Whirlwind: Here's Why the 80s Photo of the Butcher Mansion Irks Me

Last week I posted a challenge for readers to identify why the above photos of the Butcher Mansion irk me. The post received the highest views of the week so I'm going to give you the answers, starting with the 80s photo.

One of the answers I received was from Rich who pointed out the perspective is off. I agree. The camera angle could be tweaked to get a more compelling shot, but there's so much more happening, or not happening here that really gets to me.

Here's something you may not know: when people go to real estate school, they're not taught marketing. At all. A real estate course is all about law - what you're obligated to disclose, what you should avoid saying, what an easement means to a contract, a description of various water rights, etc. There's not even a hint of how to sell a house in a real estate licensing course. And most courses can be done completely online so there's no classroom interaction where that subject could be brought up. Some Brokers teach marketing, many don't. And forget about photography, I've never seen that taught in a real estate office.

When you're marketing a home, the first thing you have to do is...

CHALLENGE: Guess Why These Whirlwind Mansion Photos Irk Me

The Butcher Mansion foyer circa 1985 and today

The foyer in the Jake Butcher mansion is the one room in the house that is in good condition. And yet, both times I was at the house last week, we never went in through the front door - we always used a side door that led into the dated kitchen of a super smelly condominium. 

When you're showing someone a house, you need to go in through the front door. It sets the stage and people decide within seconds if they're going to buy. Bringing someone in through a side door, particularly into a room that assaults the buyer's nostrils the moment they cross the threshold, is not a good idea. It puts buyers on alert and makes them wonder why they're not going through the front.

My guess is, the leaded glass window over the front door would shatter upon something so simple as entering the house and shutting the door behind you. The window bows out - in a way that I guarantee you, is not by design.

Moving on.

Every house should have at least one "wow" factor. And one of these wow factors MUST be seen the moment you walk through the front door. 

Now, you might think the wow factor is the staircase. But you see that door under the staircase? That's actually the front door. You don't see the stairwell until you're in the middle of the hall (and you turn around to see it).

There is another door directly across from the front door at the end of the grand hall. The door is all glass and used to look out to the river and valley below. Now, it looks out to the garage of the house built directly in front of the view. This is the house I call "Spite House". I'm sure the people who live there are perfectly lovely people, but they're blocking my view. And that's a huge no-no in my book.

I used to do real estate photography, staging and marketing. I'd do it again in a heartbeat because I love it. I love it more when I do it for myself, but yeah, I'd do it again for realtors. 

Because of that background, both of the photos shown here bother me. Okay, they don't just bother me, they irk the hell out of me.  Can anyone guess why they bother me? Here's a hint: there are multiple reasons.

Don't let me down, answer the question. Go with your gut. What's wrong with these photos?