What Sellers Should Remove Before Real Estate Photos
The seller had cleaned. She told me so at the door, twice, with the specific pride of someone who had been up since six. And she had. The counters were bare, the beds were made, the floors were spotless.
What to remove before real estate photos is mostly about clearing personal items, visual clutter, and anything that distracts from the space.
Then I opened the bathroom to check the light and found every bottle, brush, towel, and hair tool in the apartment stacked in the bathtub like a supply drop.
I have seen this more times than I can count. It is not a character flaw. It is what happens when nobody tells the seller that the bathroom gets photographed too, and that a bathtub is not a closet. That is the whole job of this article: tell you what to take out, so nobody has to improvise at 8:55 in the morning.
What to Remove Before Real Estate Photos
Some agents send the seller a list a week out. They say the hard part out loud: the family photos come down, the counters get cleared, the cat goes to a neighbor. Those shoots start on time and finish early.
Other agents don’t want to step on toes. They tell me the place is “pretty much ready” and let me discover otherwise. Then I am the stranger in the hallway asking a homeowner to remove her own wedding photos from her own wall, which is a bad job for me and a worse morning for her.
I would rather be the second set of eyes than the bearer of bad news. Send the list early.
Personal items and anything with a name on it
Buyers need a few seconds to imagine themselves in the room, and a wall of someone else’s family stops that cold. It is also a privacy issue, since these photos may remain online long after a listing is active.
- Framed family photos on walls, mantels, shelves, and refrigerators
- Diplomas, awards, certificates
- Kids’ names on bedroom walls and doors
- Religious and political items
- Mail, prescriptions, and anything with an address on it
The wall hooks can stay. I would rather photograph a small nail hole than a portrait.
The kitchen counter, which is the real battleground
Kitchen counters sell apartments, and a counter only reads as generous if you can see it. Almost everything comes off.
- Toaster, blender, coffee maker, air fryer, stand mixer
- Dish rack, sponges, scrub brushes, dish soap, hand soap
- Paper towel stand, knife block, spice clutter
- Everything on the refrigerator door. Magnets, school art, takeout menus, the works.
- The trash can. Yes, it counts. Put it in the pantry for an hour.
Sellers push back on the coffee maker roughly half the time. I understand it, and I have never once regretted moving it.
Bathrooms, or how the bathtub became a storage unit
The instinct is to sweep everything out of sight, and the bathtub is the nearest place that closes. It does not close. I photograph it.
Give the seller somewhere real to put things: a laundry basket in the car, a bin in the closet, a bag in the trunk. Then clear:
- Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, loofahs, razors
- Toothbrushes, toothpaste, skincare, hair dryers, curling irons
- Used towels and robes on hooks and doors
- Floor mats, which almost always photograph as a wrinkle
- Trash cans, plungers, toilet brushes
- Toilet lids down. Every time.
Fresh towels on the bar are fine. Two, matching, hung straight.
Cords, screens, and the ceiling fan
The camera notices wires in a way your eye does not. Bundle chargers, tuck power strips behind furniture, and switch off televisions and monitors so they read as clean black rectangles instead of half-lit desktops.
And turn off the ceiling fan. A moving blade turns into a gray smear over the whole ceiling, and there is no fixing it afterward.
Pets, gently
People love their animals and buyers are a mixed audience. Bowls, beds, crates, litter boxes, and toys should all disappear for the hour. Run a lint roller over the sofa.
The pet itself is best off-site or contained. I have photographed around a cat who considered the primary bed his jurisdiction, and I lost that negotiation.
For homes with an exterior or driveway, clear the following. For apartment listings, focus on the entry and any private outdoor space.
- Move the cars, including yours and mine if there’s a good angle
- Hoses, tools, mowers, bins, kids’ equipment
- Shoes, coats, and umbrellas in the entry
- Seasonal decorations that will date the photo six weeks from now
The version to send your seller
If you only pass along one line, make it this: everything on a flat surface comes off, everything personal comes down, and nothing goes in the bathtub.
The full walkthrough is in the room-by-room checklist, which is built to forward as-is.
Hudson Heights RES shoots real estate photography, floor plans, and virtual staging across New York City and the nearby metro area, with delivery timing confirmed when you book. Packages and pricing are here, and you can get in touch to book online.
Redfin’s guide to staging a house for photos makes a similar case if your seller wants a second opinion that isn’t coming from the photographer.
Related reading: the room-by-room checklist, the lighting rundown, and How to Prepare a Home for Real Estate Photos.
Chris Leary is the founder of Hudson Heights RES, which photographs listings across New York City and the nearby metro area.
