One of the most effective sales tools and one that is highly sought after by buyers is a floor plan of your property.
What is a floor plan?
A floor plan is a drawing to scale that shows a room as seen from above. It shows the relationships between rooms, spaces and other physical features of each level of a building. Dimension are also drawn between the walls to specify room sizes and wall lengths.
Floor plans are promoted on website portals, in image carousels and included in your property’s promotional material that is distributed at open for inspections and via other sales channels.
Plans and open for inspections
Pre inspection, a professionally drawn floor plan showing the complete layout of the property, helps buyers understand how the property flows. It’s a key tool to help them visualise how the space could potentially work for them and to assess whether there is any flexibility to make changes down the track if their needs shift.
Post inspection, the floor plan is a great reminder of the layout and it enables serious buyers to map out their furniture placement. Once they start to visualise their things in your property you’ll find their passion for your property increases. Passionate buyers are an important ingredient for a successful sale.
Don’t worry if the layout of your property isn’t perfect, the floor plan enables potential buyers to see how the interior could be modified to make it more suitable for their needs. For instance, your kitchen may be located in the centre of the property with no flow out to the garden. Today’s buyers often love the inside / outside flow of a property and by using the floor plan they can see what changes they could make to the layout to create their perfect property.
The buyers information hunt
As you may remember when you bought your own property, buyers want as much information as they can find on a property they are looking at buying and a good floor plan is an essential and valuable marketing tool that helps complete the information on the property.
The floor plan enables would be buyers to piece together the photos and to determine what room sits where and how it relates to the rest of the property. It also shows detail like where the windows are positioned, how the kitchen and bathrooms are laid out, whether there is any built storage, which way it orientated (as the North symbol is always included) and if it’s a house, how it is positioned on the block. The intersection between the photos and the floor plan helps buyers ‘make sense of the property’ which is key to getting them to an open for inspection.
How are floor plans created?
Most photographers will also be responsible for creating the floor plans. Using accurate laser measurements of each room they create a detailed ‘to scale’ floor plan featuring room dimension and total property size. Some floor plans show the homes footprint on the block.
Different types of floor plans
There are a few different types of floor plans so it’s a good idea to talk to your agent about which one they think would be best for your property.
The most basic plans are simply drawn in black and white, however you can also get coloured options that help make the property stand out and ones that include textured finishes such as decking or tiling. Furniture can be added to any plan to give buyers an idea of potential furniture placements.
6 tips to get a great floor plan
Your agent will help ensure your floor plan is the best it can be, however here are 6 features that go into making a great sales tool:
- Always include dimensions and measurements so buyers can get an accurate idea of the property and its scale
- Always show which way North is a this helps buyers understand the orientation of the property
- Use simple plans, not council or building plans as these are complicated and can confuse buyers
- If selling a house, adding a site plan can be a good idea as it shows how a house fits into the block
- Consider using full colour plans as they are more eye catching
- Ensure your plans include the windows and doors, their location and size as this helps buyers work out where furniture can go.
Floor plans are a critical element of your marketing, they are highly sought after by buyers and offer a real advantage to sellers. Make sure you talk to your agent about what floor plan they think is most suited for your property. It is an excellent investment and what we consider a must when putting your property on the market.
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