How to make the perfect Zillow listing
Zillow is the most popular real estate listing platform in the US. We'll help you make the perfect Zillow listing, whether you're brand new to the platform or if you just need some tips to improve.
By focusing on your listing's visual appeal and search ranking, you'll attract more potential renters and lease your vacancies faster. In this article we'll show you how to do professional-quality photography, write engaging descriptions, set competitive pricing, and more.
High-Quality Photos and Videos
You should never judge a book by it's cover, but you can judge a Zillow listing by it's photos.
Professional, high-quality photos are more than just aesthetically pleasing—they increase online clicks, bringing you more potential tenants.
In some cases, excellent photos even let you demand a higher rent. This is two-fold:
You can list the property with 2-5% higher rent than comparables. This is especially true at the low-end of the market ($1,500-$3,000) where few listings have good photos. Tenants in this range are dying to find something nice, and often willing to tour a slightly more expensive place based on the photographs
Better photos → more clicks → more applicants → more offers
You'll want to use photos to show off your property's most redeeming features. It could be a lush backyard, a beautiful ocean view or just a brand new washer/dryer.
Aside from these key photos, we also recommend:
Put your best photos and property features first
One photo each of the kitchen and living room
One photo of each bedroom and bathroom
One photo of the outside if it’s a house. You want the prospect to immediately recognize it when they come to tour
One photo of the balcony view if it’s an apartment. Give the prospect a feel for what they’ll be looking over.
Include photos of the washer/dryer and garage. Prospects skim the listing descriptions but you’ll be sure they see the photos.
💡 Want to become a iPhone photography expert? Check out our blogpost How To Take Killer Rental Photos
Write a Detailed Description
When drafting the perfect description for your apartment listing, highlight key features and amenities, emphasize the unique benefits of your property, and clearly state the rental requirements. People have short attention spans, so put your best features first!
Check out this ideal description of a 1-bedroom apartment in Downtown Miami:
Waterfront Views - Renovated - Wifi Included
Spacious 1-bed/1-bath condo over 650 sqft. Enjoy waterfront views over Biscayne Bay with a large, south-facing balcony. Apartment is newly renovated with stainless steel appliance, in-unit laundry and parking spot. Building features updated gym, pool, spa and dog park. Rent includes wifi, water and trash.
Pet friendly with $250 pet fee. Minimum credit of 600 and minimum income of 2.5x rent required to apply.
Fast approvals, see it today!
To help prevent unqualified renters from wasting your time, be clear about your lease term and minimum rental requirements.
💡 If you're struggling with writer's block, ChatGPT is an incredible resource!
Use Zillow's Listing Features
Zillow has heavily invested in their rental listing interface and rewards listings that use their features. By fully filling out all of the fields they give you, you'll ensure that your property ranks higher than the competition.
- Make sure your listing description is at least 50 words long (but don't go over 90 words)
- Check the applicable amenities to maximize your discoverability. You'll also get a nice "tag" on your listing with any Additional Amenities that you add. This is a great way to differentiate from the crowd
- Select all the days of the week for showings (including weekends). This shows Zillow that you care about finding a tenant quickly and they'll reward you because it makes their customer experience better
- Allow Zillow applications. Even if you have your own application process, you should do this because Zillow says they reward these listings in the ranking.
Price Your Property Competitively
Before you list your rental, you should create a free RentEngine account to access Arrow, which is a first-of-its-kind rental comps tool. This tool lets you input your property details and it show you all the matching properties that have rented or are currently available. You can easily see the median rent, days on market and individual property features. In just a few clicks you'll know your market better than anyone!
The market is changing quickly (mostly downward 😬), so it's important to check Arrow every week.
If your neighborhood has more supply than demand, we recommend pricing 3-5% lower than the median rent. This will help your rental stand out and get more leads -> helping you to find your perfect tenant faster.
💡 Check out The Price Is Right: Rental Pricing Edition for more insights on how to effectively price your rental
More food for thought:
Most tenants filter based on the maximum rent they can afford and don’t negotiate. Looking at our RentEngine data, only 11% of properties were rented for less than the listed price.
Lower price doesn’t always mean faster leasing. Combine good pricing with appealing photos and a well-written description. The prospects are judging your property’s quality based on the quality of your advertising.
A couple blocks can make a huge difference. While researching the comps, avoid properties that are in different neighborhoods (even if close by). Being on the other side of a highway or outside of your school district can make a huge difference in pricing.
Promote Your Listing
So you've pressed GO on your listing, but now what?
Take advantage of social media, real estate forums, WhatsApp groups, and other channels to get the word out there.
When a tenant inquires, speed is everything. You'll want to be available 24/7 to answer calls and texts from prospective tenants, keeping in mind that most people are "apartment hunting" after work and on the weekends.
💡 If you want to automate the process, we recommend giving RentEngine a try.
RentEngine does end-to-end leasing for property managers and investors, including the 24/7 prospective tenant communication and follow-ups. While traditional leasing agents are resting, RentEngine is working to match your rental with the right tenant.
Monitor and Update Your Listing
If you’re not getting many leads, you might be tempted to lower your price after just a couple of days. Assuming you followed the guide above, we recommend waiting 2-3 weeks before adjusting the rental price or listing details.
We made a handy guide for the number of leads you should be getting per week. If you’re hitting these numbers then you’re on track to get it leased quickly!
Congrats, you're a Zillow rentals pro!
If you used any of these tips to create your Zillow listing, let us know. We'd love to hear your feedback.
Ready to automate your leasing?
Try RentEngine free today (Pro tip: RentEngine does all of this for you, and more!)
