If you're a home seller looking to get noticed by the millions of prospective buyers browsing online
Leave out a key phrase like "hardwood flooring" and you could easily get passed over by buyers would have found your listing in a search otherwise.
Real estate tracker Trulia recently began studying the psychology and strategy behind online home listings –– namely, the buzzwords that are used to sell them.
“We aim to reveal how consumers and professionals think and talk about real estate, and the strategies they use to buy and sell homes,” said Jed Kolko, Trulia’s Chief Economist.
“Insights from listings and search behavior are the color commentary behind the price trends and other numbers that we regularly track.”
For well-heeled buyers, it turns out features like paneled libraries, powder rooms and parlor floors are most often used to describe luxury homes.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, deeming a pad a "cute little bungalow" is a major clue that it is a) inexpensive (on average, about $62,000) and b) going to need some work, according to Trulia.
Here are the 20 most common phrases used in luxury and low-cost home listings.
|
Phrases in the Most Expensive Listings |
||
|
# |
Phrase |
Average price of listings containing phrase |
|
1 |
parlor floor |
$4,935,632 |
|
2 |
formal gardens |
$4,006,401 |
|
3 |
paneled library |
$3,740,836 |
|
4 |
magnificent estate |
$3,646,040 |
|
5 |
Lutron lighting |
$3,524,588 |
|
6 |
public rooms |
$3,451,456 |
|
7 |
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity |
$3,402,801 |
|
8 |
highest level |
$3,388,751 |
|
9 |
motor court |
$3,359,954 |
|
10 |
two powder rooms |
$3,346,560 |
_________________________
And here is the other extreme:
|
Phrases in the Least Expensive Listings |
||
|
# |
Phrase |
Average price of listings containing phrase |
|
1 |
minimum commission applies |
$27,569 |
|
2 |
lead based paint notices |
$39,939 |
|
3 |
mold-like substance |
$45,094 |
|
4 |
defective paint |
$45,974 |
|
5 |
city inspection |
$55,661 |
|
6 |
repair plumbing system |
$59,064 |
|
7 |
cute little bungalow |
$61,870 |
|
8 |
septic repairs |
$62,004 |
|
9 |
hud owned offered as-is |
$64,547 |
|
10 |
starter home investment property |
$65,041 |