How to Make Money By Avoiding These Words in Ads
Is this the home you are trying to sell?
Or is it something closer to this?
Property descriptions influence how buyers frame the home before they see it. Certain familiar phrases can communicate useful information, but they can also imply defects, limitations, or negotiating leverage that the seller did not intend to emphasize. The issue is not whether a word is inherently good or bad. The more useful question is whether it accurately describes the property and supports the position you want the marketing to convey.
- “Cheap” or “low-priced”: These terms may communicate affordability, but they can also suggest low quality. If pricing is a competitive advantage, “competitively priced” is more precise, or the asking price can simply be allowed to establish the value proposition on its own.
- “Fixer-upper,” “handyman’s special,” or “needs work”: These phrases can be appropriate when the property is intentionally being marketed to renovation-oriented buyers or investors. The drawback is their lack of precision. “Original kitchen ready for updating” provides more useful information than “needs work” because it identifies the condition without encouraging buyers to assume the entire property requires extensive repairs.
- “As-is”: The term can accurately describe the seller’s position or the transaction structure, but buyers may interpret it as evidence of undisclosed problems. When the property is being sold as-is, clear disclosure of known conditions and accurate property information can reduce unnecessary ambiguity about what the term means in that particular transaction.
- “Motivated seller”: This phrase is often intended to create urgency, but it can also communicate negotiating flexibility. If urgency is the objective, it may be more effective to highlight an objective factor such as pricing, availability, recent improvements, or another verifiable property advantage.
- “Outdated” or “old-fashioned”: These are subjective descriptions. A more precise approach is to identify what is original or what has not been updated. “Original cabinetry,” “vintage tile,” or “ready for personal updates” conveys the condition without making a judgment for the buyer.
- “Cozy,” “quaint,” or “small”: These terms can be positive, but they provide little objective information. If the property has an efficient layout, reading nook, compact dining area, or particularly effective use of square footage, describing those features directly gives buyers a more accurate basis for evaluating the space.
- “Quiet neighborhood” or “peaceful area”: These phrases are subjective and can also introduce unnecessary issues in residential advertising. A stronger approach is to identify objective, verifiable location features such as nearby parks, shopping, transportation, trails, restaurants, or other amenities and let buyers decide how those characteristics fit their preferences.
- “Unique” or “one-of-a-kind”: These words communicate little unless they are supported by specifics. If the property has a detached studio, custom millwork, a hand-built stone fireplace, an unusually large lot, or another distinctive feature, naming that feature is more persuasive than labeling the property “unique.”
- “Good for investors”: This may be appropriate when investors are the intended audience, but it can also narrow perceived demand. If investment potential is an important selling point, explain what supports it. Existing rental income, renovation potential, applicable zoning, or other verifiable property characteristics give the buyer information that can actually be evaluated.
- “Starter home” or “entry level”: These phrases classify the property according to an assumed buyer profile rather than describing the property itself. Bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage, maintenance requirements, improvements, outdoor space, and other objective features provide more useful information and allow buyers to decide independently whether the home fits their needs.
ONE MORE THING: DESCRIBE THE PROPERTY, NOT THE BUYER
Residential real estate advertising is subject to fair housing laws that prohibit expressing preferences or limitations based on protected characteristics. From both a compliance and marketing standpoint, the better practice is to focus on the property, its condition, its features, and objective nearby amenities rather than describing the type of person who should live there.
The underlying principle is straightforward: specific facts usually outperform vague labels. Instead of calling a home “unique,” explain what distinguishes it. Instead of saying it “needs work,” identify the areas that need updating. Instead of saying it is “good for investors,” explain the actual investment characteristics.
Accurate information reduces ambiguity. Specific information improves positioning.
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If you’re marketing the property yourself, the effectiveness of the description can be evaluated the same way as the rest of the marketing: does it accurately position the property, communicate the strongest relevant facts, and generate the response you expected? If you’d like another perspective on pricing, presentation, wording, or buyer response, I’m happy to review it with you. A second set of experienced eyes can sometimes identify where the message and the market are not quite lining up.
