As a real estate agent, trying to describe the home you are listing can be daunting. What can you say about this particular home that you haven’t said before in your other listings? How can you make it enticing and exciting without using too many exclamation points or words like massive and stunning? Exclamation points are great but can be tedious and annoying if too many of them show up in your MLS copy. And words like massive and stunning have been done to death.
The fact is you want to paint a picture for potential buyers. What’s inside? How can you get them into the home just by your words? Sure, you have pictures added to your listing page, but sometimes pictures don’t do it justice.
When starting to write your copy, take a few things into consideration.
1) Look at what the place has to offer. Make a list of all the amazing features that will draw in potential buyers.
2) Put a positive spin on the negative. A small backyard doesn’t have to be seen as a bad thing. Turn it into a positive by its other lovely features. Less lawn to mow or have intimate dinner parties in the summer time.
3) Don’t use too many adjectives-show, don’t tell. Paint a picture.
4) Put the potential buyer in the house before they actually step into the house. “Stepping through the double pine doors, you are immediately enveloped by a warm contrast of colours. Walking in further, you realize there is more to this house than the three bedrooms and two baths. You get a sense of home.”
5) Use a tag line. A tag line is your starter sentence, something that grabs the attention of the reader and doesn’t let go. One way of doing this is by making your first sentence a question. For instance, “Looking for a 4 level split with a gorgeous rock garden and amazing vaulted ceilings?” After the buyer reads this, he/she just might say, “Yes, as a matter of fact, I am.” And keep reading, finally making an appointment to see the home.
People are looking for more enticing copy than the standard, ‘A Must See.’ They should want to see the place without having that trigger to see it. Grab their attention and hold it there. The next thing you know, the house will be sold.
Tamara Hanson, B.A. Psych., has been a writer for more than 12 years. With one self-published young adult novel (Dream Weavers), two other novels awaiting publication and over 20 articles published throughout various magazines, she has firmly rooted herself in the writing community. Her desire is to inspire and ignite the creative writing spark in adults and children alike. Visit her at [http://www.thewritersmentor.ca] or http://members.shaw.ca/tamara.hanson
