Are You in Compliance with Real Estate Advertising Laws, Rules, & Guidelines?
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On the Ideas for Real Estate podcast, we often talk about how to creatively market yourself to stand out, what to share on social, and how to brand yourself authentically. These are exciting topics because the marketing choices you make can be key to the success of your business as a real estate agent.
Yet, for every social post you share, yard sign you stick in the ground, and property flyer you print, there's more to think about than what works best from a strategy perspective alone.
In real estate, we have advertising and marketing laws, rules, and guidelines, that you need to be aware of and adhere to. These are highly important factors to consider, and are regulated from a variety of real estate organizations, local governments, and at national levels.
So, in this episode, we're making sure your marketing isn't just effective but it's also in compliance.
"Compliance" is a topic that you've probably heard again and again from when you originally got your real estate license to ongoing trainings you attend. And in the real estate industry, how you market or advertise yourself, services, listings, and beyond is also regulated.
With that in mind, there are many aspects to keep up with and remember to include in your marketing efforts. So, it's no surprise that I see many new and experienced agents making mistakes.
As a former Chief Marketing & Tech Officer of a large brokerage, advertising and marketing guidelines are something that I'm keenly aware of and worked to make sure both the brokerage and our agents were following best practices.
However, these guidelines vary by location and change over time. That's why it's crucial to pay attention to what you can and cannot do when it comes to your own real estate marketing.
You don't want to risk receiving any kinds of warnings, violations, fines, or even potential license suspensions. While that might sound intimidating, knowledge is power.
So, in this episode, I'm covering where you can find real estate advertising rules, laws, and guidelines that impact you as an agent. I'm also sharing common marketing efforts to double-check and how you can be proactive about making sure you're in line with all of the regulations.
However, before we go in any further, I want to note that this podcast episode and accompanying blog are for informational purposes only, do not contain any legal advice, and should not be construed as legal advice. I want to bring this topic to the forefront of your mind and encourage you to seek out additional information that applies to you and in your market specifically.
I'll give you an overview of areas you should double-check, yet, keep in mind that real estate advertising regulations and guidelines vary on a local and state level (in the U.S.). So, it's best to do your research and confirm with appropriate parties.
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Where to Start
It's best if you're familiar with all of the bodies that regulate real estate advertising and marketing. From there, you can find the documentation for each organization and the rules within for advertising and marketing.
Some important places you should look are:
National Association of Realtors (NAR): If you're a REALTOR® and member of the National Association of REALTORS®, then bookmark their website and add it to the top of your list. On their site, you can find a variety of helpful resources, including:
Legal Directory: NAR has a directory on their site dedicated to different Legal topics such as risk management, fair housing, and advertising. Bookmark this page so you can refer back to it!
The Handbook on Multiple Listing Policy: This handbook is quite comprehensive and includes an entire section on advertising. A lot of the information has to do with listing syndication through MLS and IDX rules on websites. If you own your own real estate website and aren't relying on a third party (such as your brokerage or reputable real estate tech website provider) to manage, don't skip this section. The handbook also gives recommended guidelines for individual MLSs (which could influence your MLS). View the handbook here.
NAR Internet Advertising Policy: This key page outlines information on what should be included in advertising a listing online, specifically on websites. However, it also includes information on what to include for email marketing and information pertaining to advertising listings from outside brokerages on websites.
Telemarketing & Cold-Calling: NAR also has a page dedicated to any marketing you might be doing over the phone and adhering to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). So, if you're calling expired listings or for-sale-by-owners or doing any telemarketing, take a look at this resource.
Spam Emails: If you're buying any email lists from data providers or collecting them online to mass email, NAR has information about spam emails. While this information is more of a recommendation, to quote their site, "NAR strongly supports efforts to control fraudulent, misleading and abusive unsolicited emails and emailing practices." View more here. However, I don't recommend mass emailing people you don't know! Learn more about my email marketing best practices and strategies in my two-part series - Episodes 50 & 51: The 10 Most Costly Email Marketing Mistakes for Realtors.
Copyright: A common marketing mistake often involves the misuse of original photography. NAR gives information on listing photography and goes on to say, "as original works of authorship, listing photographs are copyrighted, and the owner may dictate how the photos are used." Learn more here.
Use of REALTOR®: While many use 'REALTOR®' and 'real estate agent' interchangeably, REALTOR® is a trademarked word and only applicable to members of the National Association of REALTORS®. NAR has an entire section on logos and trademark usage, as well as a handy quiz to test your knowledge!
Your State REALTOR® Association: Each state has its own guidelines set forth, and your state's REALTOR® association can be a key resource. For example, in the Laws & Ethics portion of the Florida REALTORS® website, there is a section for advertising. This page also includes information issued by the state's real estate commission. For Florida, there is information here about team advertising, nicknames, advertising rebates, mailings, and ads in general. So, make sure you visit your state's REALTOR® association website.
Legal Hotline or Helpline: Have a question about advertising and making sure you are in compliance? Save the number to your affiliated legal hotline and don't hesitate to reach out. (Look on their main website to see if this service is available and how to contact.) Click here for Florida's Legal Hotline.
Your State's Real Estate Commission or Licensing Governing Body: Each state has its own regulations for real estate as well, and is often the governing body where you were officially licensed as a real estate agent by your state. This varies, but for example, here in Florida, the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulations (DBPR) oversees the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC), which "educates and regulates real estate licensees (source)."
Find out your state's licensing and regulations organization and the statutes and rules they issue. Tip - your state's REALTOR® association often compiles information from your area's governing body, outside of the NAR guidelines.
