Are you and your REALTOR® speaking the same language?

We see a lot of property listings here at Roost. And we’re self-confessed data geeks. So, when someone came up with the idea to analyze what those listings really tell home seekers, we couldn’t resist the challenge, and dove right in.

We wanted to take a look at some of the most commonly used words brokers use to describe homes for sale, and see how they varied by region and price bracket.

This was a fascinating project for us, and gave us a real insight into real estate trends across the country. Even simple adjectives like ‘new’, ‘nice’, ‘beautiful’ and ‘wonderful’ can give you a sense of how tastes vary region to region, and we also found some quirkier terms, including ‘wow’, ‘cool’, ‘savvy’ and my personal favorite ‘fussiest’.

It also gave us a look at how house prices are faring across the US, with many listings featuring the words ‘reduced’ or ‘reduction’ in their descriptions.

You can find more on this here: http://www.businesswire.com, but here are some of the top-line results to take a look at. It was definitely a fun project, but of course, there’s a serious point. Everything we do here at Roost is aimed at making the home search experience easier, faster and less painful for consumers. By helping both buyers and sellers learn which features and characteristics are most marketed in their city and within their price range – we can help them make the right decisions.

So, here’s the data, but let us know what you think. What’s the weirdest word you’ve ever seen used to describe a property? Are quirky descriptions helpful, or a hindrance? Do they help you stand out, or filter you out of the game? Looking forward to your feedback.

Top ten adjectives used to describe homes, by metropolitan area:

Top ten adjectives used to describe homes, by price and metropolitan area:

	Homes less than $250,000	Homes $251,000 to $500,000	Homes $501,000 to $750,000	Homes $751,000 to $1,000,000	Homes $1,000,000 to $1,500,000	Homes $1,500,000 to $2,000,000	Homes more than $2,000,000
Boston	New Great Large Nice Newer Updated Fenced Finished Beautiful Colonial	New Large Great Open Beautiful Colonial Private Finished Spacious Updated	New Large Colonial Private Open Great Custom Beautiful Spacious Finished	New Custom Large Private Colonial Open Great Beautiful Spacious Finished	Custom New Private Colonial Large Great Open Beautiful Formal Spacious	Custom Private New Colonial Open Large Beautiful Gourmet Designed Spacious	Private Custom New Colonial Spectacular Detail Designed Beautiful Large Magnificent
Chicago	New Large Great Newer Fenced Huge Nice Finished Beautiful Updated	New Large Great Huge Beautiful Newer Finished Spacious Open Updated	New Large Custom Huge Great Beautiful Story Finished Open Spacious	New Custom Large Huge Great Beautiful Open Finished Private Gourmet	New Custom Great Huge Large Beautiful Cherry Gourmet Private Open	Custom New Gourmet Huge Great Beautiful Large Cherry Private Open	New Custom Private Stunning Beautiful Finished Construction Large Cherry Great
Dallas	Large Great New Open Beautiful Nice Covered Paint Huge Spacious	Large Custom Beautiful Great Open New Huge Covered Spacious Gorgeous	Custom Large Beautiful Great Open Huge Gourmet New Private Gorgeous	Custom Large Beautiful Great Open Gourmet Huge Private New Covered	Custom Large Beautiful Gourmet Private Open Great Gorgeous Huge Spacious	Custom Large Beautiful Gourmet Private Open Huge New Covered Fabulous	Custom Large Gourmet Beautiful Private French Huge Great Gated Country
Washington, D.C.	New Great Large Fenced Nice Finished Sold Beautiful Spacious Updated	New Large Great Beautiful Finished Open Fenced Huge Spacious Well	New Large Great Beautiful Finished Open Huge Colonial Custom Gourmet	New Custom Large Gourmet Beautiful Great Open Huge Private Finished	New Custom Gourmet Large Private Open Great Huge Finished Beautiful	Custom New Gourmet Private Great Open Beautiful Large Finished Huge	Custom Private New Gourmet Large Great Beautiful Spectacular Grand Open
Miami	Great New Beautiful Large Nice Owned Single Spacious Motivated Corner	Great Beautiful New Large Spacious Nice Corner Remodeled Huge Motivated	Beautiful Great New Large Spacious Miami Corner Huge Gated Private	Beautiful Great New Large Gated Corner Huge Miami Updated Spacious	New Beautiful Great Large Spacious Remodeled Gated Updated Private Gorgeous	New Beautiful Great GatedCustom Renovated Spacious Best Finishes Gorgeous	New Gated Custom Private Beautiful Construction Spectacular Prestigious Miami Magnificent
Orange County	Great Large New Nice Beautiful Newer Spacious Open Paint Huge	New Large Great Nice Beautiful Newer Spacious Huge Open Remodeled	New Large Great Beautiful Custom Newer Spacious Remodeled Private Huge	Large New Custom Great Beautiful Private Formal Huge Open Spacious	Large Custom New Private Beautiful Great Huge Formal Open Spacious	Custom Large Private Beautiful New Formal Great Gourmet Huge Center	Custom Large Private New Gourmet Beautiful Gated Formal Great Huge
San Francisco	Great Large New Newer Nice Maintained Sold Big Spacious Beautiful	Great Large New Beautiful Nice Spacious Remodeled Well Open Newer	New Large Great Remodeled Beautiful Updated Spacious Easy Formal Open	New Large Formal Remodeled Spacious Great Lower Beautiful Open Huge	Large New Remodeled Open Spacious Beautiful Landscaped Huge Custom Gourmet	Large Formal Remodeled Spacious New Huge Beautiful Great Private Custom	Large Great Open Private Stunning Custom Beautiful New Lower Modern
San Jose	Great Large New Nice Beautiful Owned Well Newer Open Perfect	Great New Large Nice Beautiful Spacious Newer Well Open Huge	New Great Large Beautiful Remodeled Newer Spacious Nice Pane Open	New Large Great Beautiful Remodeled Open Spacious Custom Private Huge	New Large Great Beautiful Custom Private Open Remodeled Spacious Huge	New Custom Large Great Private Open Beautiful Spacious Gourmet Remodeled	New Private Large Custom Great Gourmet Beautiful Open Formal Spacious
St. Louis	New Large Great Newer Updated Lower Finished Beautiful Ranch Open	Large Great New Custom Beautiful Open Lower Finished Spacious Newer	Custom Large Great New Private Beautiful Lower Open Finished Spacious	Custom Large Great Lower New Beautiful Private Finished Hearth Spacious	Custom Private Great Large Hearth Beautiful Lower New Luxury Finished	Custom Great Private Large Hearth Lower Beautiful Finished New Gourmet	Custom Large Hearth Lower Great Private Beautiful Finished Fabulous Gourmet