Using MLS Photos

[Carlos Danger]

DJ
I will consider myself reprimanded. Please excuse me, I have to go hide under my desk. This job is too scary.

 

[J Grant]

Interior photos don't lie. It either shows granite counters, or it does not. The appliances are old or they are newer Stainless steel etc. Sure they try to shoot in a flattering light and tend not to describe difficencies, but the even they can't replace counters or flooring with other floors or counters.

same for ext photos. Our inspection of comp may take place 6 months after a comp has closed and new owner has replaced roof or made other changes. As much information as we can get about the property is the best we can do, from the sources available including our own observation.

 

[Peter LeQuire]

Interior photos don't lie. It either shows granite counters, or it does not. The appliances are old or they are newer Stainless steel etc. Sure they try to shoot in a flattering light and tend not to describe difficencies, but the even they can't replace counters or flooring with other floors or counters.

same for ext photos. Our inspection of comp may take place 6 months after a comp has closed and new owner has replaced roof or made other changes. As much information as we can get about the property is the best we can do, from the sources available including our own observation.

Many times interior photos shown in MLS are vibrant examples of "putting lipstick on a pig".

 

[TRESinc]

DJ
I will consider myself reprimanded. Please excuse me, I have to go hide under my desk. This job is too scary.

come on, danger is your name!

 

[J Grant]

well, it still shows the pig!

MLS photos you can see it it's granite or not, carpet or tile, correct? Harder to are the silly comments and what is real and what is exaggerated, which is why knowing the condo building and area helps, even verifying with agents they tell you what they want to hear instead of truth sometimes so we have to do a lot of digging from different sources

 

[CANative]

I was almost ready to finish my report of an appraisal that was already a day late (yesterday.) Few comps. I was making adjustments to comp 3 (I only photographed 3 closed sales and 2 actives during the inspection process in an area that's a 4 or 5 hour round trip.) Something didn't seem right and the more I fiddled with adjustments it was clear that something was wrong. MLS and Corelogic both showed 2300 sf on this residence and I could barely see the house from the street. So I called the assessor appraiser who works in that area and looked it up. 3200 sf. And $35,000 in personal property was included in the sale (mostly furniture.) This put the adjusted value in the mid $300,000's when all of the other comps adjusted in the mid $400,000. And the DOM was over 2 years when most properties sell in 30 to 120 days.

So I call the listing agent. Turns out this was her aunt and uncles house. Her aunt died 8 years ago and her uncle died about the time the house was listed. The extended family was living there and considered the house too small (only two bedrooms and a big loft they added at some point in time (2004 per the assessor). He died owing $150k in unpaid property and other taxes. And the family was getting desperate to get rid of it and move. So, despite being almost next door to the subject (in an area where this doesn't happen very much) I have to find another comp. Which I did. It's on a street called Frog Pond Road. I've done three appraisals on this road and with the exception of a house at the bottom of the road no other properties are viewable from the street because they are all set back in the redwood trees.

5 hours of driving for a picture of redwoods (see photo below which is from my last trip on the road and which is within a few lots of the comp I want to use.)

Should I do it? The AMC doesn't mind MLS photos but all of my other photos have a date stamp and include MLS additional photos of exteriors and interiors.

 

[Dublin ohio]

.....and what Realtor ever knowingly put a non-flattering interior or exterior photo in MLS?

This one

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

The MLS comp photo that represents the property at the time of sale

If I have good comps I have a picture that represents the property at the time of the sale...Don't you photo listings?

 

[Proactive]

Should I do it? The AMC doesn't mind MLS photos but all of my other photos have a date stamp and include MLS additional photos of exteriors and interiors.

You know. And I know you know.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

This one

Looks like they did the best they could...hard to make a silk purse out of a sows ear... I think the dumpster is a giveaway here