“When Edited Listings Draw Home Buyers”

Marilyn Kennedy Melia

Buyers like home sellers with nothing to hide. At the same time, sellers benefit if their property isn’t hastily discarded from a buyer’s list of homes worthy of a tour. A study recently published in e Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics finds that more information [words and photos] in online listings usually correlates with better sales results.

Maureen McDermut, a Montecito, CA real estate broker agrees: “In my experience, the more you can showcase in the typical listing, the more buyers will be interested in the home.” e goal isn’t to hide features, Waller says, but rather to “bring more buyers in to see the home.” is “less is more” strategy also is effective for high-end homes, which are also more likely to have custom, taste-specific attributes.

However, “properties with more taste specific attributes” can benefit with less information, says Bennie Waller, a professor at the University of Alabama, and one of the study authors.

Features like unique architectural elements or unusual floor plans can be more effective with less documentation – since some buyers will eliminate a home simply because of an unusual characteristic.

Deciding on which and how many images to include in a listing is a nuanced question, says Bret Ceren, of Corcoran Platinum Living Realty, Scottsdale, AZ. “Previews for movies and shows are not the full experience, just enough so that we know if we want to see it all.”

Once a buyer is touring a home, Julie Roback, agent with Baird & Warner, Glen Ellyn, Il., believes that written information should be available that answers any question she anticipates buyers might pose, from the age of appliances to where light fixtures were purchased.

Supplying information at the home itself is “probably smart to make sure there’s nothing surprising that comes up on an inspection report,” agrees Waller.

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