One Simple Rule to Ensure Your Ads Don't Violate Fair Housing Laws

If one thing is hammered into real estate agents' minds, it's this: don't violate Fair Housing rules! This applies not only to in-person interactions with clients, but also to your marketing and advertising.

Want an easy way to make sure your ads stay on this law's good side? In the video below, NAR staff attorney Mark Rohde offers a quick overview on what kind of language is restricted. Fortunately, avoiding inappropriate language is easy with one rule:

Describe the property, not the ideal buyer.

That means you can go ahead and describe your listing's French doors, but avoid saying the home is "Great for empty nesters!" or something similar.

Digital Advertising and Its Discontents

It's not just your print marketing collateral that you need to be mindful of. In 2016, online real estate ads came under scrutiny when a ProPublica investigation found that Facebook demographic targeting capabilities let users exclude potential home buyers by race. As a results, Facebook overhauled its approach to housing advertisements. You can learn more about that here.

Further Reading

• NAR Fair Housing Resources
• Target your closest contacts! Create a custom audience for your Facebook ads
• Fair Housing Is Ultimately Local, Like Real Estate; NAR Declaration Must Trickle Down
• 15% of U.S. Consumers Experienced Housing Discrimination: Homes.com Survey