homes are getting listed left and right. Inventory continues to be crazy low (1.8 months in the Portland metro, ugh), but there are still lots of options out there for buyers to choose from. It's a busy world, and buyers have to prioritize. Homes with better pictures are going to get more showings.
Wouldn't a seller want to get the most eyeballz on their listing as possible? Isn't the idea to sell it quickly and for as much as possible?
If you are considering selling your home, and you are ready to interview real estate agents, make sure that they are willing to go the distance with their marketing, especially photos!
ERMYGERD PLEASE SPEND A FEW SECONDS DUSTING OFF THE VENTS/INTAKE IN YOUR HOME BEFORE PLACING IT ON THE MARKET
It's surprisingly difficult to find a picture of a dirty vent online, so you get to see "nope woman" instead.
That's... well, all I have to say about that. Please, get a swiffer and dust off your vents. Here's a how to in case you need it.
Oh, and, if you happen to have a smidge of extra time, please replace the furnace filter that has been going strong for years... <strong sneeze>
FOR THOSE REALTORS THAT DRESS BUSINESS FORMAL, LIKE, EVERY DAY, PROPS TO YOU...
I swear that I was just looking for a picture of someone in a nice suit, and came across this beauty of a stock photo that I just had to use. The woman in pink is poised to write with a pen onto a glass topped table, nowhere near the paper... a random, faceless, generic person in the foreground is holding up a picture of a random, faceless woman in a beige suit holding a generic laptop??? WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?????
My job can often involve things like:
Climbing rickety ladders to see "bonus" square footage
Traipsing through muddy yards while semi-successfully avoiding dog bombs
Walking up and down lots of stairs, which in older homes are often random heights, so tripping isn't a possibility, it's just a matter of course.
Driving, driving, and more driving
Wrangling other people's children during showings
Keeping seller's dogs/cats at bay while buyers look through a home (frequent occurrences include nose in crotch, jumping on legs, scratches, etc.)
Poking my head into crawlspaces
Ducking under beams low enough that even I would bump into them if my attention drifts to where I'm placing my feet instead of my head...
So, for the people that wear heels on the regular, I have mad respect for you.
For people that also wear business formal attire a lot, HOW DO YOU DO IT?????
The heels thing just will never make any sense for me, for many reasons. But when I wear business formal without heels, I look about 12 years old.
I'm short. But I'm fine with it.
Really.
This just isn't my day for stock photos. Searching stock photos for "short" brings up a bunch of cat pictures for some reason, so here's how I feel right now.
Flying on airplanes is no prob for me.
Being short is great. For real...
...
I frequently work 7 days a week. When it's busy, I work 80 hour work weeks... or something. I try not to count. I just ain't got time for dat.
I am extraordinarily thankful to work in Portland where business formal people are very much the exception and business casual, or even jeans and a decent shirt, are considered perfectly acceptable, and even preferred.
But, when I see people walking about in their suits, it does look pretty snappy!
Until I think about all the work to find and buy things like that and have them dry cleaned/pressed/ironed, or whatever it is you do to snazzy clothing... not to mention accessorizing (is that the term???) and having EVERYTHING hemmed because, you know, I'm short...
Ugh, I'll stick with generic pants and halfway decent looking shirts and put more of my time into helping clients and takin' care o' bizness!
But, seriously, props to those that somehow manage to always look super professional and sharp. That is serious dedication!
CHECK OUT THIS DOG RESCUE, IT'S GREAT!
Clients of mine recently adopted a dog from Agave Dogs Rescue.
Their mission:
"Agave Dogs rescues adoptable, homeless dogs from areas overwhelmed with pet overpopulation and finds them loving, permanent homes near Portland, OR. We assist dogs at risk for euthanasia in high kill California shelters and off the streets of California Baja Sur. We adopt our dogs to amazing adopters within a two hour drive of Portland, OR."
Click the link above to their website, or follow them on Facebook!
WOULD YOU LIKE TO TALK ABOUT REAL ESTATE?
After reading this crazy blog entry, I can't imagine that you do! But, don't give up on me yet. Check out my other blogs for some more professional-ish content.
