The B2B Podcast Index
Your Home. Your Market. Your Move. Let's Go!

Photography & Home Staging

Your Home. Your Market. Your Move. Let's Go! · 2026-05-28 · 28 min

Substance score

37 / 100

Five dimensions, 20 points each

Insight Density8 / 20
Originality6 / 20
Guest Caliber8 / 20
Specificity & Evidence8 / 20
Conversational Craft7 / 20

What our scoring noted

Our reviewer’s read on each dimension, with quotes from the episode.

Insight Density

8 / 20

The episode is a functional checklist walkthrough with mostly common-sense advice (remove magnets from fridge, hide trash, make beds), but contains a few genuinely useful practitioner nuggets - the 1-in-10 stat, skipping shower photography, and the pink-bathroom lean-in technique. Significant filler from affirmations ('Right,' 'Yep,' 'Yes,' 'Absolutely') dilutes the density.

I'm gonna say one out of ten houses. One out of ten. Follow this list perfectly. One out of ten.
I will sometimes not photograph showers if they're not presentable, if they're full of shampoos

Originality

6 / 20

Almost entirely conventional real estate staging advice reproducible from any Zillow blog post; the one genuinely counterintuitive idea - leaning into the pink tile rather than fighting it - stands out precisely because everything else recycles obvious wisdom.

I added more pink. I added a nice big pink artwork and then I used fresh white towels
I don't want my stagings to look like they're staged

Guest Caliber

8 / 20

Speaker B (photographer) and Speaker C (stager) are genuine practitioners who clearly do this work daily, not thought-leader types, which is a plus; but they are local small-market operators with no indication of scale, published track record, or notable credentials beyond their current roles.

when I have a date and time scheduled with a client, I will send them my real estate prep guide, which is also on my website
oftentimes after I have finished editing the photos, I'll send an email to the realtor with the link to view the gallery. But also, if there are red flags, I will say, downstairs bathroom has odor

Specificity & Evidence

8 / 20

A handful of concrete specifics elevate the episode above pure abstraction - the 1-in-10 readiness rate, the $30-40 paint cost, and the detailed pink-tile bathroom case study - but there are no ROI figures, price-impact data, or market statistics to substantiate the broader claims about getting 'top dollar.'

I'm gonna say one out of ten houses. One out of ten. Follow this list perfectly.
paying, um, 30 or $40 to paint a room

Conversational Craft

7 / 20

The host occasionally asks productive follow-up questions (why other photographers want fans on, the percentage-of-homes-ready question, the dining-table set-or-not debate), but the conversation is dominated by mutual validation among teammates with no pushback, no tension, and no challenging of any claim.

It's interesting because other photographers want them on. Why would they want them on?
How many people, like, if you were to, say, on a percentage when you walk into a home to photograph it

Conversation analysis

Computed from the transcript - who did the talking, and the verbal tics along the way.

Share of words spoken

  • Speaker A36%
  • Speaker B31%
  • Speaker C21%
  • Speaker D13%

Filler words

so74right69like49um24you know23uh18kind of4er2I mean2actually2sort of1anyway1

Episode notes

Photography & Home Staging. Your Home. Your Market. Your Move. Let's Go! In today's competitive market, presentation is everything. In this episode, LeeAnn Cerretani of The Cerretani Team sits down with her professional team to discuss how strategic home staging and high-quality photography can dramatically impact your home's first impression - and ultimately, your final sale price. From preparing your space to capturing the right angles, LeeAnn and her team share expert insights on what today's buyers are really looking for and how sellers can position their homes to stand out with confidence. If you're thinking about selling - or simply want to understand what goes on behind the scenes of a successful listing - this is an episode you won't want to miss. Hosted by LeeAnn Cerretani The Cerretani Team Phone: 508-954-2621 Email: cerretani.team@gmail.com

Full transcript

28 min

Transcribed and scored by The B2B Podcast Index.

Speaker A: Welcome to your home, your market, your move. We're the Serratani team, and this is where real estate gets real. Let's go. Hi, ladies. It's so good to see you. Um, and so today we're going to be talking about photography and staging and some tips and tricks of the trade. Yeah. Kind of how we work together to make all of that happen.

