Taylor Scott International News
Estate agents are known for going that extra mile to get a sale and now they are set to embrace the very latest technology to make sure a property looks its very best. Savills is one real estate company that is leading the way in their use of drones and have explained how they are increasingly helping estate agents to market properties. It enables them to take airborne photographs and videos to help market properties. The firm says that drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), present a number of advantages over traditional aerial photography techniques. They’re are measurably much cheaper and can produce better quality video than helicopters. Also, with the necessary consents they can be flown almost anywhere unlike aerial masts which must be set up and positioned, and are limited in height. Additionally, many commercial drones are based on the open source Arduino platform, which allows savvy users to customise them to a specific purpose. Savills began using UAVs to market homes on a wider scale in 2012, having seen their potential to convey properties in 3D, and thereby bringing the property to life for potential buyers. To date, the company has used drones on many occasions, including for Donhead House in Wiltshire, and Lasborough Park and Bell’s Castle also in Gloucestershire. They have found that drone-captured video and photography can offer not only the dramatic details of a property, but a sense of place, something that can be difficult to capture using traditional techniques. ‘It’s not just about selling the house, it’s also about selling lifestyle and the wider area. A brochure would normally lead with images of the house and formal gardens, whereas a video can capture the whole,’ said Ed Sugden, director of Savills Country House Department. ‘It allows a potential buyer to look beyond the brochure, and allows us to convey a lot of information far more quickly and efficiently,’ he added. However, it is not as simple as letting the drone do all the work. There is an art to using drones as well as a science, and one common mistake is showing too much of the property’s roof. Savills advises taking video and photography from a 45 degree angle, which allows the property’s best attributes, including its grounds and architecture, to be captured in the most aesthetic way. The novelty of drone photography itself can also help to capture buyer interest, and encourage people to take it forward with a viewing. So far, this strategy has been working for Savills and their clients. For example, one property’s video has had over 7,000 visits from around the world, which must lead to more viewings and interest. However, as useful as they are, drones aren’t suitable for every situation. ‘If a particular house has a pig farm on one side, a pylon and a motorway on the other then an aerial overview is not the… Taylor Scott International
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