On April 1, 2026, updates to the Virginia Real Estate Board regulations went into effect. Here is a reminder of a few key updates to the Advertising section (18VAC135-20-190).
- The firm’s licensed name must be clearly and legibly displayed on all advertising.
- Make sure if your business has a DBA, it’s reflected on your firms license with DPOR
- “Clearly and legibly” applies to signage as well as online or print media. This means if someone is standing at a reasonable distance away from a yard sign, they can read the brokerages name.
- Print and Online advertising must include the firm’s name and office contact information, as specified by the principal/supervising broker’s written policies.
- Have you updated your written Office Policy Manual to reflect this?
- Property information in advertising must match current property condition and contract status. Updates to the advertising are required when the status changes materially.
- An example is social media posts. If the original post says “For Sale” or “Active,” when the status changes to “Under Contract” the post must be updated. Similarly, when the property sells, it must be updated to “Sold.”
- The online “one click” rule for disclosures is removed, meaning all advertising must contain required disclosures.
- If you or your agent are creating social media posts, it is suggested that the advertisement be an image, and disclosure information be contained on the image, and not typed in the post as separate text.