Speaker B: There are lots of tips and tricks.

Speaker A: Yes. That's great. So why don't we start with do you want to do the whole house, or would you like to do room by room?

Speaker B: So let me start off by saying that when I have a date and time scheduled with a client, I will send them my real estate prep guide, which is also on my website. And that's something that my realtors can pass on to their sellers. So they can also help get the home ready. So if they only have a few hours to get ready, are they going to mow their lawn or are they going to clean their mirror, for example?

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: So that's where this. This helps prioritize the list for sellers.

Speaker A: That's awesome. That's great because you can feel so overwhelmed.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: You know, that's. That will be really. That is. And I have to say that my sellers love that. Love that guide. They really. It really helps them kind of filter through. You know what to do first.

Speaker B: Yes. So as we talked about last episode, removing all declutter. So the home at this point should be decluttered as best as it can.

Speaker A: Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker C: And what we mean by decluttering is taking away or storing personal photographs on the walls or on the tables or anywhere. All personal belongings, meaning photographs. Um, all your jams and jellies, if you would, in your bathroom, put them in the cabinets, put them in a nice basket, then put them in a cabinet. Um, just decluttering. Like, the countertop should be free and clear of coffee machines, toasters, all our small appliances.

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker C: And if you use them on the daily, then just put them in the cabinet, take them out when the house isn't being shown or an open house. Um, all kids toys should be put away. Meaning, like even in a big basket in the closet or a big basket with a nice pretty top on it. Um, just things like that to declutter. When you go into a bathroom, there should be nothing but a nice little plant on the vanity and a colorful, uh, artwork and white towels. Fresh. That's it. All tangible items in a bathroom should be gone. No, I don't want to see, uh, toothbrushes. Toothbrushes.

Speaker D: Multiple.

Speaker B: With a Cord.

Speaker C: No, no, no, no. I don't want to see your waste paper barrel. I don't want to see your skin. I don't want to see your shoe and razors, your toilet bowl brush, and a beautiful canister that all has to go.

Speaker B: So let me dive in here to my list that I give all my realtors. So let's start with the exterior. So for starters, no cars in the driveway.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And that includes the realtor and the real estate photographer's car. We always park across the street or

Speaker A: away from the house because drone will also be done too. You know, if you've got a good photographer and realtor doing that, you should have some drone. It gives the home perspective in the neighborhood.

Speaker B: Yep. So upon the real estate photographer's arrival, all windows should be closed completely and all blinds should be open all the way. And that's to allow all the natural light inside the home. And also, when I'm doing drone and outside my exterior shots, there's going to be no focal point because if we have a window open, that's where the eye is going. So just have all windows closed, all shades open all the way. Get that light in. Mow the lawn.

Speaker A: Mow the lawn. Or do a fall cleaning.

Speaker B: Remove your weeds from the cracks in the concrete.

Speaker C: Yes.

Speaker B: I can virtually remove this and I do that for my realtors. But you're having an open house anyway. They're gonna remove your weeds.

Speaker A: Curb appeal. Right.

Speaker B: Remove the leaves, sticks, and branches. Hide your recycling and trash barrels.

Speaker A: Yes, I agree. Yep, yep.

Speaker B: Tidy your hoses. Have them all wrapped up. Do not have them out for me. I do edit those as well, but it's. It's so much better when they're tidy.

Speaker A: Totally agree.

Speaker B: Deck furniture needs to be tidy. And if you have a pool, make sure it's cleaned.

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker B: Moving along to general interior. Remove all personal items. The refrigerators should have no magnets, nothing.

Speaker A: No photos of your children. Well, the whole house should be completely depersonalized.

Speaker B: Yes. But for some reason, people forget about their refrigerator.

Speaker D: Yeah.

Speaker A: Well, you have your reminders there.

Speaker B: And replace burnt out light bulbs.

Speaker A: Um, let's stop there for a minute because let's talk about lighting a little bit, because I think lighting is a huge topic because I. Even after I have replaced light bulbs, sometimes it's just not enough lighting in the home. So I've actually brought in some of my own lamps and lights to try to light up certain corners, um, because it's really important. So what type of lighting would you recommend, Tina, as a designer? And Thinking about the space, does it depend on the colors in the home or what style it is?

