Imagine yourself in the shoes of someone searching for a property: every day you click through countless real estate listings. Three rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a spacious garden – the headline sounds promising, but the photos just aren’t impressive. You’d rather scroll on.
This is the reality for countless property listings. Many sellers and real estate agents unconsciously make mistakes that lead to the disinterest of potential clients.
Why is it important to avoid typical mistakes when presenting real estate? Typical mistakes in property presentation should be avoided to leave a professional impression on potential buyers. This can positively influence sales success and ensure that a listing attracts interest.
In order to captivate potential buyers at first glance and ensure that they take a closer look at your listing, you should get everything right in your property presentation. In this article, you’ll learn about the seven most common mistakes and receive tips on how to avoid them.
- Mistake No. 1: Unprofessional Photos
- Mistake No. 2: Missing or Incomplete Property Information
- Mistake No. 3: Clutter and Lack of Cleanliness
- Mistake No. 4: Unrealistic Price Expectations
- Mistake No. 5: Poor accessibility and inflexible viewing appointments.
- Mistake No. 6: Inadequate Marketing
- Mistake No. 7: Neglecting Legal Aspects
- Conclusion: How You Can Avoid All the Mistakes
Mistake No. 1: Unprofessional Photos
For most potential buyers, photos are the most important aspect of a listing. Before they delve into the description or examine the property information, they scrutinize the images. This creates the first impression – and it should be not only professional but also as convincing as possible.
A poor property presentation is one of the gravest mistakes you can make as a real estate agent or seller. Inferior photos cause potential buyers to lose interest within seconds and move on to the next listing. Thus, even an otherwise beautiful property loses the opportunity to be seen by prospective buyers if presented with unprofessional photos.
With these tips, you’ll create high-quality property photos that captivate buyers:
- Prepare the property meticulously and ensure a positive presentation. A good photographer will support you in this process and provide you with tips for the final touches before the photo appointment.
- Pay attention to good lighting and flattering angles. Turn on all the lights in the house to create a pleasant atmosphere.
- Hire a professional real estate photographer.
At Visualista, we understand how crucial a high-quality property presentation is, which is why we offer tailor-made comprehensive packages. Starting at CHF 299, you can receive professional real estate photos from us, with delivery within 48 hours to streamline your sales process.
Mistake No. 2: Missing or Incomplete Property Information
Missing details or incorrect information can damage the trust with potential buyers – they lose interest in your property, and as an agent, you lose credibility.
The property listing should not only be appealing, but above all complete and truthful. Therefore, take the creation of your listing seriously and gather all pertinent information thoroughly. Don’t forget these essential details:
- Property Size: Living area, plot area, number of rooms, parking spaces, basement.
- Location and Infrastructure
- Property Features
- Year Built and Condition of Renovation
- Energy Efficiency Class, Heating Type
- Purchase Price
The description should not be exaggerated, but instead should contain only truthful, verified information. Incorrect square footage details can even lead to legal issues after a sale – so be sure that all the information stated in the property listing is accurate.
Furthermore, you should make sure that the description is free of spelling errors. Typos can be seen by potential buyers as a sign of carelessness and leave a poor impression.
Mistake No. 3: Clutter and Lack of Cleanliness
The appearance of a property has a significant impact on real estate sales. Cleanliness and order are paramount: while the house or apartment should look homely in the photos, it should not appear as if they are merely snapshots from the residents’ everyday lives.
Accordingly, it is important to prepare the property before the photo appointment. This includes, among other things, the following steps:
- Thorough cleaning of all rooms and outdoor areas.
- Removal of personal items.
- Adjusting small details (e.g., closing toilet lids, removing cables from view).
- Neutral design and inviting atmosphere (e.g., a few thoughtfully arranged decorative items, stylish bedding).
This so-called home staging promises a sales advantage: according to a study by the NAR (National Association of Realtors) cited by the Swiss Homeowners Association, a well-staged property can sell for up to 10% more and benefits from a shorter time on the market.
By the way, there is also a solution if you want to bring an unfurnished or renovation-needing property to market. Visualista.ch allows you to add virtual furnishings as an add-on to real estate photography (starting at CHF 149 per photo). This enables you to digitally furnish empty spaces and even infuse rooms that are unfavorably furnished with a sales-enhancing atmosphere.
