How to prepare a flat for photos and viewings in Bosnia

Prepare your flat so that it looks bright, tidy and spacious in the listing photos, and gives the same impression when buyers walk in. In practice that means shooting in daylight without flash, removing extra furniture and personal items, deep cleaning the kitchen and bathroom, and fixing the small faults a buyer notices straight away. Buyers see the photos first. At the viewing they check the papers, damp, heating and the condition of the building, so all of that should be ready before the first visit.

What buyers look at first

Your listing is the first contact a buyer has with your flat. A survey by NAR, the US association of estate agents, found that 73% of agents representing buyers say photos are highly important to their clients, more than video or virtual tours. NAR also notes that buyers may skip viewing a home that does not present well online. These are US figures, but the logic holds here too: weak photos mean fewer calls.

In the same survey, the rooms that matter most are the living room, the main bedroom and the kitchen. Spend most of your effort on those.

At the viewing itself, based on the experience of agents in the region and local portals, buyers usually check:

• the paperwork, especially whether the floor area in the documents matches the area in the listing
• the age and condition of the building, the facade and the roof
• whether there is another flat or the roof above, and whether anything leaks
• damp and mould in corners, by windows and behind wardrobes
• heating: district heating, etažno grijanje (a flat's own gas boiler) or electric, and for electric, whether the supply is single-phase or three-phase
• the bathroom: drainage, blockages and heavy humidity
• the electrical and plumbing installations

For the full buyer's-eye checklist, read Viewing a flat in Bosnia: what to check before you buy before you open the door to the first buyers.

Light

Light is the cheapest way to make a flat look bigger and more pleasant.

• Photograph during the day, when it is clear outside. One regional portal suggests roughly 10:00 to 14:00, but that is advice, not a rule. It is better to test when each room gets the most light.
• Open the curtains and raise the blinds fully.
• Turn off the flash on your camera or phone. It causes harsh shadows and reflections.
• Switch on the lights in rooms without enough daylight, such as the hallway and bathroom, and replace dead bulbs.
• Wash the windows. Dirty glass absorbs light and shows in photos.

The same applies at viewings: curtains open, lights on where needed. Expect a serious buyer to come back a second time, at a different time of day or when it is colder, to check light and warmth. Agree to this, because refusing raises suspicion.

Tidying, cleaning and a neutral space

Deep clean

Clean every surface, the floors and the windows, and do the kitchen and bathroom in detail: grout, taps, mirrors, and the inside of the oven and fridge in case a buyer opens them. The kitchen and bathroom often decide the impression.

Less furniture

• Temporarily remove bulky or surplus pieces so walkways are clear.
• Do not push everything against the walls. The room should look lived in, just with more space.
• Leave the doors between rooms open.
• Clear the kitchen worktops and bathroom shelves.

Personal items

Put away family photos, collections, documents, bills and other personal items, including religious or other symbols that matter to you. This is not about hiding who you are; it simply helps a buyer picture themselves and their family in the space. Removing documents and personal items also protects your privacy, since anyone can see listing photos.

Details that help

• clean towels in a neutral colour in the bathroom
• a plant or some flowers
• an aired flat with no smell of cooking, tobacco or pets

Smell does not show in photos, but it is the first thing a buyer notices at a viewing.

Small repairs

The aim is not to renovate, but to remove the small things that make a buyer think the flat has not been looked after.

What usually pays off

• Painting the walls. OLX.ba, the largest classifieds site in Bosnia, describes it as a minimal investment with maximum effect. Light, neutral colours work best.
• Bathroom silicone. Old, darkened silicone around the bath and basin is easy to replace and improves the impression a lot.
• Dripping taps, loose handles, broken switches, dead bulbs.
• Drains. Check that water drains normally in the bathroom and kitchen, because buyers test it.
• Doors and windows that squeak or are hard to close.

