How long should the description be? As long as the buyer needs to decide. Usually that is 60 to 120 words of concrete facts, no more.
Two listings for the same apartment can have completely different fates. One sits for two months and gets three "is this still available" messages; the other gets five calls in the first week. The difference is usually not the price but how quickly a reader can rule your listing out, or convince themselves it fits.
That is the key most people miss: a buyer does not read to be charmed but to decide not to waste time. A listing that makes that easy gets viewings. If you are just starting, first see how a listing is posted step by step, then come back to the writing.
The first line carries the whole listing
In the list, a buyer sees the title, the price and the first photo. If at that moment they do not know what you are selling, they open someone else's.
A title is not a place for adjectives. It takes type, size, location and one real advantage, in that order.
| Weak | Better |
| Beautiful apartment in a quiet location | One-bedroom 58 m², Budva, 3rd floor, lift |
| Urgent sale, great price! | Studio 34 m², Bečići, 200 m from the beach |
| Dream house | House 120 m², 400 m² plot, Podkošljun, garage |
| Car in excellent condition | Golf 7, 2016, 1.6 TDI, 187,000 km, first owner |
"Urgent" and "great price" do not do the job people think they do. The buyer reads them as noise, because the owner of the most expensive flat on the street writes them too.
Fill in every field, even the one that seems unimportant
This is the quietest way for nobody to find you. Fields are not decoration; they are filters. A listing without an area does not exist for a buyer searching "50 to 70 m²", however good the description is.
For a property, in the Overview step, always fill in the living area, the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, the floor and the total floors, and in the Features step the heating type. On the coast, heating is the field that separates a flat you can live in all year from one meant for the season, and buyers know it.
For a vehicle the same goes for the year, mileage, fuel type and transmission, which are also required fields. A reader interprets an empty field in the worst possible way.
Write down what is not ideal too
This sounds like bad sales advice, and it is actually the most useful point in the whole article.
Ground floor, no lift, needs renovation, windows due for replacement, north-facing. The buyer will see all of it on the first visit. The only difference is whether they find out at home, in thirty seconds, or in your apartment after an hour's drive and your afternoon.
When you write it in advance, only those who are not bothered by these things come. That means fewer viewings and more serious ones. Listings that keep the flaws quiet get many visits and no offers, and the owner concludes the price is too high, although the price was not the problem.
The same goes for the legal status: registered, registration in progress, under a mortgage. A buyer who reads it at the start does not walk away at the notary. If you are selling an apartment, we have put the whole legal and tax side in the guide to selling an apartment.
Photos: daylight and the order in which you walk through the flat
- Shoot in daylight, not under a bulb. Artificial light turns the colours yellow and the space looks smaller.
- Clear up. An empty room looks bigger than a tidy room full of things.
- In the order you enter: entrance, living room, kitchen, bedrooms, bathroom, terrace, view.
- No people and no pets in the frame.
- Do not hide the bathroom or the small room. If they are not in the photos, the buyer assumes the worst.
- One photo is not a listing. It is the most common reason a listing does not get opened.
Examples: before and after
Apartment
Before: "Selling a beautiful apartment in Budva, in a quiet location, close to everything. The apartment is in excellent condition, ready to move in. Price negotiable."
After: "One-bedroom apartment 58 m², Budva, Podkošljun. Third floor of five, lift, central heating, terrace with a view of the town. Market and school 5 minutes on foot, the sea about 15 minutes. The apartment is registered, with no encumbrances. The windows are the original ones from 2008 and will need replacing in time, which is reflected in the price. 129,000 €."
The second listing is longer, but after reading it the buyer knows whether to come and see it. The first does not even say how many square metres the flat has.
House
Before: "House in a superb location, you have to see it!"
After: "House 120 m² on a 400 m² plot, two floors, three bedrooms, garage. Electric heating and a fireplace. The plot is fenced, water and electricity connected. The access road is asphalted up to 20 m from the gate, the last stretch is gravel. Registered, 1/1 ownership."
Car
Before: "Golf in extra condition, never broken down, first owner, swap possible."
After: "VW Golf 7, 2016, 1.6 TDI, 187,000 km, manual gearbox, regularly serviced at an authorised dealer, service book complete. Summer and winter tyres included. The front bumper has a scratch visible in photo no. 6. Registered until May 2027."
The pattern is the same in all three categories: concrete facts, one flaw stated openly, and the price.
Write the price
A listing without a price does not protect your negotiating position; it takes your listing off the list for everyone who filters by budget. Instead of calls you get "how much" messages, which you have to answer with a number anyway.
If an agency posts the listing, under the Law on Real Estate Brokerage (Official Gazette 89/2025, in force since 13 August 2025) the broker must state in the listing its name and the number under which it is entered in the Register of Brokers, together with the location, area and layout of the property (Article 25), and must set out its fee in general terms of business displayed at its office and on its website (Article 23). Agencies that operated before the law have until 13 August 2027 to register, because the August 2026 amendment extended the deadline from 12 to 24 months. If, as a buyer, you see an agency listing without those details, that is the first question you ask.
What to check before you publish
- Does the title contain the type, size and location?
- Are all fields filled in, especially area and heating?
- Is the first photo the best one you have?
- Have you written at least one thing that is not ideal?
- Is the legal status clear?
- Is the price in the listing?
When all six are in place, publish the listing and let it work. If after two weeks it gets opened but gets no calls, the problem is usually the price; if it does not even get opened, the problem is the title or the first photo.
Frequently asked questions
Should I write "urgent"? It does not help. It signals that you are ready to accept less, and it does not bring new viewings.
Should I mention the flaws? Yes. It reduces the number of empty viewings and increases the share of serious buyers.
Why does my listing get views but no calls? Buyers open it and give up, which usually means the price does not match what they see, or a detail they need to decide is missing.
How many photos are enough? Enough to walk through the whole space. One or two photos almost always mean fewer opens.
What if an agency posts the listing for me? Ask for the Register of Brokers number to be in the listing and for the fee to be in the written brokerage contract. By law an agency may not ask for part of its fee in advance, before the deal is concluded (Article 27).