How to Write Real Estate Listing Descriptions in 60 Seconds (Without Sounding Like a Robot)

You’ve got six new listings to write up. It’s 4:30pm. You haven’t started a single one.

So you do what every agent does: open a blank document, stare at it for two minutes, then type “Welcome to this stunning family home nestled in…” for the forty-seventh time this year.

Or maybe you’ve already tried ChatGPT. You typed “write me a property listing for a 4 bedroom house” and got back something that sounded like it was written by a robot pretending to be a real estate agent pretending to be a poet. You tried it twice, decided AI was useless for this, and went back to your template.

Here’s the thing: AI can write genuinely good listing descriptions in about 60 seconds. You just need to know how to ask.

These are the exact prompts we use with agencies across the Mid North Coast. Copy them. Use them today. They work.

Why Your First Attempt at AI Listing Descriptions Was Terrible

Let’s be honest about what happens when most agents try AI for the first time.

You open ChatGPT, type something like:

“Write a property listing for a 3 bedroom house in Port Macquarie with a pool”

And you get back:

“Welcome to this exquisite residence nestled in the heart of Port Macquarie! This stunning 3-bedroom masterpiece offers an unparalleled lifestyle opportunity. Step inside and be greeted by soaring ceilings and an abundance of natural light. The gourmet kitchen is a chef’s dream, featuring premium appliances and stone countertops. Outside, the sparkling in-ground pool beckons, providing the perfect oasis for relaxation and entertainment. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”

Let’s count the problems:

1. “Exquisite residence” — nobody talks like this. Not even at open homes.
2. “Chef’s dream” — the kitchen has a Westinghouse oven and laminate benchtops. It’s fine. It’s not a dream.
3. “Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” — it’s a three-bedder in Settlement City, not the Sistine Chapel.
4. “Soaring ceilings” — they’re 2.4 metres. Standard. Decidedly non-soaring.
5. Zero actual detail. No street feel, no neighbourhood, no lifestyle angle. It could be describing literally any house in any town in Australia.

This is what happens when you give AI no context. It falls back on the overwrought, cliché-ridden copy that dominates listing sites. It’s learned from millions of bad listings, so it writes bad listings. Faster.

The good news? The fix isn’t complicated. You need three things.

The 3 Ingredients of a Listing Description That Actually Works

Every great AI listing description comes down to context, voice, and structure. Miss one and you get generic mush.

1. Context (Tell It What Makes This Property This Property)

“3 bedroom house with a pool” describes about 40,000 properties in NSW alone. What makes this listing different? Feed it the specifics:

• The street and neighbourhood feel — quiet cul-de-sac? Walk to the beach? Backing onto bushland?
• Standout features — not every feature, the ones that matter. The north-facing alfresco. The oversized double garage with workshop space. The original hardwood floors.
• The buyer — who is this for? Downsizers? Young families? Investors chasing yield?
• Honest scale — don’t say “spacious” when you mean “adequate.” The AI will exaggerate if you let it.

2. Voice (Tell It How Your Agency Sounds)

Every agency has a voice, even if you’ve never written it down. If you don’t tell AI yours, it defaults to “American real estate brochure circa 2019.” That’s how you end up with “countertops” instead of “benchtops” and “yard” instead of “backyard.”

A simple instruction like “Write in a warm, professional Australian tone — conversational but not casual” makes an enormous difference.

3. Structure (Tell It What Format You Want)

Punchy hook then three paragraphs? Short intro followed by dot points? Lifestyle lead, then specs?

AI will ramble if you don’t give it rails. Tell it the format and length, and it’ll deliver something you can actually use — not a 400-word essay when you needed 150 words for the portal.

3 Prompts That Actually Work

Here are three prompts you can copy right now, fill in the blanks, and start using today. Each one is designed for a different property type.

Prompt 1: Standard Residential

This is your bread-and-butter listing. The three or four-bedder that makes up 70% of your stock.

Write a real estate listing description for the following property.

