property_listing_copy v1.0.0

---

name: "property_listing_copy" description: "Write property listing copy that sells without inventing facts: build a verified fact sheet first, draft headline options plus full and short versions for a confirmed portal limit, run the bundled fact and character-count checker, and work disclosure prompts by property type. Use when writing or rewriting a house, flat, rental or new-build listing, a portal summary, or listing headlines."

---

Property Listing Copy

Purpose

Write listing copy where every claim can be pointed to a source. The job has two halves that must not swap order: first lock the verified facts, then write copy that is only allowed to use those facts. A listing that reads well and contains one invented amenity, one wrong size or one unsupported neighbourhood claim has failed, however good the prose is.

This skill ships a checker, not just advice. scripts/check_listing.py compares a draft against the fact sheet, counts characters against a confirmed limit, and flags numbers, features, person phrases and comparative claims that have no source behind them.

Workflow

1. Build the fact sheet before writing a word

Create a fact sheet file for the property, JSON, Markdown or plain text. For each fact, write the value and its source next to it.

Include at minimum:

• Bedrooms, bathrooms, room list and internal size, with the document the size came from
• Features and finishes, room by room, only where seen, measured or documented
• Outside space, parking, garage and access, stating shared or private exactly
• Tenure, price or rent, tax band or tax figure, service charge, ground rent and any unavoidable cost that applies
• Heating, utilities and connectivity, only at the level the source supports
• Distances and travel times, with how they were measured
• Renovation dates, with the invoice or certificate behind the date
• Disclosure items from references/disclosure-prompts.md for this property type

If a fact has no source, it is not a fact yet. Mark it unknown and list it as a gap. Do not carry it into the copy in softer wording. "Spacious" in place of an unmeasured size is still a size claim.

2. Confirm the limit for the actual field

Ask which portal, MLS or feed the copy is for, and confirm the character limit for that specific field before drafting.

Do not assume a universal portal cap. No single verified cap covers full descriptions across Zillow, Rightmove and Zoopla. Limits live in the MLS rules, the feed spec and the field itself. One verified example: a Rightmove summary field documented by Expert Agent is sent at a maximum of 300 characters, and the portal truncates it at the last full stop inside those 300 characters if the copy runs over. Photo caption limits are a different thing again, at 20 characters for Zoopla and OnTheMarket and 50 for Rightmove in Dezrez documentation.

Record the confirmed limit and its source in the output. If nobody can confirm a limit, write the full version, write a 300 character short version, and label both limits as unconfirmed.

3. Draft headline options

Write three to five headlines, each built from a different verified fact, so the seller or agent picks a lead fact rather than a tone.

Rules for headlines:

• One verified fact per headline, plus the property type or location only if that location name is in the fact sheet
• No superlative unless the fact sheet holds the comparison behind it
• No person in the headline. Describe the property, not a buyer or tenant
• Count the characters and show the count if a headline field has a limit

Patterns that work from facts alone:

• Feature first: "South-facing 60 ft garden with a three-bedroom semi"
• Size first: "1420 sq ft, three bedrooms, open-plan kitchen"
• Outside space first: "Garage, driveway and a 60 ft garden"

4. Write the full version

Order the copy the way a viewing runs, and put the strongest verified facts first:

1. Property type, bedrooms, bathrooms and internal size
2. Main living space and kitchen, with verified finishes
3. Other rooms, in viewing order, one verified point per room
4. Outside space, parking and access, stated exactly
5. Location facts, only where measured or documented
6. Costs and tenure facts that belong in the listing for that market

Keep each sentence tied to a fact sheet line. If a sentence cannot be traced, cut it or rewrite it from a fact that can. Avoid filler praise that implies a fact, such as "finished to a high standard", unless the fact sheet names the standard, the work and the date.

Length guidance cited as Zillow guidance is to keep descriptions around 250 words or less and lead with the strongest features. Treat that as a writing target, then fit the confirmed hard limit from step 2.

5. Write the short version by cutting claims, not sentences

Build the short version from the full version by dropping whole claims in reverse order of importance. Never truncate mid-sentence and never compress a fact into a stronger one.

Worked example, from the fictional fact sheet in examples/facts.json. Every number in both versions is in that fact sheet.

Full version, 311 characters, for a confirmed 1000 character field:

"Three-bedroom semi-detached house with an open-plan kitchen and dining room. The kitchen was renovated in 2021 and has quartz counters. There are 2 bathrooms, a utility room, and 1420 sq ft of internal space. Outside there is a 60 ft south-facing garden, a garage, and a driveway. The station is 0.4 miles away."