Speaker C: I think 99.9% of all homes should be, um, soft white light bulbs.

Speaker A: Okay, so soft white, not bright bright.

Speaker C: No.

Speaker A: And why would you not want bright bright?

Speaker C: Because it cast a cool cast, if you would, over the space, and it's very cold and unwelcoming.

Speaker A: I also find that it makes you feel like you're in, like, a surgery room, like a hospital. Right.

Speaker C: Cold.

Speaker A: And it also will show any imperfection. Right, right. So it will. It doesn't add an ambiance of feeling comfortable, like warm white. So warm white light provides the color you need, the brightness you need, without highlighting all the imperfections that might be.

Speaker C: It creates, uh, a cozy cocoon, if you would.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker C: And it's just warm and soft. And every light bulb in the house should be the same. Warm white.

Speaker A: Yes, I agree. So in a lot of homes, we see recessed lighting. Right. And so it's so funny. When we first bought our house, we had tons of recessed lighting, and they were all different colored bulbs in there between warm light, like, cooler light. It wasn't just warm. It was, like, different shades of warm and different shades. I'm like, oh, my gosh, this is driving me crazy. But the new light bulbs today for recessed lighting, they come with all of those temperatures. Yeah. So you could, before you plug it in, you can select and be consistent in all of your recessed lighting, which I think is really key and helpful.

Speaker C: Totally key.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And just look at photos on mls, because if the lights are out, notice that the real estate photographer did that intentionally, whether it was a light bulb, um, missing, or it was different colored lights. Usually all my lights are on, and I will only turn them off if I have a missing color. A missing color, a missing light, or it's just different.

Speaker D: And speak to too, like, for your home. So when someone's walking your home and they're touring your home. Right. Like, if all the light bulbs are the same color, they're gonna notice that and they're gonna be like, wow, they really take care of this home. Right, right. And it's not like it's not neglected. Um, so I think that's a big key too. When we're talking, you know, we're talking about sellers or we're talking about buyers to, you know, point out the different things about that.

Speaker A: You do a lot of subconscious checking.

Speaker D: Yeah.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: So you may not say to yourself on, like, out loud, oh, they have all the same color it's just a subconscious thing.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: And it makes you feel like the home is well cared for.

Speaker C: They're just gonna subconsciously think that, that it's well cared for and it's warm and cozy.

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker D: And it's not gonna be one thing on their checklist of well, I'm m gonna have to buy new light bulbs. That's already one negative thing about the home. Right. When they're going on, you're turning on lights. When you're going to show your client a certain room or a pantry or bathroom, whatever it is. So.

Speaker A: And if the lights don't work when you pull the switch on, is it the electrical problem or is it the light bulb? So there's your, your checklist of issues start to go off in their head. Right, right, exactly.

Speaker B: Trash in every room. Hide it, put it in the closet. We don't need to see trash in photos. Tidy. Remove toys, as Tina said earlier. Hide pet related items. So, so I'm constantly seeing the food. I don't know why sellers always forget to put away their cat and their dog.

Speaker A: Well, because they worry that they won't have access to their water.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: Uh, so they want to make sure that they get to drink when they need to.

Speaker B: So just put it away before I arrive. That way I can spend more time getting my ankles that I need to get rather than tidying up after their animals.

Speaker A: Right, Right.

Speaker B: Turn on all of your lights. Every single light, turn it on. I will turn it off if I think it should be off, but do that ahead of my time because I'm on a scavenger hunt trying to figure out which light switches. I call it the light switch game. Um, all TVs should be off. All, uh, monitors should be off. Uh, in post editing, I add a wallpaper.

Speaker A: I love that, I love that you add that landscape on the TVs and the computers. And she also puts fire in the fireplace.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: Which I love.

Speaker C: That's a nice touch.

Speaker B: Ceiling fans need to be off upon my arrival. And that's, that's very important for me because sometimes it takes a full five minutes for the ceiling fan to stop.

Speaker A: It's interesting because other photographers want them on. Why would they want them on?

Speaker B: Only for videos.