Damp: fix the cause, then paint

Buyers are advised to look for dark stains, peeling paint, swollen plaster and a damp smell, especially in corners, by windows, where walls meet the ceiling and behind wardrobes. That is exactly why a freshly painted patch in such a spot draws attention: the buyer wonders whether the paint is hiding something.

If you have damp, or the flat has leaked before, fix the cause first and only then paint. If the problem is solved, say so openly and, if you have it, show the invoice or the agreement with the building manager. That builds more trust than a perfectly white wall.

Photos for the listing

• Shoot from the corner that shows most of the room, at chest height, holding the phone or camera horizontally.
• Make sure you are not reflected in a mirror or glass.
• Take several shots of each room and choose the best.
• Order the photos logically, as if the buyer is walking in: entrance, living room, kitchen, bedrooms, bathroom, balcony or loggia, view, building.
• For the cover photo, choose the brightest and most spacious room, usually the living room.
• Keep neighbours' faces, number plates and personal documents out of the photos.

OLX.ba displays photos in 4:3 format and lets you rotate, crop and choose the cover photo. The number of free photos depends on the type of account, and extra photos are paid for with credits. Check the current limits on the site before posting, as they have changed over time.

No editing that changes the truth

Adjusting brightness and straightening a shot is fine. Retouching damp, cracks or the view from a window is not. The buyer will see the defect at the viewing, and you will lose their trust and both of you will lose time. Concealing defects can also have legal consequences for the seller. This guide is general information, not legal advice: a notary or lawyer will confirm what you are liable for as a seller and what you need to sell your particular flat.

Preparing for viewings

Besides a tidy flat, leave the buyer with the sense that there is nothing to hide.

Have the papers ready

Buyers often ask about documents at the very first viewing. Keep to hand the ZK izvadak (land registry extract), proof of the flat's floor area and, if it applied, the legalisation decision. Documents you need to sell property in Bosnia explains the full list. If the area in the papers differs from the real area, sort it out before advertising.

Prepare answers on costs and the building

• type of heating and approximate bills for the winter months
• with a gas boiler: its age and service records
• with electric heating: single- or three-phase supply and consumption in the coldest months
• the building maintenance charge and whether the building manager is planning work on the facade or roof

On the day

• air the flat and open the curtains
• switch on lights where it is dark
• take pets and their things out if you can
• give the buyer room to look around, open wardrobes and test taps
• do not rush them or argue about defects; explain them briefly and accurately

Common mistakes

• photos taken in the evening, with flash, or with a moving hand
• lots of personal items and furniture that make the flat look smaller
• fresh paint over damp without fixing the cause
• a floor area in the listing that does not match the papers
• papers not ready, so the buyer waits weeks for an answer
• refusing a second viewing at a different time of day
• an unrealistic price, which even the best photos cannot make up for; see How to price a property for sale in Bosnia

An example

In DMI's current Sarajevo listings, the median asking price is about 5,722 KM per m², with a range of 3,667 to 6,574 KM per m². Two-room flats of 54 m² in Novo Sarajevo are listed between 309,000 and 355,000 KM, depending on floor, condition and location. When several similar flats are on offer in the same area, buyers compare them first by the photos, then by what they see at the viewing.

Imagine two similar two-room flats in the same building. The first was photographed in the evening, with flash, full shelves and laundry on the balcony. The second has been painted, has new bathroom silicone and was photographed in daylight, and the owner brings the land registry extract and winter heating bills to the viewing. At the same price, the second will almost certainly get more calls and more serious buyers. Preparation does not change the floor area or the location, but it changes how easily the flat compares and how much a buyer trusts it.

How DMI helps

We visit every flat in person before it is published and check the land registry, legalisation and photos. Before the photo shoot we tell you what to remove, what to fix and at what time of day the flat looks best, and at viewings we answer questions about papers and costs. We offer video tours to buyers abroad, so a well-prepared flat also reaches more interested buyers in the diaspora. If you are thinking of selling, contact us through Sell your property.