Your Local REALTOR Association or Board: If you're a member of local association or board, see what guidelines they might recommend as well. If they don't have separate rules or guidelines from your state, they might be a key resource for education and training on what to do for marketing and advertising in your area.
Your MLS: You might be a member of one or multiple MLSs, so it's best to research each of your memberships. While you've probably attended an MLS compliance training, your MLS more than likely has guidelines in regards to your listing syndication and display on websites through IDX. In my experience, the MLSs provide lengthy documentation yet offer educational opportunities for MLS compliance and how that might impact your advertising. So, take advantage of those trainings!
Your Brokerage or Brand Guidelines: After you've established all of the organizations that set your real estate advertising rules & guidelines, don't forget to check in with your brokerage or brand. Your brokerage might have its own specific rules about how you advertise your listings, what you can put on your yard sign, if you can have your own logo, or even how your business cards look. While these guidelines vary, it's best to check in and find out if there are any brand and advertising guidelines you can follow.
You don't want to invest in brand new yard signs and find out they are not approved by your brokerage. Likewise, you might not have any stylistic rules set but your brokerage, but they could be a key resource to make sure you are in line with everything else.
After you've identified all of the bodies and organizations that oversee real estate advertising and marketing, you can make more informed decisions moving forward. I'd recommend you go to the websites of all the organizations mentioned and save key pages as a bookmark on your computer or in a note in Evernote (my favorite real estate marketing organizational tool). While it might seem overwhelming at first, the more you establish habits and are mindful of the regulations, the easier it will become over time.
Common Real Estate Marketing & Advertising Areas to Check
To help get you started, here's a list of common places to make sure you are in compliance with real estate advertising laws, rules, and guidelines. These are also the areas where I see agents making mistakes most frequently. So, make sure to double check:
The required information when advertising listings online, on social, or offline. This information might be about you - such as your license number, your brokerage - such as their name, or even the property - such as the complete address. The required info also might change whether you're advertising on social media or on your own website. This is also an opportunity to determine what you can and can't do when it comes to advertising other agents' listings and the permission you must receive.
Your social media profiles. If you actively advertise your services as a real estate agent, is there other information you need to include on your social media profiles? This might be as simple as including your legal name and associated brokerage, or it might be more comprehensive and include your license number, etc.
Your website: when we think of advertising on a real estate website, our minds often jump to listings. While it's crucial that the listings advertised on your website are in compliance, don't forget about your homepage and website in general. Tip - the required information can easily be included on your site in the footer section that is shown on every page.
Email marketing: Whether you're sending an individual email or emailing to many in an email marketing campaign, make sure you have the correct information in your signature or at the bottom of the email.
Print collateral: Print collateral encompasses a wide variety of marketing materials such as business cards or even property flyers. For each circumstance, you might need different information. So, pull up all the assets you use and make sure they are in order.
Mailings: Mailings and postcards often need to include disclaimers so you're not accidentally soliciting an active listing for sale.
Yard Signs. Yard signs are another common area where agents might be missing information. Find out exactly what needs to be included on yours.
Team branding: Team branding on all types of marketing and advertising is a top topic for many. Your state might have regulations about what can be in your team name, such as the use of the words 'group' or 'real estate.' Likewise, you might have certain requirements about how you position your team name with your brokerage's name and logo on materials such as yard signs.
Logos: The use of personal logos and orientation on marketing materials is another issue to check on the state level and with your brokerage to find out what's allowed and what's not.
While these are all popular areas to confirm, make a list of everywhere you advertise and all of your marketing efforts. From there, you can make sure you are dotting all your Is and crossing your Ts.
Proactive Steps for Real Estate Advertising
While there are many resources to help make sure you are in compliance with your real estate advertising, it is ultimately is up to you to take responsibility for your own marketing. Instead of seeing this as an overwhelming task, think of it as another opportunity to improve your professional standards and the real estate industry in general!
I'd recommend that you:
Make a list of all of the bodies that regulate real estate advertising for you and look over the documentation
Find out if there are any trainings you can take applicable to your local market. Your local MLS, state and local REALTOR® associations, and your brokerage might offer educational opportunities. If not, ask!
Find a key person to ask questions to. For some, this could be a legal hotline, a compliance officer or designated person at your brokerage, or somebody you meet through an industry contact. It's always helpful to have a person to speak to about your specific marketing questions.
If you're in complete charge and control of a marketing effort, double-check that what you're doing is correct. For example, if you've created your own custom website, make sure you're adhering to all MLS rules. When in doubt, again, find the appropriate person and ask questions!
Look over all of your marketing and confirm there haven't been any changes to regulations every six months. The best way to stay up to date is to subscribe to the news and training alerts for the organizations you're associated with.
It might take some time to compile this information, but it's worth a morning and a cup of coffee or two to ensure not only peace of mind but also that you're not in violation of anything. I've watched many regulations and guidelines change over the years because real estate is an always-changing industry. The market itself and technology both influence marketing efforts and consumer protection is essential.
So, I hope that today's episode helped open your eyes to real estate laws, rules, and guidelines and gave you a starting place to confirm that your own marketing is in order!
Looking for more? Don't miss these top related posts:
How to Use Evernote + The Full Focus Planner for Real Estate Success
How to Decide if a Brokerage's Marketing & Tech is Right for You
The 10 Most Costly Email Marketing Mistakes for Realtors (Part 1)
The 10 Most Costly Email Marketing Mistakes for Realtors (Part 2)
You might also find these related (free) resources valuable as well!
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