Short version, 194 characters, under a 300 character limit:

"3 bed semi-detached, 1420 sq ft. Open-plan kitchen renovated in 2021 with quartz counters. 2 bathrooms and a utility room. 60 ft south-facing garden, garage and driveway. Station 0.4 miles away."

Note what the short version kept: size, room counts, the dated renovation, outside space and the measured distance. Note what it dropped: dining room detail and sentence padding. It invented nothing to fill space.

6. Run the checker on every version

Run the checker separately on the full version and on each short version:

python3 scripts/check_listing.py --facts facts.json --listing listing-full.txt --limit 1000 --limit-name "MLS description"

python3 scripts/check_listing.py --facts facts.json --listing listing-short.txt --limit 300 --limit-name "portal summary"

The checker counts characters and words, flags any digit based number that is not in the fact sheet, flags lexicon features such as pool, garage or quartz that appear in the copy but not in the facts, flags person phrases such as "perfect for" and "adults only", and flags superlatives and neighbourhood claims with no matching source. Exit code 0 means no flags. Exit code 1 means flags. Exit code 2 means bad input.

Work every flag one of three ways: add the real source to the fact sheet, rewrite the line from a verified fact, or cut the line. Never silence a flag by adding the phrase to the fact sheet without a source behind it. The checker only sees digit based numbers, so check spelled out numbers, such as "four bedrooms", by eye against the fact sheet.

A bad draft shows what the checker catches. The fictional bad example in examples/listing-bad.txt raises 8 flags: an unsourced 5 minute claim, a pool and marble counters that are not in the facts, a "perfect for families" person phrase, and "largest", "safest" and "top schools" claims with no source.

7. Run disclosure prompts and the claims check

Work references/disclosure-prompts.md for the property type: leasehold, flat, new build, rental, flood or land, as they apply. Then read references/claims-and-compliance.md and check:

• No phrase describes a preferred person. US law at 42 USC 3604(c) bans adverts that indicate a preference based on a protected class, and HUD guidance tests the wording by its effect on an ordinary reader. Describe the dwelling and its rules instead.
• No pertinent fact is concealed. Article 12 of the National Association of REALTORS Code of Ethics requires a true picture in advertising, and Article 2 bars exaggerating, misrepresenting or concealing pertinent facts.
• Every objective claim has evidence held before publishing. UK CAP Code rules 3.1 and 3.7 set that test, and the ASA applies it to property features.
• UK listings carry material information: Part A for every listing covers tax band, price or rent and tenure, Part B covers property type, construction, rooms, utilities and parking, and Part C covers items such as flood risk and restrictive covenants where the property is affected.
• Altered, staged or AI generated images are labelled where the buyer sees them, with the current local rule recorded. That rule differs by place and is changing.

Output Contract

Return all of the following:

1. The fact sheet, with a source beside each fact and unknown items marked as gaps
2. Three to five headline options, each with its lead fact named, and a character count where a headline limit applies
3. The full listing version, with its word count and character count
4. A short version for each confirmed portal or MLS limit, with its character count and the limit it was written to, plus the source of that limit
5. The checker output for each version, and how each flag was resolved
6. The disclosure prompts that applied, the answers, and any gap still waiting on the seller or agent
7. A claims check summary listing any claim that was cut, and why

If no limit could be confirmed, say so plainly and label the short version as written to an unconfirmed 300 character example limit.

Operating Rules

1. No source, no claim. Amenities, sizes, distances, dates, prices and neighbourhood claims enter the copy only from the fact sheet.
2. Describe the property, not the person. Cut "perfect for", "ideal for", buyer types and tenant types, and rewrite from layout, size and rules.
3. Cut whole claims to fit a limit. Never truncate mid-sentence, and never strengthen a fact to save characters.
4. Shared is not private, planned is not built, and a show home is not this property. State each exactly.
5. An omission can mislead as much as a false line. If a known negative fact sits next to a praised feature, the listing handles both or praises neither.
6. Do not copy limits, rules or requirements from memory. Confirm the live portal, MLS and local rule for this listing and cite where each came from.
7. The checker is a flagging tool, not a legal ruling and not a human review substitute. A clean run still needs the disclosure and compliance read in step 7.
8. Worked examples in this skill are fictional. Never reuse their numbers, features or distances in a real listing.

References

• Claims and compliance notes: fair housing wording, true picture duty, evidence before publishing, UK material information, and portal limit sources.
• Disclosure prompts by property type: prompts for every listing, plus leasehold, flood and land, flats, new build and rental.
• Worked examples in examples/: facts.json, listing-full.txt, listing-short-300.txt and listing-bad.txt, used to test the checker.