One needs to be a wordsmith to successfully sell a home, a new study found.
A recent research conducted by Bennie Waller, professor of finance and real estate at Longwood University in Farmville, Va., revealed that words in listing descriptions can determine the premium or loss a home would sell for given the stats are "factually verifiable."
Waller studied about 16,383 central Virginia listing descriptions over a period of nine years (2000-09) and their sale prices to arrive at the conclusion. He found that each property feature mentioned in the listing increases the price of the property by a little less than1 percent and the probability of selling by an average of 9.2 percent.
Waller also found that words like "fabulous" or "beautiful" increased the sale price by 0.9 percent, which means if there are 10 positive words in the description, the value of the property could increase by 9 percent.
However, that doesn't mean you can go on a prose-writing spree in listing descriptions. The experts warn that one must be discreet about the adjectives usage. They found that too many words, when compared to the average, could bring down the price by 6 percent.
"You have one or two seconds to capture the buyer or buyer's agent's attention, and you need to sell [your home] as effectively and efficiently as possible. You need to carefully choose your vernacular, but at the same time, not become verbose. There can be some puffing, but too much of it will encourage the buyer to look elsewhere," Waller told The Wall Street Journal.
Waller also explained that the words should be enough to keep the buyer wanting for more. Too many words will give away everything to the customer and they will probably have nothing to call you about.
The paper titled, "The Impact of Broker Vernacular in Residential Real Estate," has been accepted by the Journal of Housing Research.
This is not the first of a kind study. In 2011, another study by economist Paul Anglin found that words helped cut market time of a listed home. Industry experts agree.
"There's usually something that can be said in a positive way which will force a buyer reading an ad to see opportunities. It's important to help a seller elaborate on their home's assets with details and to give the buyer a visual," Realtor.com quoted Catherine Lindstadt, an associate broker at Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate in an earlier interview citing Newsday.
While, there is no hard and fast rule that can ensure a home's profitable sale, using the right real estate lingo can help. A recent study by Redfin, the popular real estate brokerage firm, found that different regions use different words to describe a particular home feature.
Another study found that the word "Master suite" or "Master bedroom" may soon become extinct in the property word world.
