Listing Description
Synonyms: Property Description، Listing Copy، Ad Copy
Last updated: 2026-09-25
Short Definition
A listing description is the written text accompanying a property ad, setting out the property's type, location, area, layout, condition, price, the right offered (sale or lease), its features and any restrictions, in clear language that answers the client's questions before they call.
Overview
Legal Basis
Article 5 of the Regulation on Real Estate Marketing and Advertising (Umm Al-Qura, 14/11/1447H – 1 May 2026) sets the mandatory ad data, allows an ad to show only the licence number and a QR code, and exempts platforms that display data retrieved from REGA's systems; Article 7 prohibits statements that contradict reality. Article 10 of the Real Estate Brokerage Law (M/130 dated 30/11/1443H) obliges the broker to disclose information when offering the property and not to provide misleading information, and Article 18 makes concealing material information a violation. Article 61 of the Civil Transactions Law (M/191 dated 29/11/1444H) defines deception (taghrir) to include deliberate silence, and Article 62 allows the deceived party to seek annulment of the contract if the deception concerned a material matter.
Practical Example
An office in Dammam writes the description for a flat to let at SAR 38,000 a year, for a billboard and a social media post: "3 bedrooms plus living room, 145 m² per title deed, third floor in a 12-year-old building with no lift, fitted kitchen, split AC units, one allocated parking space. Near a primary school (5 minutes' walk). Annual rent in two instalments; no service charges. Right offered: lease. No existing disputes." It then adds the office name, licence number, ad licence number and expiry date, and the contact number registered in the licence. Stating "no lift" explicitly reduces non-serious enquiries and protects the office from any accusation of concealing material information.
Common Mistakes
- ✗Omitting material information such as the lack of a lift or an existing dispute over the property — concealment is a violation and may amount to deception.
- ✗Stating an estimated or inflated area instead of the area in the title deed.
- ✗Generic phrases such as "prime location" and "luxury finish" without verifiable details.
- ✗Forgetting the ad licence number and expiry date, or the QR code, in ads outside the platforms.
- ✗Stuffing the description with keywords unrelated to the property to gain search visibility — misleading to readers.
International Differences
Many markets require disclosure of material information in property descriptions: in the UK, consumer-protection rules require agents not to omit material information a buyer needs, and in the US, state laws impose seller disclosure forms. The Saudi model is distinctive in that the regulation itself lists mandatory data for the ad — including existing disputes, the ad licence number and its expiry date — with a QR code allowed as an alternative, and in that platforms pull the data directly from REGA's systems.
