Can't Figure Some Realtors Out (tenants, duplex, agent, sale)

[Sassygirl18]

Our house is currently on the market so over the past couple months, I've been browsing a lot of real estate listings, keeping my eye on the inventory in several of the towns we are interested in and familiarizing myself with what's available in these areas.

I am frequently amazed by how realtors list many of the homes. First of all, they post photos of a home that is in complete disarray - beds unmade, junk all over the place, massive amounts of clutter. Why don't these realtors coach their clients about staging or if they are not staging experts, at the minimum instruct them to clean up the place and declutter? How could they snap these photos and post them in a listing and not realize that photos of a home that looks like a disaster area are not going to attract buyers? I mean, I'm not a realtor and I know this. Isn't this real estate 101?

I've seen photos of bedrooms painted in flourescent colors, photos with pets in them, homes with personal photos all over the walls (which by now everyone knows is a no-no), PEOPLE in the photos (watching t.v. or hanging around), back yards cluttered with plastic kindercrap - all things that would be easy an easy fix.

The other things that drive me crazy about real estate listings are listings that have no photo of the exterior front of the house (what are they hiding?), or instead of a photo of the exterior, they'll post a closeup photo of the front door only. WTF?

And then they list twins as single family homes ALL THE TIME. This is rampant. And it's deceiving because many twins LOOK like single family homes from the front photo.

Sorry, just had to vent. If you have any comments about why realtors do these things, I'd love to hear them.

[faabala]

Some sellers can't be bothered to clean up. Even when you make some pretty strong suggestions. They just don't see the problems after living in it.

[wileynj]

LOL..I hear ya! I complain about this all the time as well...what are they thinking!!!
One home I looked at on the interent..new const. - loved the layout from the photos I saw so I went to the open house... completely different interior than the one they are showing on MLS. I told the realtor about it... she said - "oh, that's the one across the street. She also said she would tell her husband (listing agent). I checked it again, no changes! Isn't this misleading??? Almost fraud??

[DubbleT]

You know, I don't mind the photos of the cluttered junky houses. Mostly because it tells me that if the folks doing the selling are too lazy or uninvolved to clean up for the picture taking they are also probably too lazy to have taken very good care of the property while living there. So thanks for the warning, Next....!
Definitely agree on the misleading photos too. I got taken in by a couple of duplex units that were listed as single family, and you sure couldn't tell by the pictures or the description. What, are they hoping someone might fall in love with it and buy it even though it is not at all what they are looking for? Not likely.

[FLBob]

Many homes that are for sale are rentals. When the real estate agents gets an appointment to take photos of a house that is rented there is little if anything they can do to stage the home if the renters aren't on board. In many cases the renter has no interest in the sale occurring.

If it's not a rental situation, then there is little or no excuse.
My wife will spend hours taking interior photos. Staging a room at a time to get the photo she wants. Frequently taking hundreds of photos in order to get 15 usable photos.

I've got no idea on the issue of the front door only photos. My only thought is that the MLS rules require a front photo and the only part of the front of the house that's attractive is the front door.

Sometimes you can tell a lot about a house by what is not photographed.

[gizmobizmo]

My Mom is one of those people. Her philosophy is that "someone is buying the house, not my stuff and I'm too old to be bothered with making everything perfect." We've re-listed her house 4 times in the last 4 years.
She just doesn't get it and lord only knows I've tried to explain it to her, time and again. VERY frustrating!

I have bought and sold several houses myself and I see the same things you have. Anytime I've ever walked into a house that wasn't cleaned up for a showing, I left. If the seller can't be bothered to clean the house in order to present their house in the best possible way, I have to wonder what else they are too lazy to do.

A lot of folks, like my Mom, are just plain stubborn and are unwilling to do what is needed, even if an agent makes suggestions to "stage" their home. There are also un-seasoned Real Estate agents who are uncomfortable with telling a client that they need to clean-up and de-clutter their home. I can imagine it would be tough to look at a total stranger and tactfully tell them their house was a dump.

[the painter]

If not a rental, elderly set in their ways then it maybe someone about to loose their home and really doesn't want to see it sold or they just don't care.

[shellytc]

We are back to damned if you do and damned if you don't.

First, if I don't post pictures, everyone goes ballistic that the agent is lazy for NOT taking and posting pictures. Here's a tip... if the agent didn't post pictures, there probably wasn't anything worth photographing.... only go see this house if you want to get a deal and are willing to put in some elbow grease.

Second, I go ahead photograph the OWNERS / TENANTS mess after scheduling with them 3 times to CLEAN UP their mess.... Go ahead and take the photo's. Now it is my fault that the house is a mess....

PLEASE, let's put blame where the blame belongs. Some people have no idea how to take care of a home, are lazy, or just plain don't care. As an agent I only take these listings if the owner is also extremely aggressive in price, otherwise I say "thanks, but no thanks"...

Also, I have had clients take their own pics (insist on it) and then send them to me and say use these. Because they didn't want to schedule for me to. I am pretty blunt... but it is still their home. And those pics have been blurry. I had one client who did an "effect" on the photo's on PURPOSE. I used them, until I could prove to her that clear pictures are better...

Ok, I am stepping down off my soapbox : )

shelly

[palmcoasting]

Life isn't HGTV. I'm often amazed that people will look at pictures and make a decision about a house. I'm often amazed that people will discount a house because there are clothes laying around. I can't believe some people will buy a house because of the way a couch is placed or they like how the furniture looks or there are well placed vases and candles. You're purchasing the STRUCTURE and LOCATION not someone's color of the walls or their clothes laying around. The sellers are just people, living a life. I can make suggestions to them and if they don't follow them...oh well. They are advised it may cost them quite a bit of money because some people can't get beyond it to the meat of the matter.
As for making a duplex look like a single home, to me, it's incorrect. But...they had nice pictures!

[Sassygirl18]

The problem is that clutter, flourescent colors and general MESS distract buyers from seeing what the house really is underneath. I agree with those who posted that when you see a house that is a total mess with junk and clutter all over the place, it makes you wonder how much care these people have put into taking care of the maintenance on the house. If they are so lazy that they can't clean up for listing photos, what does that tell you?

I feel sorry for realtors whose clients don't listen to them when they tell them to clean up the mess. If I was a realtor, I would insist on the place being cleaned up before I'd list. I think I'd be mortified to be the listing agent for a place that looks like a total dump.