How to Read a Home Listing

Making sense of a real estate listing can be a grueling process. Odd acronyms, vague descriptions and an endless stream of real estate jargon can make some listings nearly impossible to decipher.

If you're having trouble with a real estate listing, this guide will help you sort through the process.

Why Are Listings So Confusing?

Most classified advertising is priced according to length, which means shorter listings cost less money to advertise. Because of this, real estate agents use a wide array of acronyms and symbols to reduce the bulk of their listing. Advertising a "2bd, A/C, bal, fdr, 2gar w/sp" is much shorter than saying "two bedroom home with air conditioning, a balcony, formal dining room, two-car garage and swimming pool."

Common Home Listing Acronyms

Reading a home listing can be like putting together a jigsaw puzzle: it's all about understanding what each piece of the puzzle means, then fitting those pieces together to build a broader picture. Here's a list of common home listing acronyms that may help you fill in the blanks:

aek, eik, eff kit: all-electric kitchen/ eat-in kitchen/efficiency kitchen

cath ceil: cathedral ceiling

cds or c-d-s: cul de sac

d/d: dishwasher and garbage disposal

fdr: formal dining room

f/f: fully furnished

hdw, hdwd, hwf: hardwood floors

osp: off-street parking

owc: owner will compromise

pl, sp or s/p: swimming pool

smart: light, heat, cooling, alarm, appliances electronically controlled

SPLT: split-level

wic: walk-in closet

Red Flags

When you're reading a home listing, look closely at phrases that may be trying to cover up a weakness. Always be wary of exclamation points and euphemisms. Keep in mind, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Phrases like "charming," "cute" or "cozy" signal that is a home is small--really small. Make sure you check the square footage. Same with "starter home."

"Fixer-upper" and "handyman's dream" are obvious: the home is in need of serious repair. The home may be listed at a great price, but unless you're a handyman who loves home construction, look elsewhere. This advice goes for "needs TLC" too.

Obviously, if you see "as-is" anywhere on a home listing, beware. If you run into a cozy fixer-upper in need of some TLC, run for the hills.