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Why crafting a well-written listing description matters
No one needs to convince you that quality photos are crucial when listing a home. While a picture may be worth a thousand words, a home listing is incomplete without a compelling listing description. Writing it is harder than you might think, and there are many pitfalls to avoid.

Here are some common listing description mistakes, along with a few tips for writing listing descriptions that showcase your client’s home in the best possible terms.

1. Avoid all caps (PLEASE)

STUNNING 3 BED/2 BATH UNLIKE ANYTHING ELSE AROUND! No doubt, you’ve seen listing descriptions like this. While grabbing attention is c the goal, there are better ways to communicate passion than using the caps lock key. Your home’s listing should be professional, and all caps is anything but.

2. Communicate what the photos can’t

While quality photos are crucial to every listing, words convey what photos can’t. Use your listing description to fill in the gaps left by the photos. This is where image captions can be used to your advantage as well.

Online listings are great, but it can sometimes be hard to know exactly what you’re looking at when scrolling through 50 photos. Adding short, descriptive captions to your listing photos can help lead a prospective buyer through the home as they click through the images on their device.

3. Don’t bury the lead

While the use of all caps is certainly overkill, it’s also possible to undersell the home by leading with generic information. Since every online listing platform includes basic home information in other areas—such as number of bedrooms and bathrooms, square footage, year the home was built, etc.—there’s no need to put it in the listing description.

Use the listing description to highlight things a prospective buyer has no way of knowing otherwise. And keep the information specific to the property, at least in the beginning of the description. There’s certainly room to lay out the highlights of the neighborhood later, but you’re not selling the neighborhood, you’re selling the home. Keep the focus there.

4. Axe the fluff

If you’ve read more than a few listing descriptions, you’ve likely encountered various iterations of:

• “This home has so much to offer!”
• “This is the home for you!”
• “You’ve just found your dream home!”

It’s best to get right to the point. So instead of saying things like “this home has so much to offer,” just say what it has to offer! Cutting the clutter will help your listing stand out from the competition. One good way to ensure you’re not saying more than you need to is to have a friend, colleague, or even professional editor (if that’s an option for you) read a draft before you go live with it.

5. Proofread

You’d be surprised how many errors occur in listing descriptions that could easily have been caught by a simple proof before hitting publish. Spelling or grammatical errors may not seem like a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, but they will undermine your credibility as a professional. Avoid these errors by proofing your work.

In today’s world, the online listing description is a vital, even if sometimes overlooked, aspect of selling and buying homes. Agents who craft a compelling listing description will help their client’s land an offer in their best interest.