Selling your house on social media: the complete guide

Selling your house on social media is no longer a far-fetched idea. It has even become one of the most effective ways to reach buyers who no longer look at listing portals. Instagram and TikTok are shop windows open day and night, free of charge, and able to show your house to thousands of people in a few days. You still need to know how to go about it. Here is the complete method, step by step.

Why buyers are on social media

Habits have changed. Before searching actively, many buyers dream. They look at houses in the evening, on their phone, between two videos. A property that appears in their feed can spark a project they had not yet put into words.

Social media has three advantages over the portals:

• It reaches people who are not looking yet. A portal only shows your house to those already filtering by town and budget.
• It takes a house far from home. A buyer from another region, or another country, can come across your video.
• It gets shared. A video sent to a friend who is house-hunting is one more buyer.

The places filmed by AchMedia Real Estate have been seen by more than 100 million people, without any paid advertising. That is proof real estate has its place in that feed.

Instagram or TikTok: which to choose?

Both work, with nuances.

Instagram is very well suited to beautiful properties. Reels, those short vertical videos, are promoted there, and the audience is used to polished content. It is also a good place to show a house to affluent or international buyers.

TikTok has impressive reach. A video can be seen by a very large number of people even if the account posting it is new. The audience is varied, far more than the "teenagers' network" image it has. Our article on TikTok and real estate explains how it works.

The simplest approach: post the same video on both, adapting the text and keywords.

The right video format

To sell your house on social media, the format counts as much as the content.

1. Vertical: the video must fill the whole phone screen.
2. Short: 30 to 60 seconds for a tour, sometimes less.
3. A strong first shot: the first three seconds decide whether people stay or scroll. Start with the most beautiful thing about your house: the view, the pool, a spectacular room.
4. A route: you arrive, you go in, you move through, you discover the outdoors. Not a jumbled inventory.
5. On-screen text: the location, the type of property, and ideally the price.

A phone video can work. But for an exceptional property, a professional film with drone views changes how the property is perceived. Our guide to property video explains what makes the difference.

Show the price or not?

It is one of the most frequent questions. Our advice: show it. The price naturally filters enquiries. The people who write to you already know the property is within their budget, and you avoid conversations that lead nowhere.

The film of the villa we shot on Koh Samui showed its price from the opening, in three currencies. The villa was then sold. To go further, read our article should you show the price in a property video.

Replying to messages

A video that works generates messages. Many are very short: "How much?", "Where?", "Can we visit?". Don't underestimate them. Behind a three-word message there is sometimes a serious buyer.

A few simple rules:

• Reply quickly, ideally within the hour.
• Give the information asked for, directly.
• Always propose a next step: a call, a viewing, a full file.
• Stay courteous even with the curious. They sometimes share the video with the right person.

Mistakes to avoid

• Posting photos instead of a video. On social media, video dominates.
• Filming horizontally. The video appears tiny on a phone.
• Forgetting the location. Without a town or region, nobody knows whether the house concerns them.
• Posting once, then giving up. A video can be reposted, cut into new versions, brought back.
• Leaving messages unanswered. It is the most costly mistake.

Build a real campaign, not a single video

Selling your house on social media is not just posting a video and waiting. Sales that work rest on a small campaign, spread over a few weeks:

1. The main film, posted first, with the location, the price and the house's highlight.
2. Short clips in the following days: the kitchen, the terrace, the view, a favourite room.
3. A "mood" video of a few seconds: late-afternoon light, a log fire, a morning in the garden.
4. A reminder a few weeks later, to reach those who missed the first post.

Each post is a new chance to be seen by a buyer. And each clip points back to the full film or to your contact details.

Choosing the right keywords and caption

Social networks are also search engines. Many people type "house with pool Alsace" or "villa French Riviera" straight into TikTok or Instagram. To be found:

• Write out the town and region in full in the caption.
• Describe the type of property with the words buyers use: family house, villa, longhouse, house of character.
• Add the features people look for: pool, garden, view, garage, single-storey.
• Use a few precise hashtags rather than a long generic list.

A clear caption also helps people who watch without sound: they immediately understand what it is about.

Protecting your privacy

Showing your house does not mean revealing everything. A few simple precautions:

• Don't give the exact address, only the town or neighbourhood.
• Remove family photos and visible documents before filming.
• Avoid filming the street sign or the facade if you value discretion.
• Share precise information only with qualified buyers.

That is exactly the approach we apply to every film: show the house, not the private life of the people who live there.

Frequently asked questions

Do you need an account with lots of followers to sell your house on social media?

No. On TikTok as on Instagram Reels, a video can reach far more people than the account's number of followers. But posting on an account people already follow, such as AchMedia Real Estate's, gives distribution a real boost.

Does this suit an ordinary house?

Yes. A well-filmed family house interests a lot of people. What counts is showing what makes it desirable: the light, the garden, the neighbourhood, the volumes.

Can you sell your house on social media with an agency?

Of course. Social media is a distribution channel, not a way of selling. Your agency can post the video, or we can distribute it and pass enquiries on to them.

How long before you get enquiries?

It depends on the video, the property and its distribution. A successful video often receives its first messages in the days after it is posted.

Do you need to pay for ads to sell your house on social media?

It is not essential. The places filmed by AchMedia Real Estate have been seen by more than 100 million people without paid advertising. Ads can complement this to target a precise area, but a good, well-distributed film is often enough.

What if I get negative comments?

Stay courteous and factual, or don't reply. An isolated comment does not drive serious buyers away. Simply delete abusive remarks.

And your house?

Want to know what social media could do for your sale? Discover how we can help on our Sell your property page, watch our films, then let's talk about your house in a 20-minute call.