The prices below are for photos and usage rights by the original listing agent for a property sale. Prices include a “virtual tour” which is an online slideshow that you can link to from the MLS and other listing sites. Photos are almost always delivered by noon the day after the shoot. A “normal” house usually gets 25 photos ($350), but I can do more or fewer. I host the photos for up to a year, but you can (and should) keep and host the photos yourself as well.
$50 DISCOUNT FOR UNATTENDED ACCESS*
(COMBO BOX, UNLOCKED, HIDDEN KEY ETC.)
= NO realtor, homeowners, children, contractors, cleaners, landscapers, zombies, martians– No one else present; AND flexibility on the timing– I may go a couple hours early or later. It’s totally voluntary but makes things easier.
PRICES 2024:
| 5 PHOTOS (typically “exterior-only”) | $150 |
| 15 PHOTOS (small property) | $300 |
| 25 PHOTOS (standard home) | $350 |
| +10 PHOTOS (additional for larger homes) | $75 |
| 3D / MATTERPORT*† | $200 |
| AERIAL/DRONE PHOTOS | $150 |
| FLOOR PLAN | $100 |
| CINEMATIC VIDEO† | $300 |
| TWILIGHT PHOTOS* | $250 |
| AERIAL VIDEO (raw clips) | $150 |
| AERIAL VIDEO (edited) | $300 |
| VIRTUAL STAGING** | +$20 |
*3D/Matterport, twilight, and video require that the home is vacant (no one is home)– Please make arrangements. SAMPLE 3D MATTERPORT TOUR.
** per image
SURCHARGES:
| PRE- / POST-SHOOT EXTERIOR (MULTIPLE TRIPS) | +$100 |
| † OVER 2500 SQ FT MATTERPORT, VIDEO (per 1000 sf) | +$150 |
| AIRBNB/RENTAL (extended/ongoing usage) | +$150 |
| DRIVE FEE (IF OUTSIDE GREATER SACRAMENTO) | $2/mi |
| SAME-DAY TURNAROUND (AS AVAILABLE) | +$100 |
OTHER:
Commercial, large-scale, and architectural/design photography pricing is highly variable; contact me and let me know what you’ve got.
USAGE:
Be aware that photographers retain all rights to their images. Photographs are copyright-protected intellectual property owned by the photographer.
You can use photos you have hired me to take in any type of marketing for a property listing without an additional usage fee. I also generally allow my photos to be used for the listing agent’s portfolio or website. Photos may not be resold or transferred by the realtor or used by any other listing agent for the property.
Some other photographers charge extra for uses on multiple platforms, or for printing flyers or use in print publications. They may choose to charge for any use besides that of the sale of the property. Just keep in mind to ask when looking around at other photographers.
Note that some Metrolist offices are trying to push realtors to get photographers to sign away the rights to the photos. I don’t do this and I don’t know of any professional photographer who does. Full rights to the photos (for exclusive use) are available for an additional cost (typically several hundred to thousands of dollars per photo). This industry standard has been in place for a long time, and is similar to how a musician retains their rights to their work: Spotify can pay the musician for the right to play a song, but the musician still owns it; for Spotify (or anyone) to outright buy complete ownership of a song is rare and very expensive.
It’s really not complicated, despite some bureaucratic organizations trying to make it so. I am operating in the same way I have for almost two decades: There is no written contract. You hire me to take photos of a listing, I provide the photos, and you use them to sell the property. I’m not “going after” anyone for fair, normal use of photographs they’ve paid me to take!