Speaker A: Yeah, it's interesting. Maybe they're doing both at the same time.

Speaker B: For videos, the sink can be on.

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker B: The ceiling fan can be on. But for still photos, off.

Speaker A: Right, Right.

Speaker B: Organize objects on all, uh, open shelves.

Speaker A: Yes. Right.

Speaker B: If you don't know how to organize it, put it in a box. I'd rather see nothing on the shelf

Speaker C: or a few little tastefully accessories.

Speaker B: Absolutely.

Speaker A: So let me ask you. I'm curious. Like, you have this amazing list, and, you know, you give it to your realtors. I share it with my sellers. How many people, like, if you were to, say, on a percentage when you walk into a home to photograph it.

Speaker B: Ah.

Speaker A: Um, how much time do you.

Speaker B: Excellent question.

Speaker A: Yeah. How often is it, like, pristine, you're ready to go?

Speaker B: I'm gonna say one out of ten houses. One out of ten. Follow this list perfectly. One out of ten.

Speaker A: And do you see a trend with these houses?

Speaker B: It's the realtor.

Speaker A: It is. It's the realtor that they hire. Okay.

Speaker B: It is, uh, it's the realtor. The realtor is on them. Um, and oftentimes it's the seller. Like Jenna had not wanting someone else in her home.

Speaker A: Yep. Yeah. It gets hard, you know, because all at the end of the day, you know, you own your home and you make that decision. Um, and we. We just do the best we can with our, uh, recommendations. You can take it or leave it.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Rugs. Remove them. If you have beautiful floors, remove your rugs.

Speaker A: Oh, right.

Speaker B: So little small rugs. Remove them.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker D: Or if they're dirty. That's disgusting.

Speaker A: Remove your rugs. Right.

Speaker B: They want to just toss it in the key.

Speaker A: Our little OCD Jenner over here, she's like, I need it to be clean.

Speaker B: What shall we do next? Kitchen, bathroom, dining room? M or bedroom?

Speaker A: Let's do kitchen.

Speaker C: Kitchen.

Speaker B: Okay. Clean surfaces and sink. I. I love the cleaning ladies that come in and clean because they're really. This is their job. This is how they make it.

Speaker A: Things are shining.

Speaker B: Yes, absolutely. Hide all but two appliances, and the two that you have, make sure they're clean. They're clean, and they're updated. Yeah. We don't need to see your old Crock pot from 1990. Hide. Soaps, sponges, towels, cutting board, knives, et cetera. Just bare kitchen.

Speaker C: Just, uh, put it in the cabinet.

Speaker A: Yeah. Right.

Speaker B: Calendars. A lot of people have calendars in their kitchen.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Must. That's an absolute must.

Speaker A: We don't want to. So I view that as depersonalizing, because I don't want buyers to come through reading somebody else's appointments schedule, because then they're not seeing themselves in the home.

Speaker D: Right.

Speaker A: And again, it's another one of those subconscious things happen. Right.

Speaker D: And I think even using the world. The word depersonalizing, instead of saying, okay, we're gonna declutter your home, because sometimes People take that to offense. They do if they don't think that their home is physically cluttered. It's just like, you know, a lot of stuff of we're gonna depersonalize your home, meaning we're gonna take some things down. So I think it depends on who your client is of the goal.

Speaker A: Neutralizing. Right. But when you're depersonalizing, you just want everybody to see themselves able to live here.

Speaker D: Absolutely.

Speaker C: It just means taking out the personal to put your house on the market.

Speaker A: And some have more personal than others.

Speaker B: And we talked about having nothing on the refrigerator. But that is very important.

Speaker C: It is very important.

Speaker B: Shine those appliances.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Bedroom. Dining room.

Speaker A: Dining room.

Speaker B: Dining room. Straighten and push in your chairs. It's just, it helps me add centerpiece.

Speaker D: Clean your table. Make sure your dining room table doesn't have crumbs on it. Right. So here's a question from your last night's dinner. Please clean your table.

Speaker A: Yes, please clean your table. But I have seen people set their dining room tables for photography.

Speaker D: Do you.

Speaker A: How do you think that is? Setting the table or not setting the table?

