Prepare Your Home for Photos and Viewings

Buyers and tenants decide whether to visit your home from its photos, and whether to make an offer from the visit. A week of preparation makes both easier. This plan works for a sale or a rental, an apartment or a villa.

Before the photos: a week of small jobs

Start with the things a camera notices first.

• Clear the surfaces. Kitchen counters, bathroom shelves and bedside tables should be almost empty.
• Fix the small things. Replace dead bulbs, tighten handles, reseal a stained shower edge, touch up scuffed paint.
• Service the air conditioning. Clean filters and a cool home make a better visit, and a buyer may ask when it was last serviced.
• Deep clean. Windows, balcony glass, grout and kitchen appliances.
• Put personal items away. Family photos, documents, medicines and anything that shows your name or address.

For a villa or townhouse, add the outside: trim the garden, sweep the paths, clean the pool if there is one, and park cars away from the front.

On the day: photos that show the home honestly

Shoot in daylight, with every blind open and every light on. Stand in a corner of each room and hold the camera level at chest height, so the walls stay straight. Take a wide landscape photo of every room, then a few details: the view, the kitchen, the wardrobes, the parking.

Show the home as it is. Heavy editing that changes colours, removes fixed features or hides wear only disappoints people at the door, and the visit is where the decision is made. A simple floor plan, if you have one from the developer, answers many questions before the first call.

Viewings: calm, short and prepared

• Check with your building's security or community office whether visitors need access passes or parking, and arrange it in advance.
• Open the windows for a few minutes, then set the air conditioning to a comfortable level before visitors arrive.
• Keep a one page sheet ready: size, service charge, parking, and who pays which bills.
• Step out of the room during the visit if you can. People speak more openly about a home when the owner is not watching.

If a tenant still lives in the home, it remains their home until the lease ends. Agree the viewing days and times with them in writing, confirm before each visit, and thank them for their help.

The permit goes with the listing

In Abu Dhabi, a broker advertises your home on a property website under an advertising permit issued through DARI (ADREC's Madhmoun service): as the owner, you can start it yourself or approve the broker's request. You can give the permit to one broker on an exclusive basis, or choose up to three brokers. ADREC's Madhmoun system lists only verified properties and limits advertising to a maximum of three approved brokers per property.

Two quick checks protect you. Under Law No. 3 of 2015, a broker's registration number must appear on their advertisements, and you can look up licensed real estate professionals in ADREC's directory before you sign anything.