Excuse Me? Are the Pictures of Your Listing in the MLS Current?

I'd rather have a picture that's not Pulitzer Prize winning but reality so when the person walks in they can say "yeah, i remember this room". I know one particular situation where an agent had her photographer husband bring in lighting, etc. to take pictures. This backfired because the pictures looked SOOOOO good, everyone that came to see the house was disappointed by the reality.

We want to do our best for our clients online but we must KEEP IT REAL.

One of my big pet peeves also. I know one reo agent who frequently uses photos from prior listings and I have learned to ask them the condition of the property before I waste my time. Keep up the good work.

I wish some agents would be honest with their personal agent photos, How about that glamore shot from 1992.

Roy I agree with you.  I need to update my 5 year old photo, but am going to get on the diet first.

As to agents that steal photos, there should be some wicked punishment.

In our area, we still see listings covered in snow - in July! Definitely a good idea to update those MLS pictures :)

You would be surprised at how many agents and appraisers pull pictures off of an older MLS listing and use them as current when they 'show' better than current MLS pictures or those that they've (hopefully) taken on their own.

Cindy

The photo used in the MLS and marekting can make all the differences in selling a home.

Good luck and success.

Lou Ludwig

I agree - that is one of my pet peeves as well. That and the agents that do not take any inside pictures.

To me that says one of two things:

1. This house isn;t worth the photos - it's just awful
2. This house is great - I know I can get both sides and sell it myself so why show photos?

And please, take off the snow pictures before July 4th!

I agree that photos that are not current are not helpful.  I also agree that using non-current photos may seem like misrepresentation, but a reasonable buyer would investigate in person to fulfill their due diligence in the transaction (so I don't think you could have a case for misrepresentation).  (If the buyer can't investigate in person, I would hope that their agent would at least be able to go take current pictures for them, with the listing agent or seller's permission, of course.) So, I think the question becomes:

Is the MLS photo a marketing photo of what the property could potentially be (intended to generate interest and showings), or more like a disclosure which must be more precise on the present condition(s) of the property?

I don't know that the answer to this question is really clear, but think agents could all avoid having to rely on the MLS photos by previewing regularly (as Lenn suggests above).

Photos, Photos, Photos.... can you say Copyright. Any agent who uses photos of a prior listing for the same property, which are not their original work, is committing a copyright infringement. Realtor code of ethics also forbids this. It has occurred with listings in our office and all it took was one, sometimes two phone calls and the photos were removed. First call to the agent, and if that did not result in removal, the second was to the Broker of record indicating that the next two phone calls were to the MLS followed with a call to the seller.

But as for photos of the properties absolute current condition. This is a touchy one. I taken listings where the seller or tenants were on there way out. At the time the listing went "live" the photos were 100% representative of the property. Cleaned up and well staged. But weeks later, the properties were vacant, stark, barren and cold. Could we have gone out and obtained some furnishings to re-stage it and redone the photo shoot? Surely, but it would have been at a great expense. So I think if the photos are generally accurate and original work of the agent, then why not. But if they were from another agents listing, well send a quick note to the other agent. I bet they would be happy to inform the bone head agent who thinks he/she can just reuse their photos to go out take a photography class. But in the mean time, get my photos off of your listing or plan on receiving a payment demand.

Snow pics in July...yep makes me think it's overpriced or a dump or the neighbors are horrible.

Great post. Too often I have had clients call and want to see a house because it looks great in the pictures, only to arrive at the house and find out it is a dump. We even went to one house that had the side of the house by the kitchen that had been smashed in by a car. Nothing in the listing about "possible damage" or pictures of the damaged area.

Cindy,

Good morning and oddly such an important subject. I'm not a photo pro, and I do not have the most expensive camera... but, that said, I did get a camera that works well for my market- Waterfront, a Pantex W30- its water proof [to 15 feet].

If a photo is worth a thousand words, then why not take as many photos from as many angles as you can- it only involves downloading and reviewing them [we don't have to send the film out and wait for developing anymore] and then pick the best 5, 10 or what you MLS allows.

If the first photo doesn't have that WOW, 'they' will just click to the next Listing, no matter how much time you put into writing your text !

Steven ZimmermanRealtor ABR GRI Prudential Best Realty GULF HARBORSNew Port Richey FL 34652 :)

ps- I may crop a photo, but never touch them up !

Cindy- what a pleasant reversal.  I am a firm believer in taking accurate photos- show the good and the bad, as many of the buyers I work with are not local.  They need to see what is really there.  One agent posted photo on MLS and when we drove to where the house was supposed to be, it was a completely different color, was missing awnings, etc and the "garage" was long gone!   Needless to say we had a chat- he was NOT from the area and didn't want to be bothered driving to house to take new photos so he lifted pictures from an old listing....seriously?

Great example of "new and improved", it sure is funny what shows up in MLS photos sometimes!

Beautiful photo and keeping photos updated from exterior with snow on the ground to summer with flowers on the porch is a MUST

This is so true.  I still see some exterior shots with snow in our MLS.

Wow, that is terrible Cindy. I am not sure...however, I would think that it would likely be a violation of many local ethics codes.

You want to present the best photos possible always. If it happens to be after the people move their stuff out and the property is vacant, then go back and take new pictures. If you want a snow picture to show the romance of the snow season, at least put it along with a current front one.

I love it when the listings go on the MLS with no pictures at all.  I have to put them in a separate file to keep going back and checking when they go on because I will not forward them to my clients like that.

You know you have a listing coming - PLAN AHEAD!!!