You’ve landed a $2.5M listing. The home is stunning—chef’s kitchen, panoramic views, wine cellar that would make a sommelier weep. You sit down to write the description and out comes:
“Stunning luxury estate featuring gourmet kitchen, breathtaking views, and sophisticated finishes throughout. This entertainer’s dream offers the ultimate in refined living.”
Sound familiar?
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: your luxury listing sounds exactly like the other 47 luxury listings in your market. And when everything sounds “stunning” and “breathtaking,” nothing actually stands out.
After five years writing copy for high-end real estate brands like Luxury Presence, I’ve seen this pattern repeat endlessly. The good news? Fixing it is simpler than you think.
The Problem: Luxury Real Estate’s Generic Playbook
Open any MLS feed in a luxury market and you’ll see the same dozen words recycled ad nauseam:
- Stunning
- Breathtaking
- Sophisticated
- Elegant
- Meticulously maintained
- Entertainer’s dream
- Ultimate in luxury living
These aren’t bad words. They’re just exhausted. They’ve been beaten into submission by overuse, and worse—they tell buyers nothing specific about what makes your listing different.
When every property is “sophisticated,” the word becomes meaningless. It’s not differentiation. It’s wallpaper.
Why This Happens (And Why You’re Not Alone)
Most agents default to this language for three reasons:
1. Speed over strategy. You’re busy. Templates are easy. Copy-paste-post.
2. Fear of being too specific. “What if I describe it wrong and turn someone off?”
3. Lack of confidence in writing. You know how to sell in person, but translating that charisma to the page feels different.
The result? Safe, generic copy that checks boxes but doesn’t create desire.
The Fix: Sell the Feeling, Not the Features
Luxury buyers don’t buy square footage. They buy a lifestyle, a feeling, an identity. Your listing copy should make them see themselves in the space before they ever walk through the door.
Here’s how to make that shift:
1. Replace Generic Adjectives with Sensory Details
Generic: “Gourmet kitchen with high-end appliances.”
Specific: “A Bertazzoni range imported from Italy, Calacatta marble that catches morning light through oversized windows, and enough counter space to prep a five-course dinner without moving an inch.”
See the difference? The second version creates a mental movie. The buyer can picture themselves cooking, entertaining, living.
2. Name the Lifestyle, Not Just the Feature
Generic: “Perfect for entertaining.”
Specific: “Host summer dinners that spill from the dining room onto the terrace, where your guests will forget to check their phones because the sunset over the canyon is that good.”
You’re not selling a terrace. You’re selling the life they’ll live on that terrace.
3. Use Unexpected Comparisons
Generic: “Spacious primary suite.”
Specific: “A primary suite so expansive you could host a yoga class—or just enjoy the rare luxury of a bedroom that doesn’t double as your closet.”
A touch of personality goes a long way. Humor, when done well, makes your listing memorable.
4. Tell a Micro-Story
Generic: “Beautiful outdoor space with mature landscaping.”
Specific: “The backyard garden was designed by a landscape architect who spent two years sourcing heritage roses and Japanese maples. It’s the kind of space that makes you pour a second glass of wine just to sit outside a little longer.”
Stories stick. Facts fade.
Real Example: Before and After
Before (Generic):
“Stunning Mediterranean estate in prime location. Features include gourmet kitchen, luxurious primary suite, resort-style pool, and breathtaking views. Perfect for entertaining. This home offers the ultimate in luxury living.”
After (Specific):
“Perched on a hillside where the city lights flicker on at dusk, this Spanish Revival estate feels like a private resort—without the flight. The kitchen centers around a 10-foot island in honed Carrara marble, built for hosting friends who always stay later than planned. Upstairs, the primary suite opens to a balcony where Saturday mornings come with coffee and coastline views. The saltwater pool? It’s heated year-round, because why shouldn’t February feel like summer?”
The second version doesn’t just describe a house. It describes a life.
How to Write Like This (Even If You “Aren’t a Writer”)
Here’s a simple framework you can use right now:
Step 1: Walk the property with fresh eyes. Notice the details that make you pause. The way light hits a room. The sound of water from the fountain. The smell of jasmine by the front door.
Step 2: Ask yourself: “Who lives here, and what does their Sunday look like?” Create a mental image of your ideal buyer’s lifestyle. What do they value? What do they crave?
Step 3: Write one paragraph as if you’re texting a friend about the coolest thing in the house. Then polish it. But keep that conversational, enthusiastic energy.
Step 4: Replace every generic phrase with something specific. Find “stunning”? Cut it. Describe what makes it stunning instead.
The AI Shortcut (If You’re Short on Time)
If you’re thinking, “This sounds great, but I don’t have two hours to craft poetic listing copy,” I get it.
This is exactly where AI becomes your unfair advantage—if you know how to use it right.
The difference between generic AI copy and magnetic AI copy comes down to your prompt. Feed ChatGPT a lazy prompt like “write a luxury listing description,” and you’ll get the same tired phrases I mentioned earlier.
But give it the right details—the Bertazzoni range, the canyon sunset, the heritage roses—and suddenly AI becomes your co-writer, not your crutch.
Pro tip: I’ve built custom AI prompts specifically for real estate agents who want high-end copy without the high-end time investment. They’re designed to help you sound like you, not like every other agent using AI.
The Bottom Line
Your luxury listings don’t need more adjectives. They need more specificity. More story. More personality.
Because at the end of the day, buyers don’t fall in love with “sophisticated finishes.” They fall in love with the mental image of their life in that home—Sunday mornings on the terrace, dinner parties in that kitchen, the way the light pours through those windows.
Give them that image. Give them a reason to feel something.
That’s how you stop sounding like everyone else.
Ready to write listings that actually stand out? I help real estate professionals create high-converting copy and AI-powered content strategies that save time and attract premium clients. Let’s talk about how to make your brand unforgettable.