Around 88% of people who want to buy a new home use the internet in order to find the real estate that is available. There are, therefore, many different syndication sites, as well as social media, which have all made it possible to find properties without having to go to a professional. No longer do they have to have faith in their realtor’s understanding of their needs, hoping that the next property proposition in Houston is the right one for them. Instead, they can do everything themselves. Indeed, according to Allen R Hartman, 65% of online real estate searches become property walkthroughs as well.

Allen R Hartman on Real Estate Photography

These developments are closely linked to real estate photography as well. Agents now have to make sure that they add photographs that truly stand out, because people no longer come to the realtor’s agency to ask about properties. Instead, they click on a mouse and that single click can result in a purchase of the most expensive thing they will ever make. This demonstrates how important it is that the photographs are good ones, and really tell a story.

This should start with photographs of the home’s exterior. Buyers usually filter their search results by location, price, lot size, and number of bedrooms. Deciding which properties are interesting based on those filters is down solely to the photographs. Once they click on a listing, thanks to the exterior photograph, they will want to see further exterior images, as well as interior ones. This validates, to the prospective buyer, that they clicked on the right listing, and it will motivate them to come view the property.

Real estate photography is becoming an art form. These professionals know how to take and edit pictures from pleasing angles, using warm lighting. It has been demonstrated that properties that have been professionally photographed, using a DSLR camera instead of a point-and-shoot, receive 61% more click.

There is also a growing role to play by social media, and this makes real estate photography even more important. 90.5% of all realtors now use social media, and it has been demonstrated that photographs on Facebook gather the most likes and shares. This is further increased if the photographs are also of high quality. Using these social networking sites is very important, therefore, as it makes it more likely for a property to sell.

The real estate industry is now an online industry. This has been a significant change that has made it possible for people to find their new home from the comfort of their existing home. This means that realtors have to rethink how they bring attention to their listings, which is done not just by advertising them in many different locations, but by truly making them stand out thanks to photographs as well. Only in so doing will they continue to be able to sell their properties and earn a living, with some people even suggesting that the real estate profession is a dying breed.