How to Write a Rental Listing that Renters Notice

As new rental units continue to hit the market at a record rate, getting your listing noticed is harder than ever.

But what makes a rental listing pop? While there’s no one secret recipe, an attractive title, useful description, and flattering imagery are three must-have ingredients.

With that said, get more clicks, appointments, and (hopefully) signed tenants using the rental listing tips below.

How to write a scroll-stopping rental listing title

First, a title that gets people to stop scrolling and click on your listing is a must. Rather than spend time on an overly creative title (although this certainly won’t hurt), it’s more important to clearly convey key details that renters want to know.

An effective rental listing checklist:

You likely have an idea of what your renters want to know, but for guidance, here’s a checklist based on recent data digging into renter priorities:

• Overall location
• Crime index
• Amenities
• Cost of rent
• Lifestyle conveniences (i.e. access to public transportation, trails nearby, available nightlife, etc.)

An example rental listing template

Firstly, there are sites that auto-populate the title of your listing based on the information you provide. If you’re using one of these sites, you may not have to worry about writing your title. 

But if you’re not using a site that auto-populates your listing, an effective rental listing template could be:

[RENT PRICE] - [ATTRACTIVE FEATURE] [#] Bed / [#] Bath [APARTMENT, HOUSE, TOWNHOUSE, CONDO] in [NEIGHBOURHOOD] Near [ATTRACTIVE LANDMARK], [CRIME INDEX] 

In practice: $2,200 - Renovated 1 Bed / 1 Bath Condo in Financial District, Close to the Beach, A+ Crime Index

How to write a lease-signing rental listing description

Once you’ve got people in with your title, you need to keep them interested with the right description.

Think of your description as a place to fill in the blanks from your title, as a place to reinforce your standout features and touch on anything else of interest to your renters including:

• Utilities
• Stance on pets (learn more about landlord legal rights for renters with pets)
• Application process
• Contact name and number

You can also touch on nice-to-haves, such as: 

• Existing high-speed internet
• Natural light
• Balcony
• Dishwasher
• Secure building access
• In-unit laundry
• Renovations
• Outdoor space (i.e. balconies or backyards)
• Dedicated workspaces separate from the bedroom or living room
• Garage or parking space
• Building gyms
• Pools

If you’ve had previous tenants, you can even include testimonials from them. This is slightly more work but goes a long way in separating you from the pack. 

Generally, aim to keep your description short, easy to read, and concise with the key points at the top. Information broken down by bolding, bullet points, and sections can also be great for easy scanning. 

People tend to click off listings the second they don’t see what they want, so by making important information as discoverable as possible, you help prevent this from happening. 

For help placing all of your information in your description, consider the template we use for Rhenti listings:

1. Headline/Variation of title
2. Short description recapping the most important information
3. Unit description
4. Building features
5. Utilities & other fees
6. Property information
7. Space characteristics
8. Location

How to choose the right imagery for your rental listing

Do your photos and videos (which we’ll refer to collectively as imagery) accurately show the space and natural light in your unit? Are features and amenities that tenants care about shown in your gallery—ideally in the first few slides? These are the types of questions to ask yourself when choosing what imagery to include in your listing.

Additionally, make sure to choose imagery that:

• Shows your unit in a clean, kept manner (i.e. no laundry on the floor, clutter on tables, toilet seats open, cables on the floor or wall, etc.)
• Isn’t overly photoshopped (i.e. saturated colours, distorting the image to appear more spacious, etc.) 
• Includes some greenery (i.e. plants)

And don’t forget about virtual tours! They provide a level of detail that photos don’t, offering a more realistic look at your space and leading to more viewings from serious renters.

These can take the form of photo virtual tours—where renters take a 360-degree look through each room by dragging their mouse—or filmed virtual tours.

Take a look at this example of a 3D virtual tour you can create when listing your unit for rent with Rhenti.

For filmed virtual tours, ensure your shots are properly lit (i.e. filming with the light rather than against it), use a tripod for stationary shots and stabiliser for moving shots, and film in full HD or 4K (most current phones are capable of this). 

It’s also helpful to think about your shots before you start filming. Do you want to film continuously while walking through your unit, starting with opening your door? What’s the route you’ll take after this? 

Here's an example of a well-made video virtual tour. 

Or, if you want to film each individual room (or photograph it for a virtual tour), where is the most flattering place to set up your shot in each room? 

A little planning can do wonders in adding professionalism to imagery and making your listing stand out. Hiring a professional photographer or videographer is another option, which you can easily do with Rhenti during the listing process. 

Common mistakes to avoid when creating your rental listing

As useful as it is to know how to create an attractive rental listing, it’s also useful to know what deters renters. 

Generally, here are the main things you’ll want to avoid in your rental listing:

• Capital letters
• Exclamation points
• Spelling mistakes or grammatical errors
• Long, wordy, unclear descriptions
• Unrepresentative imagery (i.e. heavily photoshopped images or images from another unit) 

It’s hard enough to get renters to stay on perfectly-created listings, so any of these common mistakes can make them even more likely to click away.  

Market your rental with Rhenti

Now that you know how to write scroll-stopping rental listings, give your listings even more of a boost with Rhenti. 

Get them in front of and noticed by the perfect tenants with professional-grade marketing automation—and for more affordably than if you were to do it yourself. 

Get started with Rhenti today.