Estate agent cliches ''put buyers off''


Fri 9th Nov, 12:09:56 GMT

Estate agents are at risk of deterring house hunters from viewing properties if they make use of cliched terms, according to a new poll.

Some buyers who see common phrases such as "up and coming area" and "efficient use of space" in sales material would not bother going to look round a property before ruling it out, the study by listings website craigslist revealed.

Agents suggesting that a property would "suit a DIY enthusiast" convince 20 per cent of would-be homeowners that the property is not worth viewing, while describing a home as benefiting from "renovation" would also make buyers nervous.

Jim Buckmaster, chief executive of craigslist, commented: "Certain phrases appear so often in property ads that they have become cliches.

"Many are also euphemisms. They say one thing but mean another, which rings alarm bells for a lot of people reading them."

Earlier this year, Glasgow University word usage expert Susan Oates conducted a study into how estate agents used words and found their language became more elaborate during property booms.

Ms Oates told the Scotland on Sunday newspaper that buyers could "overlook a perfectly good property because of the language used to describe it".ADNFCR-1143-ID-18349637-ADNFCR


News Home




 Print   Send to a Friend   Discuss in Forum   RSS Feed



Share this article:

  Digg it    Del.icio.us    Reddit    Newsvine    Nowpublic   






Search News Archive: