Ethical guidelines for real estate brokers in listing photography
You’ve been there – you open the door and your buyer steps inside and lets out a disappointed groan.
“It looked so much bigger in the pictures!” or “It looked really different online.”
Real estate photography has come a long way in the last few years. Better cameras and photo editing software like Photoshop and Lightroom help good real estate photographers deliver great images to our clients. But they also make it easier to create misleading pictures that set unrealistic expectations, frustrate buyers and even, in extreme cases, cross legal and/or ethical boundaries.
By now, you’ve probably seen the picture of the house in Australia that was taken at an extreme
angle to conceal the looming water tower behind it. Or the listing of a house in Japan that turned a modest above ground pool into an expansive infinity pool. 
While these are pretty egregious examples of misleading real estate photos, there are other less obvious things to consider with adding photos to your real estate listing.
Real estate photos should always show a property in its best light, but they should never be used to create a false impression
Some enhancements are ok
Most of our editing is to make the photo look better, not the property. As you browse through listings, it’s very easy to tell which ones were shot by a professional photographer and which ones were shot by the broker with their cell phone. That’s not just because we use good quality cameras and equipment. We also use composition and exposure to maximize the appeal of real estate photos. Back in the office, we correct for lens distortion, compensate for poor or uneven lighting, adjust inaccurate colors, and crop images to create attractive framing. These are all acceptable edits. Other things we can do include:
Adding a nice sky – cloudy, overcast skies create a dull and dreary look. Unless you’re marketing 1313 Mockingbird Lane, that’s probably not the look you want. A nice blue sky with a few wispy clouds can be added to most photos for a much more pleasing effect.
Removing temporary objects – trash cans, cars in driveways, for sale signs, unsightly power cords, etc.
Fixing easily corrected items – leaves on driveways and walkways, minor carpet or paint stains, dry, patchy grass (up to a point), dirty pools and other minor, easily remedied blemishes.
Removing or obscuring personal items – family photos, award certificates and diplomas, mail or other personal items inadvertently left in view.
Virtual staging and virtual renovation
Some sellers, especially of vacant properties, may opt to include virtual furnishings to give interiors a more welcoming look. This is known as virtual staging, and it’s perfectly fine, unless you’re marketing a property as furnished and show different virtual furniture than what is actually included. Many brokers include shots of the vacant room alongside the virtually staged views to eliminate any confusion.
Some listings are marketed with the caveat that the seller will renovate or update the property. This is much more common with commercial real estate listings, but we occasionally see it in the residential real estate market. In these cases, the listing images may include virtual renovations, where the photos are edited to show prospective improvements. Updated fixtures, improved lighting, remodeled kitchens and bathrooms, upgraded flooring can all be shown as long as it’s made clear to the buyer that the pictures reflect the proposed condition of the property and not its current state.
Unacceptable real estate photo manipulation
While the missing water tower and the very finite infinity pool are extreme examples, you don’t have to go that far to cross an ethical (or legal) line in real estate listing photos.
Here are some things we should never do in real estate photos:
Move immovable objects – Plumbing and lighting fixtures, and built in appliances are not going anywhere without significant effort. They should be accurately represented in the listing pictures. Same with power lines and utility poles, walls, fences, and the dilapidated house next door. Creative framing to lessen the impact of items like this is OK, but not to the point that it creates a misleading impression (Australian water tower rules apply).
Virtual repairs – If it needs to be fixed, the buyer should know. Broken windows, fallen fences, large cracks in walls, ceilings, and floors, significant water stains, chipped and peeling paint, broken tiles, busted pavement, and other maintenance items should be represented honestly.
Change colors – The orange bathroom is orange, the bright green bedroom is bright green, the purple living room is purple. The buyer will find out when they see the property, so it’s best not to mislead them beforehand.
Change window views – If the view is of the condo building next door, don’t create the impression that the living room has a beach view.
Put a virtual fire in a non-working fireplace – that’s a great way to burn down trust with your buyer and seller.
Conclusion
It’s up to us as photographers to create images that attract buyers to a property. But it’s up to you as a broker to ensure that your marketing is honest. These simple guidelines will help.
- Images should accurately represent the property.
- Don’t manipulate or edit images in ways that change the appearance of the property or mislead the viewer.
- Respect privacy, both your seller’s and their neighbor’s.
- Photos should accurately reflect the context of the property, including its surroundings, neighborhood, and any surrounding structures.
- Listing photos should be current and represent the property as it currently appears. If there have been any significant changes to the property, new photos should be taken to reflect those changes.
These ethical guidelines help to ensure that your real estate listings accurately and honestly represent the properties you are selling, while also protecting the privacy and rights of your clients. Following these principles builds trust with your clients and reinforces your positive reputation in the real estate industry.
Preparing a property for pictures goes a long way toward getting great real estate pictures without the need for a lot of editing. Click here for tips on preparing a property for pictures.
As real estate brokers, it is our responsibility to use listing photography ethically and with integrity. By following these guidelines, we ensure that our clients’ properties are accurately and honestly represented we maintain a high level of professionalism in our work.