Speaker C: I don't set the table when I'm staging. Only because people don't live that way.

Speaker A: Right. They're not sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner.

Speaker C: Right. And it looks too staged. I don't want my stagings to look like they're staged.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker C: I just want the house to feel warm and inviting and appeal to the masses of buyers.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker C: So I just put a couple of beautiful, tastefully placed centerpieces.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker C: And call it a day.

Speaker B: I love that.

Speaker A: I think that's really important. I also think that not everybody sits at the table and has dinner.

Speaker C: True.

Speaker A: Right. So you're all. You're personalizing it by setting the table.

Speaker D: Right.

Speaker C: Totally.

Speaker A: Yeah. It's. I've seen it both ways and I'm just, I was just curious like what you guys thought as professionals, uh, when you walk into them.

Speaker C: Most people don't live with their tables set.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker C: 24 7. So I do know.

Speaker D: I think it depends on the flow of the home as well too. Like uh, if you have a beautiful dining room that people know that you only use it for birthdays, holidays, special occasions. I think it might be quite a set. Something like that. So kind of like cap. But then again, some people don't eat dinner together as a family. Or some people might not even have children. Right. Or a family to even sit in. You know, and that could be, uh, kind of a negative or. Yeah.

Speaker A: A subconscious negative feeling.

Speaker D: Right. So I think it Goes both ways of that, of how you view the home.

Speaker A: Yeah. And sometimes sellers feel pretty strongly about what's going on.

Speaker B: So when I see that Tina has come in and staged a home, she always does have something on the centerpiece. But if I don't have Tina, I will tell my homeowners, just leave it blank. I will always add a virtual dozen red roses or whatever I feel like doing for that space.

Speaker A: Great.

Speaker B: If there's any high chairs or boosters, remove them. Yes. And lately I've been seeing cushions on table top of kitchen chairs.

Speaker C: Oh, the ones that tie back on the spindles.

Speaker B: Yes. And they're full of patterns and dirty and disgusting. Remove those. Yes, it happens. Bathrooms, toilet paper. This is a big one because I can't tell you how many times I've gone into bathrooms and the toilet seat is up and the toilet paper roll is just the brown. Like nobody.

Speaker A: Toilet paper?

Speaker B: No, like I don't understand why somebody couldn't have put it in the trash or replaced the roll. But yes, have a brand new toilet paper roll and have it give it that little triangle. And your house cleaners will do that for you also if you tell them that you're having your house clean.

Speaker C: As I stated earlier, when you're staging a bathroom, the only things that should be on that bathroom floor are the fixed elements.

Speaker A: No rugs.

Speaker B: No rugs.

Speaker C: No rugs, no toilet. Uh, paper holder in its pretty little canister. No scales. All of that gets put into the um, cabinets and countertop. Completely clean. Something really pretty. Soap pump, little bit of color on the walls. White towels. Done.

Speaker B: And no trash.

Speaker A: No trash.

Speaker C: Must be white towels. And the pop of color, color comes from the little piece of artwork you put in the bathroom.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker C: So again, nothing on the floor except for the fixed elements. The tub, the toilet, the vanity.

Speaker A: Yes, those are all really great tips. I love that. So what would be some tricks?

Speaker C: Well, it depends on the bathroom. We're still talking about the bathroom. I've staged a home a year ago that had the old 60s pink tile going halfway up the wall with a little black trim.

Speaker A: There's a lot of those here in Massachusetts.

Speaker C: Right. And then the floor had the little pink and cream two by two mosaics on the floor and the pink tub. So what did I do? I added more pink. I added a nice big pink artwork and then I used fresh white towels. I took all the tangible things off the floor and put it into the cabinet and just a little floral on the countertop and a white soap pump. That pink looked so Fresh and so inviting. That's what buyers look for.

Speaker A: And I will tell you that because I've seen it, you doing this, I couldn't believe how much that actually works.

Speaker C: And so when buyers walk into that bathroom, they're not going to say, it's not as shocking. They're not going to say, also, I got to renovate this bathroom. It's pink. They're going to say it's pleasing. They're going to say to themselves, I don't have to renovate this pink right away.

