For those in any industry who agonize over their media choices and then have someone “just bang some copy out”, here’s more evidence that every word can be precious. 

Interesting article on msn.com about how the choice of words in a listing can increase — or lower — the perceived value of the house.  

“In real-estate listings, what’s the difference between describing your home as “beautiful” versus “move-in condition”? About $12,500 on a $250,000 home. Professor Paul Anglin, a real-estate economist in Guelph, Ontario, says that homes described as “beautiful” in real-estate listings sell for 5% more while “move-in condition” has no effect on sale price.”“

Word choices can also affect the time it takes to sell.

“Listings with the words “beautiful” or “gorgeous” sold 15% faster. “Landscaping” in a listing hastened a sale by 20%. Describing a property as in “move-in condition” quickened the sale by 12%. Calling a home a “handyman special” cut sale time by half (researchers excluded listings that used the term to describe a workshop or hobby area). “

The article’s especially valuable for the chart that matches individual words up with their effect on listing price, sale price, and speed of sale.

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