Write a description international tenants actually read
Your reader has never heard of your street. They know their new office, their university, and the metro map — write for that person.
Lead with location-as-life, not location-as-address
“Bright one-bedroom in Lavapiés” means nothing to someone relocating from Munich. “8 minutes by metro to Atocha, 20 to the Salamanca business district, supermarket on the corner” lets them picture a Tuesday. First line: the one thing that makes your place easy to live in — commute, light, quiet, terrace. Pick one.
A structure that survives skimming
- The hook — one sentence: the best true thing about living there
- Inside — rooms, what’s furnished, workspace, washing machine, kitchen equipment
- The area — transport in minutes, groceries, gym, the park; name the universities or employers nearby
- The practical — bills, deposit, house rules, who to contact
Short paragraphs. Real details. No adjectives doing the work facts should do — “cozy” is what listings say when they mean small; say “28 m², perfect for one person” and earn the trust instead.
Honesty is a feature, not a risk
Remember the two clocks: the tenant has 24 hours after move-in to report anything that does not match the listing, and your first payment is released 48 hours after move-in. A fifth-floor walk-up described as such books a tenant who’s fine with stairs. Described vaguely, it books a dispute.
Write in English — it reaches the ~70% of tenants who are international — and keep it simple enough that a non-native reader never re-reads a sentence.
Description ready?
Paste it into your listing while it’s fresh.