Showing Property on TikTok and Instagram: Video Walkthroughs, Descriptions and What a Property Ad Must Include

Many people hunting for an apartment in Riyadh, a villa in Jeddah or a studio in Dubai now start with a short video on TikTok or Instagram before they ever contact an agency. A one-minute walkthrough can convince a viewer to book a viewing — or send them scrolling to the next listing if it is shaky, misleading or missing the basics.

This guide walks you step by step through filming a well-organised vertical tour: the route through the property, light, keeping the phone steady and on-screen text, then a template for the description, what you must not exaggerate and how to protect tenants' and neighbours' privacy. We finish with a general note on property-ad licensing in Saudi Arabia and Dubai. That note is general information, not legal advice; the competent authority always has the final word.

Before filming: permission and preparation

The first question before you take out your phone: do you have the right to market this property? In Saudi Arabia, for example, issuing a property advertisement licence depends on a valid brokerage contract between the broker and the owner that explicitly includes marketing rights ^[1]. If you are not the owner, make sure the paperwork is complete before you start producing content, not after.

Then prepare the space itself. Good footage starts with a tidy property far more than with an expensive phone:

• Remove personal items, family photos and papers from tables and the fridge door.
• Open the curtains, switch on every light and replace dead bulbs the day before.
• Clean the glass and mirrors — they reflect everything, including whoever is filming.
• Make the beds, hide cables, close the toilet lid and empty the bins.
• Pick a time when sunlight enters the living room without shining straight into the lens.

The vertical walkthrough: route, light and stability

The most common mistake is wandering through the property with no plan, swinging the phone left and right and ending up in the same room twice. Sketch the route on paper first and begin where a real visitor would: the front door or entrance, then the shared spaces, then the private rooms, and finally whatever makes the property special, such as the roof, the garden or the view.

For stability, use a simple handheld gimbal or walk slowly with your knees slightly bent, keeping the phone at roughly chest height. Set the exposure at the entrance and lock it so the brightness does not jump every time you approach a window. And shoot vertically from the start rather than cropping a horizontal video later.

On-screen text: area and rooms before the music

Many viewers scroll with the sound off, so they need to understand the basics from text alone. Put one clear line in the first seconds, then add a fact at each stop. A hypothetical example for an apartment in north Riyadh:

• Opening: "3-bedroom apartment for rent – Al Narjis – Riyadh".
• In the living room: the approximate area as stated in the title deed or contract, not your visual estimate.
• In the kitchen: whether appliances are included.
• In the bedrooms: number of rooms and bathrooms, and which one is the master.
• At the end: the ad licence number, how to get in touch and a note that full details are in the description.

Use large type in a colour that contrasts with the background, and stay away from the bottom and side edges of the screen where the app's buttons cover text. Write numbers in standard 0–9 digits so they stay legible on every device.

A property ad description template

The description is where serious buyers and tenants look for detail, and it is also what regulators look at. According to summaries of Saudi Arabia's new real estate marketing and advertising regulation, an ad is expected to show the ad licence number, the advertiser's name, the advertiser's licence number with the authority and contact details matching the licence application ^[2], along with the property type, location, area, description, value and any rights or obligations attached to it ^[3]. You can build on this template and adapt it to what the authority in your country requires:

1. Headline: type, purpose (sale or rent), neighbourhood and city.
2. Specifications: area as stated in the document, number of rooms and bathrooms, floor, and building age if known.
3. Features: parking, lift, central air-conditioning, proximity to schools, a mosque or a main road — stated as they are.
4. Price or rent plus any commission or fees, written exactly as in the licence with no ambiguity.
5. Known rights and obligations: a mortgage, an existing lease or service charges.
6. Licence details: the ad licence number, the advertiser's name and licence number.
7. Contact: one number or account matching the licence application.

What not to exaggerate

Summaries of the Saudi regulation point to bans on false or misleading information and exaggerated descriptions, and on using government names or logos without authorisation ^[3], as well as on fictitious information published to harvest the contact details of interested people ^[2]. Rules aside, exaggeration loses you the client at the first viewing. Watch out in particular for:

• Wide-angle lenses that make a small room look like a hall: use them sparingly and state the real area.
• Filters that change the colour of walls or floors or hide damp and cracks.
• Phrases like "sea view" when the sea is visible only from one corner of the roof.
• "Two minutes from everything" without saying which services and at what time of day.
• Show-flat furniture when the unit on offer is empty — say so in the text.
• An eye-catching starting price that does not apply to the unit shown in the video.

Tenants' and neighbours' privacy

A property listed for rent or sale may still be occupied, and whatever appears in a video stays online for a long time. Agree a filming time with the occupant in advance, get their consent for what will be shown, and do not film rooms they ask you to keep private.

• Do not show residents', children's or domestic workers' faces, or their names on doors or parcels.
• Blur or avoid car number plates in the parking area, and neighbouring unit numbers unless they are needed.
• Never point the camera from windows or the roof into neighbours' homes or courtyards.
• Make sure no documents or screens showing personal information appear in the background.
• In residential compounds, ask management about their filming policy for shared facilities such as the pool or gym.

Doing this protects other people, and it also makes your agency look professional: an owner who sees you respect their tenants' privacy will trust you with their next property.

A general note on property-ad licensing

Saudi Arabia

According to an analysis by the law firm Trowers & Hamlins, the Governance Regulation for Real Estate Marketing and Advertisements took effect on 1 May 2026. It covers property advertising across all channels, including social media, and each advertisement needs its own advertising licence from the Real Estate General Authority, with exceptions for advertisers licensed to market a whole project ^[2]. REGA also offers an inquiry service to check an ad licence's validity and status using the licence number, the brokerage contract number or the title deed number ^[1].

Dubai

The Dubai Land Department issues real estate advertising permits through its online Trakheesi system, covering electronic ads as well as print, billboards and events, and it has warned the public about fake and unlicensed ads on online platforms and social media ^[4]. In the other emirates and the rest of the Gulf, check with the competent real estate authority in each country or emirate.

If a content creator will publish the ad from their personal account, social-media advertiser licensing may also apply to them; we explain it in our guide to Mawthooq and the UAE Advertiser Permit.

A checklist before you publish

Before you hit publish on any property video, go through this list with a colleague who has not seen the property — fresh eyes catch what you missed:

1. Do I have documented marketing rights and a valid ad licence for this specific property, where one is required?
2. Are the ad licence number and advertiser details visible in the video or description?
3. Do the area, room count and price match the documents and the licence?
4. Is the video free of faces, names, number plates and any personal information?
5. Do the filters and lens angle leave the reality of the place unchanged?
6. Does the contact method match the one in the licence application?
7. Have I picked a posting time that suits my city's audience? See our guide to the best posting times in the Gulf.

After posting, keep an eye on questions in the comments and messages — they are the clearest sign of what your description left out — and update the template for the next listing accordingly.