When listing your home for sale, there are some keywords that can be more influential than others for describing your home’s features. This article by Daniel Goldstein of MarketWatch highlights a Zillow analysis of the most effective keywords and phrases, and how they can impact the sales value of your home and the length of time on the market.
When it comes to listing your home, choose your words carefully. Zillow analyzed more than 60 keywords used in 2 million real estate listings between January 2014 and March 2016 and concluded that buyers jumped at certain features more than others. For example, home listings that contained the words “barn door” (a rustic-style sliding door often found in kitchen pantries and bedroom closets) sold for more than 13% above the expected value and 57 days faster. Other keywords that helped sell homes faster and at higher values included the terms “Shaker cabinet” and “subway tile,” as well as “farmhouse sink” and “Craftsman-style.”
Zillow noted that there were regional differences, too. “Craftsman” proved popular in Seattle, helping move homes off the market 14 days faster and with a 5.4% price premium.
Skylar Olsen, a senior economist with Zillow, noted that phrases like “new carpet” or “new paint” had no significant effect on listing price and days on market, as they may be regarded as a last-minute (and low-cost) effort by a seller to make the home more desirable prior to putting it on the market, but homes with “hardwood floors” in their listings sold for 2% more, on average.
