Writing a compelling real estate listing will help ensure that your listing generates interest and produces showings that result in a sale. Your listing is the primary way you’ll promote your property to potential buyers. It must catch the readers’ eye and pique their curiosity.
Here’s the Hook
Two things that immediately capture the buyer’s eyes are the listing’s headline and the photo. The headline should be concise and grab the buyer’s attention within a second. Strong headlines emphasize features that will benefit buyers. For example, the selling price, the home’s overall condition, location, or key features, such as over-sized bedrooms, a large garage or a pool are benefits that can be mentioned in the headline. If you include the price in the headline, prospective buyers will immediately know if the home is within their price range.
Consider Your Opening
The opening statement of the real estate listing should begin by highlighting two or three of the home’s strongest features in one or two sentences. State the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and note additional things that make the home stand out, such as the neighborhood, an ample area for gardening or proximity to shopping or medical centers.
Don’t Leave it to the Imagination
The description of the real estate listing outlines the home’s primary features and describes what home buyers will get for the price. Don’t leave any positive aspect of the house to the buyer’s imagination. You should include all of the basic information that the buyer seeks such as: number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, homes square footage, lot size, home’s location, size of the garage and any recent renovations that the home has undergone.
Keep it Concise
When you write your real estate listing, make the property sound interesting, but avoid using “fluff” to increase the word count. Fluff words are non-descriptive in nature. For example, writing that the home is “lovely” or the buyer’s “dream home” doesn’t offer useful information. Because buyers’ tastes and preferences vary, it’s best to avoid using empty adjectives. Instead of using non-descriptive words in your listing, focus on words that provide valuable information, such as “tree-lined street.” The reader will instantly know that the street has ample trees, shade and curb appeal. Don’t focus on colors or home decor, because those things can be changed after purchase.
Leave Them Wanting More
The closing statement lets your buyer know an important tidbit about the property such as “owner financing available” or “qualifies for FHA/VA financing.” You can also list dates or times for an upcoming open house in the closing statement.
Make it Easy
Make it easy for prospective homebuyers to schedule a viewing or ask questions by providing contact information at the end of the listing. Providing a way to quickly contact you helps ensure that the buyer can speak to you before he or she loses interest in the listing. Include your name, phone number and email address.
A well-written real estate listing is the most important way to generate possible buyers for your property. Taking a little extra time to write a compelling listing will help you promote the property and increase the odds that it will sell quickly.
