How to write a property listing description (template)

A good listing description isn't clever writing. It lets someone decide in ten seconds whether the place might suit them, and gives them a reason to enquire about yours rather than the one next to it. This guide works whether you're an agent writing your fortieth listing this month or an owner letting a flat for the first time: how to build the headline, what goes in the opening lines, which facts are required, and two templates to copy, one for a sale and one for a let.

The rules below are written for the UK first, with notes for the US where the law differs.

The short version

• Headline: property type + its strongest feature + location. No "MUST SEE!!!".
• Opening lines: what the key facts box can't show. Light, aspect, condition, what makes it different.
• Facts: size, bedrooms, bathrooms, tenure, council tax band, running costs and the EPC rating, which is a legal requirement in England and Wales.
• Honesty: describe what's there. Anything you oversell, the buyer finds out at the viewing, and you've lost the viewing.
• Photos and tour: the words support the pictures. Photos, and increasingly a walk-through tour, decide who gets in touch.

Write a headline that adds something

Rightmove, Zoopla and Zillow already show price, bedrooms and property type on the search card. Your headline doesn't need to repeat them. It needs to add what the filters miss.

A formula that works:

[Property type] + [strongest feature] + [location people recognise]

• "Top-floor flat with roof terrace, two minutes from Clapham Common"
• "Victorian terrace with a 60 ft garden, walk to Didsbury Village"
• "Refurbished studio with a separate kitchen, Zone 2"

Drop the capitals, exclamation marks and filler words like "stunning", "deceptively spacious" or "rarely available". Everyone uses them, so they say nothing. If the feature is measurable, give the number.

Opening lines: real estate listing description examples

Most people read the first couple of sentences and jump to the photos. Those sentences should answer one question: what is it like to live here?

A stunning family home in a highly sought-after location, viewing is essential to appreciate.

A three-bedroom semi with a south-facing garden that gets sun until early evening. The kitchen was refitted in 2024 and there's off-street parking for two cars. The primary school and the station are both under ten minutes' walk.

The second one isn't longer. It just replaces adjectives with facts a buyer can check.

The facts buyers look for

Gather these before you write a word of description. Every missing item becomes an email asking for it, or a buyer who moves on to the next listing.

• Size: total floor area in sq ft and m², and room dimensions if you have a floor plan.
• Bedrooms and bathrooms, and whether any bathroom is en suite.
• Tenure: freehold or leasehold. For leasehold, the years left on the lease, service charge and ground rent.
• Council tax band (or the equivalent where you are).
• Condition: needs work, good order, recently refurbished (and when).
• Heating and running costs, parking, outside space, broadband if it's unusual.
• The EPC rating (see below).

The legal side in the UK

In England and Wales, government guidance on EPCs says any advert in commercial media, including online listings and written particulars, must include the property's energy rating (the letter, not the whole certificate). Leaving it out can mean a £200 fixed penalty per advert. You also need the EPC before you start marketing, and it's valid for ten years. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate regulations.

On wider honesty, the rules changed in 2025. Since 6 April 2025, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 has replaced the old Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, and Propertymark notes that leaving out material information is now treated as an unfair commercial practice in its own right. The National Trading Standards "Parts A, B and C" material information guidance has been withdrawn and no sector-specific replacement had been published at the time of writing. As a working checklist for lettings, the old Part A put rent, deposit and council tax band on the front page of a listing (NRLA summary), which is still a sensible standard.

Practical traps to avoid:

• Calling a box room without a window a bedroom.
• Quoting a gross area that includes the garage without saying so.
• "Five minutes from the station" when it's five minutes by car.
• Photos with a lens so wide the living room looks twice its size.

Fair housing wording in the US

In the US, the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. 3604(c) makes it unlawful to publish any notice, statement or advertisement for the sale or rental of a dwelling that indicates a preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, colour, religion, sex, disability, familial status or national origin. The advertising ban applies even to some owners who are otherwise exempt from parts of the Act. The simplest rule is to describe the property and its features, not the kind of person who should live there: "three bedrooms and a fenced yard" rather than "perfect for a young family". State law can add protected classes, so check yours.

Property description template: for sale

Copy it, replace the brackets and delete any line that doesn't apply.

