Blog · 23 Oct 2026 · 4 min read

AI listing photos: what realtors must disclose

AI tools can now brighten a gloomy room, replace a grey sky, remove clutter and stage an empty living room with furniture in seconds. Used well, they help buyers picture a home. Used carelessly, they mislead buyers, and that can breach advertising law, MLS rules and professional codes. This guide explains where the lines are and how to stay on the right side of them. It's general information, not legal advice; rules vary by state, province and portal, so check your own.

The principle everywhere: don't mislead

Across the US, Canada, the UK and Australia, the common thread is simple: property advertising must not create a false impression of what the buyer or tenant is getting. That comes from general consumer-protection law (for example, the Australian Consumer Law's ban on misleading or deceptive conduct, explained by the ACCC) and from professional codes. In the US, the National Association of REALTORS® Code of Ethics requires REALTORS® to present a true picture in their advertising (NAR Code of Ethics, Article 12).

So the useful question isn't "is AI allowed?" but "would a reasonable buyer be misled about the property by this image?"

California made it explicit from 1 January 2026

California's AB 723 added Business and Professions Code section 10140.8, effective 1 January 2026. In summary:

If a broker or salesperson (or someone acting for them) uses a digitally altered image in advertising for the sale of real property, they must include a reasonably conspicuous statement on or next to the image saying it has been altered.
They must also provide a link, URL or QR code to a publicly accessible page that includes and clearly identifies the original, unaltered image.
On a website the licensee controls, the unaltered version must be included in the posting (or linked as above).
"Digitally altered" covers using editing software or AI to add, remove or change elements such as fixtures, furniture, appliances, flooring, walls, paint colour, landscaping, facade, floor plans, and things outside or visible from the property, such as utility poles, views and neighbouring properties.
It does not cover lighting, sharpening, white balance, colour correction, angle, straightening, cropping, exposure or other common adjustments that don't change how the property is represented.

California MLSs have adopted matching rules; for example, CRMLS publishes guidance on digitally altered images requiring the original to appear next to the altered one and the altered image to be labelled.

Even if you're not in California, this law is a useful benchmark for good practice.

A practical three-tier approach

Tier 1: Usually fine without disclosure

Exposure, white balance, colour correction
Straightening verticals, cropping, perspective correction
Sharpening and noise reduction
HDR blending of multiple exposures of the same scene

These make the photo look like what your eye saw. They don't change the property.

Tier 2: Allowed with clear disclosure (and the original available)

Virtual staging: adding furniture to empty rooms. Label it "Virtually staged".
Sky replacement or "twilight" conversions. Label "Digitally enhanced: sky replaced".
Removing temporary clutter or the seller's personal belongings. Rules differ on whether this needs disclosure; disclosing is the safe choice, and in California removing elements counts as alteration.
Virtual renovation ("what this kitchen could look like"). Label clearly as a concept, never as the current state.

Tier 3: Don't do it

Removing permanent features buyers care about: power lines, phone masts, a busy road, a neighbouring building, damp patches, cracks
Changing the view from a window
Making rooms look bigger than they are, or changing the floor plan
Adding features that don't exist (a pool, a fireplace, a garden)
Replacing worn flooring or fittings without making clear it's a concept

Tier 3 edits are likely to mislead even with a small disclaimer, because the disclaimer doesn't undo the false impression.

UK, Australia and Canada: check your local rules

UK: estate and letting agents must not mislead consumers, including by omitting material information. National Trading Standards' Estate and Letting Agency Team publishes material information guidance, and the ASA has ruled against misleading property images. Labelling virtual staging and keeping originals available is the safe approach.
Australia: the Australian Consumer Law applies to property advertising, and state fair trading regulators enforce it. Don't use images that misrepresent the property, its surroundings or its views.
Canada: provincial real estate regulators and the Competition Act's rules on misleading representations apply. Check your provincial regulator's and board's guidance.
Portals and MLSs: many have their own image rules. Check each one you list on.

Good disclosure looks like this

A visible label on or directly next to the image: "Virtually staged", "Digitally enhanced: sky replaced", "Concept: possible renovation"
The original photo placed immediately before or after the edited one
A line in the listing description: "Some images are digitally enhanced; originals are included in the gallery"
Consistent labelling everywhere the image appears: portal, website, social media, brochures

Keep a record

Keep the original files, the edited files and a note of what was changed for each listing. If a buyer or regulator asks, you can show exactly what you did. It also makes it easy to swap images if a portal rejects one.

How we handle it

When we edit listing photos, Tier 1 edits are standard; Tier 2 edits are delivered with a label option and the original alongside; Tier 3 edits we decline. That keeps your listings attractive and your licence safe.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Rules change; check the linked official sources.

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