Mistake No. 4: Unrealistic Price Expectations
Neither a price that is too high nor too low is beneficial for your property sale. While a price far above market value immediately turns off potential buyers, a price that is too low may suggest that there is something wrong with the property. Both situations can result in the listing not being examined in detail, and consequently, the property may not sell.
On the other hand, a price set too low can lead to a veritable flood of potential buyers. While this gives you the chance to close the sale quickly, you don’t fully tap into the property’s overall potential and end up selling it for less than it’s worth.
hese methods help you determine the right price for your property sale:
- Professional Property Valuation
- Analysis of Comparable Properties in the Region
- Consideration of current market trends
Mistake No. 5: Poor Accessibility and Inflexible Viewing Appointments
Put yourself in the shoes of a potential buyer: you’ve finally found two or three properties that seem right for you. One of the agents takes a bit longer to answer your questions and schedules viewings only in the mornings on weekdays. This increases the likelihood that, provided the properties meet your requirements, you’ll choose one of the other two.
To successfully market your properties for sale as an agent, you should make it as easy and pleasant as possible for potential buyers to get in touch. Offer several channels for contact – for instance, a readily available telephone number, an email address, and even the option to connect via social media (e.g., Facebook or Instagram). Additionally, make it a priority to respond promptly to messages. This minimizes the risk of the potential buyer losing interest and turning to other offers.
Furthermore, you should be flexible when scheduling viewings. Offer appointments on weekends or in the evenings to make house buying easier for potential buyers with professional commitments. With a virtual tour, you enable buyers to inspect the property in detail from the comfort of their home at any time.
Mistake No. 6: Poor Marketing
It’s not only important to present properties correctly – you should also find the ideal channels for marketing them. This is because, while it is well established that most property purchases today take place online, that fact still leaves the question of the optimal platform unanswered.
It often makes sense to cast a wide net – what ultimately works for you cannot be stated in general. Effective marketing channels that you should consider in your strategy include, among others, the following:
- Online real estate portals
- Social media platforms
- own website
- local newspapers and magazines
- flyers and posters
- word-of-mouth and networks
Not every type of property presentation is equally suited for all marketing channels. In order to ensure you receive exactly the right content for your strategy, Visualista offers you a variety of building blocks for showcasing your properties:
- Professional photos for online portals and print.
- Drone footage (photo and video)
- Real estate videos in various formats (reels, classic videos)
- Virtual 3D walkthroughs for an interactive presentation.
- 2D and 3D floor plans
To meet your individual needs, you can select the desired services individually. Alternatively, you can book one of our packages and save money.
Error No. 7: Neglecting legal aspects.
The legal component is an important aspect of selling real estate. By avoiding legal pitfalls, you can ensure a smooth sales process. Be sure to have all the necessary documents on hand, including, among others:
- Energy performance certificate.
- Extract from the land register.
- Building permits and zoning plan
- Statements of additional costs.
- Building insurance policy.
Apart from any legal difficulties, these documents are important for an efficient sales process. If the paperwork is not ready, the entire sale may be delayed. In the worst case, this can even lead to the potential buyer losing interest and deciding against the deal at the last moment.
Conclusion: How to avoid all mistakes.
To make your property sale efficient and successful, you should avoid all mistakes whenever possible. Only with a professional property presentation and an effective strategy can you convince potential buyers and quickly close the deal.
With Visualista, you have an experienced partner in the real estate industry by your side. Using our expertise in real estate photography, we support you in the marketing of your properties for sale. The photo and video material we create ensures a convincing presentation – if you would like to see more, you can find examples in our lookbook.
To avoid the typical mistakes in your property presentation, you can check off our checklist step by step.
Checklist for the perfect property presentation.
| assignment | Completed |
| Clean up and tidy the property (or use a virtual renovation). | |
| Have professional photos taken (e.g. with Visualista.ch) | |
| Compile complete object information. | |
| Determine a fair market price | |
| Offer flexible viewing times | |
| Plan a comprehensive marketing strategy (including 3D tours, videos) | |
| Prepare legal documents |
Approach the sale of your real estate strategically and avoid the typical mistakes from the very start! Put our real estate selling tips into practice and schedule an appointment for your professional property photoshoot with Visualista.ch today – wishing you every success with the sale of your next property!
