REALTOR® Magazine Online: Fair Advertising Practices

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Keeping Risks Under Control

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Fair Housing Risks

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Communications Policies to Minimize Risks

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More Resources: Controlling Business Risks

Code of Ethics: Controlling Business Risks

Fair Advertising Practices

All forms of promotion done by the brokerage company and by individual sales associates, including marketing brochures, newspaper advertising, and radio ads, must comply with the nondiscriminatory goals of the Fair Housing Act.

Tips for Fair Advertising

Even owners of a single-family rental homes aren't exempt from the requirements of fair advertising. To comply:

Avoid using language that indicates a bias against a protected class.
Use consistent language in all the advertising for the same property.

Describe the attributes of the property, not of the prospects you think would like it. For example, say “a beautiful, fully fenced backyard,” not “a great backyard for children.”

Use human models of different ages, sexes, and races in your advertising, if you use models.

Choose advertising media that cover a broad range of markets and don’t exclude certain groups.

TIP: To help train your sales associates in writing advertising that complies with fair housing, use the Prepackaged Sales Meeting on Fair Advertising Practices .

Watch Your Language >

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