This article is for homeowners looking to sell their home or vacation property homeowners looking to rent their home.

If you're looking to sell your home or if you're getting your home ready to market it as a vacation home, and you'd like to hire my services, I’ve put together this informative blog to help you. You can print off this list and use it as a checklist. I even include the checkboxes for you! First, I'll talk about presenting your home to sell it and towards the end you'll find more information specific to vacation properties. Preparing your home for both situations is similar, however, vacation properties have some unique considerations. 

If you'd like to see more examples of homes that I have photographed scroll to the very bottom of this story and you can click on the images and view the full-size larger images.

Here is a link to download a printable pdf checklist.

This is a consolidated version of the content in this article. 

Example staged kitchen	Example staged exterior of home

Preparing your home for sale

Presenting your house in an appealing way to buyers is the most important thing you can do as a seller. It allows you to achieve the best price and can also help you sell your home faster. I’ve done home photography for realtors as well as those who choose to do For Sale By Owner, and I can honestly say that the homes that were well prepared for sale have consistently sold for $30,000-$80,000 over asking price. This was for homes in the median price range in Southern Hampshire. 

Preparing a home for sale takes work but it’s definitely worth the effort to make sure your home sells for the best price possible. And $30k to $80k is a fair amount of money that buyers are willing to pay.

How soon you begin this process is really up to you, and it depends on a number of things, such as your timeframe and how much energy you want to put into preparing your house for sale. 

1-12 months before your home is photographed 

At this time, you need to think about getting your house ready to sell. You want the space to look inviting to buyers. You want them to feel like your home would be a wonderful place to live and that they would feel comfortable. With that in mind, you must depersonalize everything.

Rent offsite storage space to store all your extra furniture and items that you'll be moving. This will free up space in your home and make it appear larger and more spacious. Consider offloading extra furniture that's not used on a regular basis to create space in your home. In the bedrooms, remove bureaus and chairs. Consider removing the nightstands next to the beds. If you have a larger bed in a room consider replacing it with a smaller bed to make the room feel larger. For instance, if you have a king size bed, replace it with a full. If you have a queen, replace it with a twin. If you have large, overstuffed furniture or dark leather sofas either take them out or replace them with light colored, smaller pieces of furniture. You’ll want to swap large, heavy dining tables with more delicate pieces. Replace big, overstuffed recliners with more delicate accent chairs. By swapping large pieces of furniture like this you'll be able to create the illusion of space and make everything seem more open and airy. 

Look very carefully at your window treatments. Drapes can be quite personalized and dated. They can also add bulk and take up space in a room. You want to think light, bright and airy. It's better to completely remove window treatments if they're not already like this. Be sure to clean up the fixtures that held the window treatments as well. This is a tactic that I’ve seen in professionally staged homes. I've seen stagers completely remove all the drapes and curtains and even bathroom shower curtains! If you feel like you need something to jazz up the windows make it something that is current and trending that allows plenty of natural light to come in. The only exception to this is if your window overlooks a not-so-flattering location. In this case, you’ll want to keep the windows covered, preferably with window blinds.

If you'd like to see more examples of homes that I have photographed scroll to the very bottom of this story and you can click on the images and view the full-size larger images.

Remove all family photos.

Remove all religious and beliefs-based items from your home. Pack them away. You'll be able to take them out at your new place. Be honest with yourself here. I know we all have feelings about what is important, but you want your home to appeal to the widest of audiences.

Think “less is more.” Make this your mantra!

Declutter and simplify. If you're not using the item, pack it up and ship it to storage.

Go through each room one by one, pack up boxes of everything you're not using.

Bookshelves should be cleared of everything. You only want to leave out decorative staged-type items.

Organize your closets.

Declutter the basement.

Declutter the attic.

This prep work will help you with the moving process and it's nice having a storage unit to offload everything too. This will make the moving process to your new place easier.

Paint, paint, paint. Select colors that are very neutral. This is one of the quickest ways to clean up your space and make it look fresh, new and wonderful. Having all the rooms painted the same color is the right thing to do and has been the trend. Avoid bright, vibrant colors. Take a close look at trends and see what is current for interior design. I suggest spending a little bit of time on Pinterest to see what people are using for color selections.  Or you can go into your local paint store and ask the people that work there what neutral colors are trending.

Painting is also a great way to bring a dated look up to date. Beware of colors like yellow, deep red and eggplant. These are colors of 10 years ago and new homebuyers want something fresh and current. I’ll share another tip here related to painting. Back several years ago, or maybe a couple decades ago - I'm dating myself here but stay with me - it was common to paint each room a uniquely different color. It was not unusual to walk from one area of the house and see violet walls, then the next room with peach walls and the following room, a bright, brilliant blue. This is an old trend and isn’t too popular today. So, feel free to paint every single room the same color as I'm seeing more and more of this in the newer, flipped and staged homes.

If you have wall-to-wall carpeting, take a close look at it. If it's several years old and you can see walking paths in it, then you may want to think about having a new carpet put down. I know this is a big expense, but it'll make a dated house look new!

Start looking for décor items to use for staging. Okay, this is a fun topic and one that is easy to ponder on for a while. I suggest going to a place like a HomeGoods store and look for beautiful trendy items that are accent pieces. And pick out those beautiful things that are statement pieces. They should still be neutral in regard to peoples beliefs. Also, they should be light  in color, so think whites and tans. Think elegant vases and beautiful fresh throw pillows. Nothing that is too big and bulky, though. Also, look for a few silk flower arrangements. Simple color statements will do. I would suggest looking at Pinterest for staged homes before and after. This can provide you with a wealth of ideas. For spaces where you may have had lots of photographs on the wall, you’ll need something to fill that space. I would suggest putting up some word signs that everybody can resonate with. For example, in the dining room you could have the words, “family” and “gather.” Here is a beautiful example: “Family, where life begins, and love never ends.” Everyone can envision positive vibes with that.

Pet condos, pet crates, pet beds, scratching post. All of these items will need to be hidden when it comes time to photograph the home and sell it. So, you have to come up with a plan here. If the pets are not using them now, it's okay to send them off to storage.

Unusual odors. This one can be a tricky one. Be honest with yourself and, if possible, address these issues. The smell of smoke, pet odors, mold, and dampness odors are all concerns that could make a buyer change their mind. Take the necessary steps to get rid of these issues.

Okay, I realized the past few paragraphs suggested a lot of work. Here's another great tip: hire help. There are so many ways that you can get assistance to get the work done quickly and efficiently. If you don't want to or cannot clear out everything in your closets and rooms, then hire some movers to pack everything up and bring it to your storage locker. Higher professional cleaners, even if you're a neat freak. Having everything clean as well as having a second set of eyes to go through with a fine-tooth comb, makes a big difference. 

Consider hiring the following services to help you:

 Movers to pack and move contents 

 Professional cleaners

 Painters

 Landscapers

 Stagers to bring in the right collection of accents

 Pressure washers to clean the exterior of the home

 Carpet installers

Okay, so what if you have space that you want buyers to be aware of but that you don't want photographed? For instance, it could be an unfinished room, a garage or walk-in attic space that is packed with stuff. It may be a bedroom that you’re using as storage space right now. Well, if this is the case, I have some solutions for you. If you don't have the time to empty it out and stage the space, you may want to hire me to create a floor plan for you. This will allow people to know that the space is there so they can envision how they can possibly use it. Another option is you could hire me to create a virtually staged space. To do this I will photograph the space with all the content in it and then I will work with virtual stagers to place furniture in the space. Here are a few photographs to illustrate before and after examples. In situations like these it's always a good idea to remind the people viewing your listing that the images are virtually staged spaces. This way they do not expect to see furniture in that room when they visit.

Original photograph from oversized garage	After items were virtually removed

If you'd like to see more examples of homes that I have photographed scroll to the very bottom of this story and you can click on the images and view the full-size larger images.

General preparations a week or two in advance

Some items are repeated here but it's just a gentle reminder and it is time to take this one step further.

  Thoroughly clean the whole property

  Replace any burned out light bulbs. Be careful to make sure that the lights in a single fixture are of the same color temperature. I understand it's easy to run to Home Depot and grab a few bulbs to fill in the chandelier in the dining room, but it just does not look right if some of the lights are blue and cool and others are warm and yellow.

  Close all windows and open blinds/window treatments to let in outside light in. However, if the view outside is not favorable, leave the blinds down.

  Create open spaces by removing unneeded furniture

  Clear shelves

  Remove personal photographs

  Remove small floor rugs to reveal actual flooring. Prospective homeowners are interested in purchasing the floor along with the house. Matching and decorative throw rugs cover up the floor and makes them ponder what the quality of the floor is really like. Plus, it makes the room look cut up and smaller.

  Place all shoes and jackets in closets

The day before the photography session

   Mow and edge grass front & back, trim overgrown trees and brushes

The day of the photography session 

   Turn all the lights on in the house! If you have a lot of extra lights that's an extra feature and it costs more. This brings more value to your home. If you have dimmers that's even better because you can dim an area to create a type of mood in the room. Plus, having all the lights on looks really nice in the photographs.

   Turn all TVs and computer screens off. Close laptops. You want to convey the feeling of rest and relaxation.

   It's best not to have people and pets at the property when it's being photographed. If this is not an option what I suggest is for all people and pets to have them stay in one location, like the office study area, while I work on photographing the first floor. When I’m complete with that, we can switch floors.

   Make a plan to remove all pet items. This includes pet condos, crates, beds, scratching posts, and litter boxes. Even if it's shuffling them from one room to the other just to complete the photography process. 