PROPERTY DETAILS:
- Address/area: [e.g., quiet street in the Lighthouse Beach area of Port Macquarie]
- Type: [e.g., single-level brick and tile family home]
- Bedrooms: [X] | Bathrooms: [X] | Car spaces: [X]
- Land size: [approx sqm]
- Key features: [list 4-6 standout features, e.g., renovated kitchen with stone benchtops and 900mm cooktop, north-facing covered alfresco, split-system air conditioning throughout, separate lounge and open-plan living/dining, fully fenced backyard with side access]
- Condition/style: [e.g., well-maintained original home with modern updates]
- Ideal buyer: [e.g., young families, first home buyers, downsizers]
- Nearby: [e.g., 5-minute drive to Town Beach, walking distance to Lighthouse Beach Public School, close to Settlement City shopping]

WRITING INSTRUCTIONS:
- Tone: Warm, professional, Australian. Conversational but not casual.
- Length: 120-180 words.
- Structure: One punchy hook sentence, then 2-3 short paragraphs covering lifestyle appeal, property highlights, and location.
- Use Australian property terms (lounge, ensuite, alfresco, benchtops, NBN, council rates — NOT living room, countertops, yard).
- DO NOT use: "stunning," "exquisite," "masterpiece," "dream home," "once-in-a-lifetime," "entertainer's delight," "abundance of natural light," or "nestled."
- Be specific and honest. Don't exaggerate features.
- End with a clear call to action.

Prompt 2: Luxury / Prestige

For your higher-end listings where the copy needs to do more heavy lifting and justify the price point.

Write a prestige real estate listing description for the following property.

PROPERTY DETAILS:
- Address/area: [e.g., elevated position in Shelly Beach with panoramic ocean views]
- Type: [e.g., architecturally designed two-storey residence]
- Bedrooms: [X] | Bathrooms: [X] | Car spaces: [X]
- Land size: [approx sqm]
- Premium features: [list 6-8 standout features, e.g., floor-to-ceiling glass capturing 180-degree coastal views, designer kitchen with integrated Miele appliances and waterfall island bench, master suite with walk-in robe and freestanding bath, heated infinity-edge pool, landscaped grounds with mature native plantings, home automation system, Tesla charger in garage]
- Build/design: [e.g., completed 2023 by [builder], designed by [architect]]
- Lifestyle angle: [e.g., wake-up ocean views, walk to Shelly Beach, easy access to CBD]
- Ideal buyer: [e.g., executive families, sea-changers from Sydney, luxury downsizers]

WRITING INSTRUCTIONS:
- Tone: Polished and confident, but not pretentious. Think premium Australian coastal, not Manhattan penthouse.
- Length: 180-250 words.
- Structure: Evocative opening line that sets the scene (focus on the feeling, not just features), then 3-4 paragraphs — one on design/build quality, one on key internal features, one on outdoor living and lifestyle, one on location.
- Use Australian property terms throughout.
- DO NOT use: "luxurious," "opulent," "palatial," "unparalleled," "bespoke" (unless it genuinely is), "resort-style living," or "entertainer's paradise."
- Let the features speak for themselves. Understatement sells prestige better than hyperbole.
- End with a line that creates urgency without being pushy.

Prompt 3: Rural / Lifestyle Property

Acreage, hobby farms, and lifestyle blocks need a completely different approach. The buyer isn’t comparing floor plans — they’re buying a feeling.

Write a rural lifestyle property listing description for the following property.

PROPERTY DETAILS:
- Address/area: [e.g., 15 minutes west of Port Macquarie in Sancrox]
- Type: [e.g., established homestead on 10 productive acres]
- Bedrooms: [X] | Bathrooms: [X] | Car spaces: [X sheds/garages]
- Land size: [total acres/hectares]
- Land features: [e.g., mix of cleared pasture and natural bushland, spring-fed dam, bore water, town water also connected, fully fenced into 4 paddocks with post-and-rail horse yards]
- Home features: [list 4-6, e.g., wraparound verandah, country kitchen with AGA stove, slow combustion fireplace, original timber floors, separate studio/home office]
- Outbuildings: [e.g., 3-bay machinery shed, separate stable block, chook run]
- Lifestyle angle: [e.g., run a few head of cattle, keep horses, hobby farm with enough land to be productive but close enough to town for schools and shopping]
- Ideal buyer: [e.g., tree-changers, equestrian families, hobby farmers]

WRITING INSTRUCTIONS:
- Tone: Relaxed, genuine, earthy. Like a conversation over the back fence, not a magazine spread.
- Length: 150-200 words.
- Structure: Opening that paints the lifestyle picture (morning coffee on the verandah, that kind of thing), then practical details about the land and infrastructure, then the home, then proximity to town/services.
- Use Australian rural property terms (paddocks, dam, bore, shedding, yards — NOT ranch, barn, acreage estate).
- DO NOT use: "sprawling," "idyllic retreat," "escape the rat race," "tree-change paradise," or "country charm."
- Balance the dream with the practical. Rural buyers want to know about water, fencing, and shed space as much as views.
- End with an invitation to inspect.