HEADLINE:
[Flat / Terrace / Semi] with [strongest feature: roof terrace, 60 ft garden, parking] [near / in] [area people know]

DESCRIPTION:
[Sentence 1: what you notice first. E.g. A bright first-floor flat with a 25 m² living room facing south.]
[Sentence 2: condition and recent work. E.g. Kitchen and bathroom refitted in 2024.]
[Sentence 3: the area as facts. E.g. [Station] is a four-minute walk; [school / park] is at the end of the road.]

Key facts:
- [XXX] sq ft / [XX] m²
- [X] bedrooms, [X] bathrooms ([X] en suite)
- Tenure: [freehold / leasehold, XXX years remaining]
- [Service charge £XXX a year / ground rent £XX a year]
- Council tax band [X]
- Heating: [gas central heating / heat pump / electric]
- [Parking / garden / storage]

EPC rating: [letter]

Take a 360° walk through every room before booking a viewing: [tour link]

Viewings [days and times]. Message or call [number].

Property description template: to let

Renters filter on terms before looks, so put the terms at the top.

HEADLINE:
[Furnished / Unfurnished] [X]-bed [flat / house] to let in [area], available [date]

DESCRIPTION:
[Sentence 1: the essentials. E.g. Two-bedroom second-floor flat with a lift, three minutes from [station].]
[Sentence 2: condition and kit. E.g. Kitchen with dishwasher and washing machine, new carpets throughout.]

Terms:
- Rent: £[XXX] pcm
- Deposit: £[XXX]
- Council tax band [X]
- Bills included: [none / water / all]
- Available from: [date]
- Minimum term: [X] months
- Pets: [considered / not suitable]

The property:
- [XXX] sq ft / [XX] m²
- [X] bedrooms, [X] bathrooms
- [Floor, lift, outside space, parking]

EPC rating: [letter]

Virtual tour: [tour link]

To arrange a viewing, tell us who will be living there and when you'd like to move in.

The last line of the rental template does real work. Asking for those two details in the first message saves a lot of viewings with people the flat never suited.

Where the listing goes

Agents publish through their portal feed or CRM. Private owners have fewer options in the UK: Rightmove has said that sellers must go through an estate agent to appear on it, which is why online agents with a fixed fee exist. In the US, Zillow accepts for-sale-by-owner listings, though HomeLight notes that they don't appear on the MLS and buyers have to change a search filter to see them. Check each platform's current terms before you rely on them (checked October 2026).

Photos and a tour: what makes people enquire

The words persuade someone who's already interested. The photos create the interest.

• Lead with the strongest room, usually the living room in daylight, not the front door.
• At least one photo of every room, including the bathroom. If it's missing, people assume the worst.
• Curtains open, lights on, worktops clear.
• Add a floor plan if you have one, and say if it's approximate.

A 360° tour lets someone walk through at their own pace before asking for a viewing, so the viewings you do book are with people who already know the layout. You don't need a 360 camera to make one. RoomTour, our app, guides you through about 30 shots per room on an iPhone and gives you a tour with an approximate floor plan and a link. It's a link for WhatsApp, your website and the listing (if the portal accepts it), the one for the "Take a 360° walk through every room" line in the templates above, and it also works on a QR window poster. It's iPhone-only, free for early users and not integrated with any portal; for survey-grade measurements or a full 3D dollhouse model, a Matterport-style scanner is still the better tool. Here's an example tour.

Before you publish

• Does the headline say something the filters don't?
• Are the first two sentences facts rather than adjectives?
• Is the floor area there, labelled clearly?
• Is the EPC rating there?
• Is there a photo of every room, with the best one first?
• Have you read the listing on a phone, the way most people will see it?

Frequently asked questions

How do you write a property listing description?

Lead with a headline that adds what the portal's filters can't show, open with two or three factual sentences about what it's like to live there, then list the key facts: size, bedrooms, tenure, council tax band, running costs and the EPC rating.

Do I have to show the EPC rating in a property advert?

In England and Wales, yes. Government guidance says adverts in commercial media, including online listings, must show the energy rating, with a £200 fixed penalty per advert. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules.

What are some real estate listing description examples?

Swap adjectives for facts. Instead of 'stunning home in a sought-after area', write 'South-facing garden, kitchen refitted in 2024, eight minutes' walk to the station'. The templates in this article show the full structure for a sale and a let.

What words should you avoid in a US real estate listing?

Anything that states a preference for, or against, the kind of person who should live there. The Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. 3604(c) bans adverts indicating a preference based on race, colour, religion, sex, disability, familial status or national origin. Describe the property, not the buyer.