Ever wonder why some homes sell for a premium and others don’t? While timing definitely plays a part, turns out mentioning certain home features in your listing description can yield quite the premium– both in how fast the home sells for, and for how much.
According to a new Zillow Digs analysis, for-sale listings touting features like “subway tiles” or “barn doors” can sell for as much as 13 percent more than expected, and nearly 60 days faster than homes without those features.
“When it comes to real estate listing descriptions, words matter, ” says Svenja Gudell, Zillow chief economist. “Your listing description is an opportunity to highlight specific details and finishes that might not be visible in photos. Craftsman-style homes and amenities resonate incredibly well with today’s buyers — so if you’ve got them, flaunt them!”
Zillow Digs analyzed listing descriptions from over 2 million homes sold nationwide to see how certain keywords referring to home features, amenities and design styles impacted their sale price. This report stems from an analysis in the New York Times best-seller, “Zillow Talk: Rewriting the Rules of Real Estate, ” which looks at how certain listing descriptors like ‘unique’ or ‘captivating’ can impact final sale prices.
Barn doors
Homes mentioning “barn door” in their listing description sold for a hefty premium — 13.4 percent more than expected and 57 days faster. These rustic sliding doors are often found in modern craftsman-style homes, and are used on bedroom closets and kitchen pantries, among others.
Shaker cabinets
Listings touting “Shaker cabinets” sold for 9.6 percent above expected and 45 days faster.
Farmhouse sink
Homes boasting these trendy yet functional kitchen sinks can fetch nearly an 8-percent sales premium.
Subway tile
From kitchen backslashes to showers, subway tiles are a beautiful and classic design feature that are sure to catch a buyer’s eye. Homes mentioning subway tiles in their listings sold for nearly 7 percent more than expected and 63 days faster.
Quartz
Usually found on kitchen or bathroom countertops, listings with the word “quartz” saw a 6-percent sales premium. However, homes with “granite” only saw a 4-percent boost in sale price.
Artisan Hardware
Are you trying to work on home construction? Are you a construction worker? If you are, you might find yourself in a sticky situation: how does one build a barn?
Not all construction workers have had experience with dealing with barns. Barns are a different sort of beast than other home improvement needs. Because it is a larger size, and because the doors need to be specially made and fit, you sometimes can have trouble finding the hardware you need. In this article, I'm going to help explain some ways to get ahold of specialty barn door hardware needs.