Before and After: The Difference Good Prompting Makes

Let’s see this in action. Same property, two approaches.

The property: A renovated 3-bed, 2-bath home in Port Macquarie’s Lighthouse Beach area. 650sqm block. Updated kitchen. North-facing alfresco. Walk to the beach.

❌ Before (Generic Prompt → Generic Output)

“Welcome to this stunning family home in the sought-after Lighthouse Beach area! This beautifully renovated 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom residence offers an exceptional lifestyle opportunity. The heart of the home is the gourmet kitchen, featuring sleek modern finishes and ample storage. Flowing seamlessly to the outdoor entertaining area, this home is perfect for those who love to host. With the beach just moments away and quality schools nearby, this is coastal living at its finest. Don’t miss out!”

“Stunning.” “Sought-after.” “Heart of the home.” “Flowing seamlessly.” I’ve read this listing four thousand times on realestate.com.au, and it’s never once told me anything useful about the actual property.

✅ After (Using the Standard Residential Prompt)

“A five-minute walk to the sand and you don’t even need to cross a main road — that’s the reality of living in this pocket of Lighthouse Beach.

This solid three-bedder has been smartly renovated where it counts: a clean, modern kitchen with stone benchtops and quality appliances, a fully updated main bathroom, and fresh paint throughout. The master has a walk-in robe and ensuite, and bedrooms two and three are genuine doubles — not the ‘doubles’ that barely fit a queen.

Out the back, the north-facing covered alfresco is the standout. Morning sun, afternoon shade, and enough room for a proper outdoor dining setup. The 650sqm block is fully fenced with a decent backyard — plenty of room for kids and a dog.

Lighthouse Beach Public School is an easy walk. Settlement City’s five minutes in the car. This is the kind of house that doesn’t need a sales pitch — it just needs an inspection. Book yours today.”

Same property. Same AI. Completely different result.

The second version has personality and specifics. It tells you something you’d actually want to know (no main road to cross to the beach — that matters to parents). It’s honest about the bedrooms. It sounds like a real person wrote it.

That’s what good prompting does.

When to DIY vs When to Get Help

The prompts above will genuinely save you hours every week. For most standard listings, they’re all you need.

But there are situations where prompt templates hit their limits:

• Consistency at scale — 15 agents writing listings means 15 different voices. A properly configured system keeps every listing on-brand.
• Your agency voice — the prompts above use a generic “warm and professional” tone. Your agency has its own personality. Dialling that in takes more than a one-line instruction.
• Workflow integration — copying prompts into ChatGPT works, but it’s still manual. The real savings come when AI is wired into your listing workflow — pull specs from your CRM, generate the description, push it straight to the portals.
• Quality control — AI occasionally hallucinates details or misses the tone. A well-built system has guardrails. A raw ChatGPT prompt doesn’t.

Solo agent doing a handful of listings a month? The DIY approach is genuinely enough. Start there.

Running a team, doing volume, or want every listing to sound unmistakably like your agency? That’s where a properly tuned system earns its keep.

We cover this in detail in our complete guide to AI in real estate, and if you’ve tried AI and given up, you’ll recognise yourself in our piece on the five mistakes real estate agencies make with AI.

Start With One Listing

Pick one listing you need to write this week. Use one of the prompts above. See what comes back.

You’ll need to tweak it — change a word here, add a detail there. But you’ll be tweaking a solid draft instead of staring at a blank page. That’s a fundamentally different starting point.

The agents we work with go from 20-30 minutes per listing down to 2-3 minutes of tweaking. Over a year, across a team, that’s hundreds of hours back.

Hours you could spend on prospecting, client relationships, or leaving the office before 6pm.

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Want a listing engine tuned to your agency’s voice? One that knows your area, matches your brand, and plugs into the way your team already works? Book a free assessment at headlanddigital.com.au/assessment and we’ll show you what’s possible.

Curious what your existing database is really worth? Run the numbers with our Database Value Calculator — or see the full breakdown in Your Real Estate Database is a Goldmine. You can also estimate the total time and cost savings with our AI ROI Calculator.