Up Your Blurb Appeal

Your listings may have great curb appeal, but are you telling their story as effectively as you can? While the photos—and prices—may first grab buyers' attention online, your property descriptions offer up another important piece to the marketing puzzle, says Melynda Capps, a sales associate with 1st Choice Realty in Citrus Heights, Calif. "The appeal of a home is usually not just a double oven or bamboo flooring, and words like 'wonderful' don't usually say much," says Capps. "The property description offers a chance to sell the luxury of a home."

When Capps started in real estate, her ads read like most others, a long list of features: "Wolf range, granite, lg island, butlers pantry w/ice maker/wine fridge . . ." Eventually she realized she was overlooking an opportunity to make more of an emotional connection with buyers. On a $1.2 million listing she crafted a narrative—"Living is easy in this impressive, generously spacious residence with Delta views and access"—then led buyers through a verbal tour, carefully noting the "sleek and stylish gourmet kitchen that flows through the dining room" and how the "expansive living room opens up to a spacious rear patio with pool and spa." She realized then that all of her listings, including entry-level homes listing for below $200,000, would benefit from rich, descriptive prose that made the homes come alive to buyers.

Indeed, other real estate professionals are hiring professional writers to improve their property prose. Real estate copywriter Valerie Haboush, once dubbed by The New York Times as a "poet of property," has made a business out of writing lyrical property descriptions for two decades. Her clients have included The Corcoran Group, Douglas Elliman, Coldwell Banker, and Sotheby's International Realty. She charges an average of $150 per ad, though the price varies depending on the length and scope of work required.

"You can use words to create a feeling for a place," Haboush says. "When you start describing the richness of the kitchen cabinets or the fineness of the finishes and that perfect place to prepare gourmet meals in the kitchen—you start to create a picture."