Speaker A: You can live with it for a little bit.

Speaker C: Exactly. And if I didn't stage it and it was left as is, with all the jams and jellies on the countertops and you know, that sort of stuff, the buyer's gonna say to themselves, I gotta renovate this right away. I can't live with this pink.

Speaker A: And I have to say, if you comb, which we all do, right. Even all consumers do too, they're always on Zillow or realtor.com or some other site and they're looking through the pictures and it blows me away. Like they don't even clear off their vanities.

Speaker B: Right. And you know, your neighbors are going to be looking, you know, that's a seller.

Speaker A: Like before I was a realtor, like I, I mean, I usually keep my bathroom clean. But as a consumer, like, you don't necessarily think that way. That's not your specialty. So if you don't have your realtor or your stager or your photographer telling you this is really helpful. They may not, it's not always obvious to people, you know, it's not fair to judge them for that.

Speaker C: We're not judging. We're just trying to sell that bathroom. And also a fresh shower curtain. If it's not a shower glass, uh, door.

Speaker A: I think sometimes realtors are uncomfortable. They don't want to hurt people's feelings, so they don't want to say anything.

Speaker C: But the way we present it, we're tasteful, we're tactful, and we're helping the seller. And they appreciate it, they really do, in the way that we deliver what we're saying.

Speaker A: I agree.

Speaker C: And we do it with, with caring, understanding, and we want you to get

Speaker A: the most money for your house. Like, that's why you're hiring us.

Speaker B: And ah, oftentimes after I have finished editing the photos, I'll send an email to the realtor with the link to view the gallery. But also, if there are red flags, I will say, downstairs bathroom has odor.

Speaker D: Right? Yeah.

Speaker B: Remove, replace Shower curtain. Those valances need to go.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: I will give.

Speaker A: I will give headphones, which is so you're just.

Speaker B: So that way you can say, hey, my photographer said yeah, and blame you. Go right ahead. Absolutely.

Speaker A: If you don't have the guts to do it, you can always blame the photographer.

Speaker B: Make sure your mirrors are clean in the bathroom.

Speaker D: Oh, yes.

Speaker B: And you asked for tips too. I will sometimes not photograph showers if they're not presentable, if they're full of shampoos and, uh, they're older people know what old showers look like. I'm only going to. I'm only going to take a picture of a shower if it is luxurious, if it's beautiful and there's no product in there.

Speaker A: Right, right. I agree with you. I think it's. You're not gonna. You don't want to show something. You're marketing the home in the positive pieces. We don't need to highlight the negative stuff. They're gonna see that on their own.

Speaker B: Right. Moving along to bedroom. So make your beds neatly.

Speaker C: Mm.

Speaker B: I've had to make beds before.

Speaker A: Yeah, Yep. Yeah, absolutely. And you know, it's unfortunate. Hopefully the realtor's there with you to

Speaker B: help you make that bed sometimes, sometimes not.

Speaker A: Yeah, I know. It's. It does depend.

Speaker B: So beds need to be neatly made and preferably with a neutral color bedspread. I always use white. Yes.

Speaker C: With a pop of color at the blanket at the end of the bed.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker C: And the pop of color depends on the fixed elements that are in the room.

Speaker D: Room.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker C: And then, um, little color at the beginning of the bed with pillows. And balance is key. But we'll get into that later.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: Balance.

Speaker C: Balance.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: All clothing and shoes should be put away and even under the bed. If I can see it.

Speaker A: Like if you have a bed skirt that is hiding something, you should really

Speaker B: try to remove it.

Speaker A: Right, yes, absolutely.

Speaker B: Clear surfaces of clutter. Old alarm clocks. It's a giveaway to buyers that you have an update. Updated. So get rid of your alarm clock.

Speaker A: It doesn't matter if you haven't updated. But again, that's a personal touch. Mhm. Right. Like you want.

Speaker B: People are judging.

Speaker A: Right. And they. You want to say, oh, well, subconsciously, oh, this is an older home. Yes, that's what it says.

Speaker B: Or an older person lives here. Maybe they haven't updated other things as well. Nightstands. I'm okay with having a lamp on the nightstand. Maybe a magazine. Um, several books just stacked beautifully. Maybe a plant. That's it.