Outside Areas

   Close garage doors

   Move cars from driveways and front of the property

   Remove rubbish bins

   Remove any toys and sports equipment

   Pick up after your pets, remove pet toys.

   Remove visible water hoses and empty planters and garden tools

   Sweep up cuttings and leaves

   Clean pool area

Kitchen and Meal Areas

   Straighten and push in chairs

   Clear countertops of clutter

   Remove small appliances (toaster, kettle, coffee maker, etc.) This helps the kitchen appear larger and more spacious

   Remove fridge magnets and photos

   Store dishes and put away draining rack

   Hide soaps and cleaning items

   Remove visible rubbish bins - hide them in a closet

   Add a center piece such as flowers or candles to the tables

   Add a pretty bowl of fresh fruit to the countertop

   Hide dish towels

   Hide pet feeders and water

Living & Family Rooms

   Arrange the furniture to make the room look larger

   Remove magazines and papers

   Remove gym equipment

   Stow away children's toys

   Clear items from shelves and tables. Pack away these items and replace with carefully chosen items that everybody would enjoy.

   Hide all remotes

   Hide loose home theater cables

Bathrooms

   Clear counter tops completely. Nothing should be on the countertops but soap and a hand towel. Maybe some fresh flowers or a small decorative plant or arrangement if space permits.

   Remove toothbrushes and shavers

   Clean all mirrors and bench tops

   Hang fresh towels - light in color and not too bulky

   Remove all items from bathtubs and showers. For standard tubs and showers, it's okay to leave the shower curtain closed. If you have an upgraded shower with beautiful decorative tile leave the shower curtain open to display its beauty

   Clean toilet and close lid

   Remove floor mats

Bedrooms

   Remove any visible clothes and clutter

   Hide personal items and visible cables

   Close all closets

   Make beds and straighten pillows

   Remove items from bed side table

   Clean under bed, remove items which might show

   If possible, remove personal images and wall stickers

To Welcome Buyers to Your Home

   Front door - add a beautiful luxurious looking wreath, potted flowers or something that is very welcoming. 

   Remove signs that may have your name on them like, "The Smiths Welcome You."

Garage and Basement Areas

   Make sure they're tidy, organized, and clean.

Photography checklist for vacation rental homes

If you have a vacation home, rental staging is a little bit different. You’ll really want to think about “creature comforts” and how to make your guest feel like your home is theirs for a short period of time. Items that contribute to someone’s well-being and physical ease are known as creature comforts. Look for these material comforts and be sure to include them in your vacation home. 

Prep your rental home just like you would when a new guest is coming to visit. Use the list above prepping your home for sale as a guideline. I’ve added an additional list below to help you out even more. 

The furniture you want to have in a rental home should be warm and inviting. So, all the information I provided previously about downsizing to smaller, lighter colored pieces of furniture does not apply in this situation. You want the luxurious warm, cushy sofas that people can snuggle up on. You want the large dining room tables that invite people to gather.

Kitchen and Dining Areas 

   Are they well-stocked?

   Are there ample plates, dishes, and silverware for everybody to sit and have a meal? 

   Soap and sponges should be clean and fresh. And leave them out

   Consider setting the table complete with place mats, napkins, dishes silverware and an inviting centerpiece.

   Leave all appliances on the countertop.

   Interior of the fridge should be spotless and clean since I will be photographing it.

   The spice rack should be filled with necessities.

   Have plenty of paper products available like paper towels, paper napkins, coffee filters, tissue and toilet paper.

Bathrooms 

   Soap and sponges should be clean and fresh, like a new tenant was coming in. 

   Think of placing towels in a decorative fashion like you're walking into a high-end hotel.

Living Spaces and Bedrooms

   Remotes should be clean and easily accessible.

   If you have a fireplace, make sure the wood is stocked.

   Make sure extra pillows, blankets and linens are visible in sleeping areas.

   If you have reading material and pamphlets about places to visit, restaurant menus and things of that nature, leave them displayed in a certain area.

Outside Areas

   Make sure to include outdoor toys and activities and have them be visible. For instance, if you live near an area with water, like a beach, and you have a wagon and folding chairs to assist people to visit the spaces be sure to include them. 

   If you have outdoor games like a Cornhole Set, Jenga Tower, Bocce Ball make sure these are visible for the photographs. People will be pondering how they'll spend their time when they visit so it's good for them to know they not have to bring these items.

I hope you found this blog informative. If you have any questions or suggestions, please let me know. And I look forward to working with you in the very near future to photograph your home and make it visible to many, many new customers and new buyers! 

I can be reached at Jill@JillKyle.com, or visit me at my web site for other ways to connect with me www.jillkyle.com.

Here is a link to download a printable pdf checklist.

This is a consolidated version of the content in this article.