Lew Corcoran owns his own home staging and photography business, using drones and 3D virtual-tour technology in order to help real estate agents and sellers boost home sales. He serves Rhode Island in addition to Massachusetts, southern New Hampshire and southern Maine.
Prior to opening Lew Corcoran Home Staging and Real Estate Photography five years ago, Corcoran was a real estate agent and mortgage broker. He recently responded to questions posed by the Providence Business News.
PBN: At what price should a real estate agent bring in a professional stager and photographer?
CORCORAN: If a real estate agent is serious about getting a property sold quickly and for more money, then he or she should always bring in a professional stager and a professional photographer. It’s not always necessary to bring in furniture, décor or artwork to stage a property, especially if a property will be occupied while it’s on the market.
Many home stagers offer a “pre-staging” consultation. I prefer to call it a “pre-listing” consultation. Here, the home stager meets with the property owners, does a walk-through of the property with the owners and provides them with a list of recommendations that needs to be made to prepare their home for the market. If the owners are willing to do the work to get their home ready for sale, they will save a lot of money in staging costs.
If a property is vacant, then furniture, artwork and décor need to be brought in. However, not every room needs to be staged. If you do the five main rooms – living room, dining room, family room, kitchen, and primary bedroom and bathroom – you’ll be OK.
PBN: Can you provide data on how professional staging and photography help sell? And does it do anything to help increase the asking price?
CORCORAN: Professional home staging and professional photography go hand in hand. They’re both necessary for the successful sale of a property. The only thing that’s more important than professional home staging and photography is the original listing or asking price of the property.
The real estate brokerage Redfin did a study in 2013 using listing information from the multiple listing services MLSPIN (Massachusetts) and MLSLI on Long Island, N.Y. Redfin found that for homes that sold in a price range between $200,000 and $1 million, those that were photographed with a professional digital, single-lens reflex camera sold anywhere from $3,400 (for the $200,000 to $300,000 range) to as much as $11,000 (for the $900,000 to $1 million range) more than their original list price.
But just as importantly, professional DSLR photos for a listing will drive a 61% increase in online views. And professional photos can make all the difference between someone wanting to see the property in person versus moving on to the next listing. Back in the day, real estate agents called it “curb appeal.” Back then, people would drive by houses for sale to check out both its curb appeal, as well as the neighborhood. The property or listing had to have a great curb appeal for anyone to show interest in the property. Today, it’s “web appeal.”
PBN: In photographs of listings, what are some of the most frequent mistakes?
CORCORAN: We all instinctively know what makes a good photograph and what doesn’t, but [we] don’t know why. When I see photos of listings on the market, I often see photos taken in poor light; blurry images and poor composition; disorienting interiors (converging and diverging lines from top to bottom); and distractions (clutter, and often lots of it).
To take great photos, both the interior and exterior of the property must be free of all clutter. When doing interior photo shoots, lighting is often a problem. Too often, homeowners will have heavy drapes or blinds blocking the windows, which, in turn, substantially reduces the amount of daylight coming in. In addition, they often have warm, yellowish incandescent lightbulbs. While natural daylight is preferred, the homeowners should also be using daylight LED bulbs throughout the entire house.
PBN: How important is drone footage and when should it be used?
CORCORAN: Drone footage and images can provide dramatic views of the property and everything else in relation to it. For example, aerial images looking downward can help you see the overall layout of the house and surrounding yard. Drone images can also help you see the overall condition of the roof on the property.
You can also show the surrounding neighborhood. For example, are you close to the shopping district and area restaurants? How about public transportation? Are you close to the beach or lake? Are you near hiking or bike trails? Is there a community pool nearby?
In addition, higher-end or luxury homes, large homes, properties with a lot of land, and properties with picturesque views such as lakes, waterfronts, ocean views and picturesque mountain ranges can all benefit from drone photography.
PBN: How has COVID-19 impacted your business?
CORCORAN: Fortunately for me, real estate transactions are considered essential business. But I also added a couple of services during the pandemic – virtual “pre-listing” consultations and 3D virtual tours – that I probably wouldn’t have otherwise.
With virtual pre-listing consultations, I’m able to meet with the homeowner and real estate agent online through Zoom and do a virtual walk-through in the house with them. It’s as though I’m there in person. This cut down the risks associated with COVID-19, as well as enhanced my services.
With 3D virtual tours, real estate agents can do open houses and walk-throughs of the property with potential homebuyers, all from the comfort of their home or office and without disturbing the sellers. It also eliminates the potential for infection by the virus for both homebuyers and home sellers, as well as their real estate agents.
Alexa Gagosz is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Gagosz@PBN.com. You may also follow her on Twitter at @AlexaGagosz.