Speaker A: It should be pretty, pretty clean.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: Just like your kitchen counters, right?

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: Really, all flat surfaces in general should be pretty wiped clean.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: As much as possible.

Speaker B: And that's it. We have now gone through all of my.

Speaker A: So any tricks to. Any tricks that would help m with your photography like that they could do, I think the light bulbs you talked about. Um, anything else in terms of a trick that might be less is more. Yes. That's good.

Speaker B: Absolutely. Less is m. More I can virtually stage if needed. I can do everything.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: It's amazing what less is more helped us with.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Clean. Get the cleaning crew and let me take care of the rest and depersonalize.

Speaker D: Yes.

Speaker B: Yes.

Speaker A: One thing that I often think about too, is a lot of homes have extra spaces, like an extra living room or a den or a library. And, you know, that space could be used maybe for a bedroom. Um, depending, you maybe are using it as a bedroom. So I think when we think about when you're getting your home ready to sell, if it doesn't have a designated purpose, you really need to create a purpose for that room. Like, what is the function of this room? Um, sometimes they're really tiny. So I think the staging and then the photography angles are really important to say this room does have a function. And you have to give buyers an understanding of what it could be instead

Speaker C: of letting them guess what it could be because they might not know.

Speaker A: Right. And also space. If there's nothing in it, it's hard to know what can you do with it.

Speaker C: Exactly. It looks too small. I can't put anything in it. Why? So we need to take that guess out of that for the buyer by

Speaker B: staging it and photographing it. Well, I run into that all the time for my floor plans because every room has a label. So sometimes it's called a bonus room. Sometimes it's a billiard room, recreation room, sitting room, sun room. There's so many different options. So when Tina comes in and says, nope, this is a sitting room, we listen to Tina and we do it that way.

Speaker A: That's right. That's right. And you know, all of these things that you've mentioned here today, they don't cost anything. Right, Right. These are things that you can do to get top dollar for your home without spending a dime. Right. So it's all about pre planning. If you can. Not everyone has that luxury. Um, but if you can, and then if you don't have a lot of time, then hire the right people. Right. To get in there and do it for you.

Speaker D: And I think it's our job Too. It's really important when you have a listing appointment, you go in there with a need versus a preference. Right. So somebody could say, you know, like, I had a listing appointment yesterday, and we were looking at the kitchen floors, and they were in perfect condition. They were just a little bit older. So it's not a need, it's just a preference. Right. So how do you bring in elements or, you know, staging of, uh, a certain color to almost, like, enhance that flooring? You can. And the color of it and maybe just, like, add a little bit of paint on the wall to really enhance that. And they're not going to be spending thousands of dollars to have a floor replaced when they could be painting, you know, paying, um, 30 or $40 to paint a room.

Speaker C: There's two ways you can enhance something like that. If it's the floor that has a, uh, color to it, there's two ways to enhance it. If it's not a very good color, like I said prior, you could add more of that color and sprinkle it throughout the room so it camouflages or whatever that color flooring is. We can go opposite on the color wheel to accessorize, so that way they're playing off each other nicely.

Speaker D: Right.

Speaker C: To complement that color. Or we can go analogous and go side by side on the color wheel. So it depends on the space itself and what direction I go on the fixed element that's not in perfect shape,

Speaker D: it has to stay right. And it's important to get, like, a good real estate agent with the team that they have behind them to physically point those things out to the clients. Do you know what I mean? Because clients are gonna, you know, listen and it's somebody else coming in, and they think that, oh, this needs to be done, but it might not. And it's gonna save you money in the long run, and you're gonna get

Speaker A: more for your home, right? Absolutely.

Speaker D: Um, so knowing those tips and tricks, I think, is, you know, great.

Speaker A: Absolutely. I think. And it can save you a lot of money in prepping your home, and then you'll be gaining more money on the other end when you go to sell it. This has been great. You guys have been wonderful with the tips and tricks today with photography and staging, and, um. Thank you so much.

Speaker D: Thank you.

Speaker C: You're welcome.

Speaker B: Thank you.

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