Home Preparation Checklist

The Meyer Lucas Method™

For home buyers, the photography and overall online presentation of a home is arguably the most important piece of the home buying process. Buyers want to be wowed by your design choices, the architecture of the home, the sizes of the rooms, the colors of the cabinets, and at the Meyer Lucas Team, we know all the tricks and have all the technology to make your home pop off the page. Buyers want to show their pending home sale off to their family and friends, and as a home seller, you want your home to shine with pride when it hits the airwaves online, too.

Homes that are decluttered and portray an aesthetically pleasing blank canvas are going to be the ones that sell for top dollar.

If you know anything about the Meyer Lucas Team, you probably know that we take tremendous pride in portraying our sellers’ homes online ensuring we secure a top dollar buyer, who is ready, willing, and able to offer our sellers fantastic terms for their homes because they are excited to be buying them. That excitement starts with the home preparation and photography of the home.

We live for wow-worthy listing photography and know exactly how to get those WOW-worthy shots if you help us a little. In order to get these amazing photos of your property and to slay the marketing on your home, we need to make sure that your home is prepared, staged, and photo-ready ahead of our photography appointment.

Check out our video below for the do's and the don'ts and our guidelines for preparing your home to be photographed. We promise, if you follow our checklist, your photos are going to be spectacular!

THE EXTERIOR

Please move cars out of the driveway and away from the house prior to the appointment.
Replace any light bulbs that are burned out or any that are off color balance
Security system signs, political signs, even those pink flamingos in your front lawn, unfortunately do have to go.
Sweep up leaves, remove palm fronds, but make sure you aren't putting them on the curb in front of your house, unless it's garbage day
Make sure your pool light works and is turned on for the photoshoot
Remove your pool baby gate
Skim the pool ahead of time so there's no debris and make sure you remove the pool vacuum after you're done
Uncover the grill and store the cover out of site
Open all umbrellas and awnings in your backyard and show your Meyer Lucas agent how to open them and shut them
If you have time, consider power washing your roof, your walkway, your driveway, but make sure you're not scheduling it for the day of your photography appointment

THE INTERIOR

THE KITCHEN

Make sure that all of your countertops are free and clear of absolutely everything

ex) Knife blocks, toaster ovens, mixing bowls, olive oil, salt and pepper shakers, even the design & decor items (we can always add them back if our stagers feel it’s necessary)

Make sure under cabinet lighting works and turn them on before the shoot
Design elements that are above your cabinets should come down
Make sure you're stashing away any trash cans in the kitchen, the bathrooms, and the office
Wipe down counters stainless steel appliances with a stainless steel cleaner.
Remove any refrigerator magnets

THE OFFICE

Store away files and papers

THE BATHROOM

Clean mirrors and wipe down counters
Remove any fabric items, ex. towels, bath mats, and rugs
Remove soaps, razors, and all other products from countertops & showers
If you have time, have your grout professionally cleaned

AROUND THE HOUSE

If there is anything in your home you don't want anything displayed on the internet, it's a good idea to remove it for the photography appointment
For our professional athlete clients — if you have any of your memorabilia displayed, please consider removing that if you don't want the buyers to know who you are
Make sure all of your drapes are as far open as they possibly can get
If you have plantation shutters, make sure they're all the way open and if you have fabric curtains or drapes that are not wow-worthy, take them down
Family photos are okay to leave, but if you don't want your kids displayed on the internet, then pack them away because they will show up in photos
Make sure all of your children's toys and your pet toys are stored away
Vacuum any area that has carpet
Make all beds and fluff up any pillows
If your TVs are mounted, make sure the cords are hidden (we can also Photoshop these out, so don't knock yourself out.)

PETS

Remove all pet supplies (water/food bowls), toys, and pet beds
Make sure animals are secure during the photoshoot, removing them from the home is a best practice
Clean up all pet waste from the yard

RIGHT BEFORE THE PHOTOGRAPHER ARRIVES

Lights – Turn on all interior lights, including any accent lighting, under cabinet lighting, fireplaces or ambient lighting. For the twilight photos, please make sure your pool lights are on, landscaping up lighting is on, and every single light in the house is on.
Fans – Turn off all fans.
Blinds – Open all shades, blinds, and curtains. We want to let in as much light as possible. (Think light and bright!)
Cars – Remove all vehicles from the driveway and the front of the house for our exterior & aerial photos