AI in listing photos: where Canada is drawing the line

The real estate industry is sorting out where exactly AI fits into property marketing.

At a national level, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and Realtor.ca don’t currently regulate AI use. CREA says its general advertising‑accuracy rules could apply to misleading AI edits in photos, but there is no AI-specific guidance, and no active monitoring.

That’s left provincial and local bodies to step in. The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, for example, typically allows light AI edits like colour correction and virtual staging, as long as they don’t misrepresent the property. If an issue is flagged, agents are given a chance to fix it, with repeat issues escalated.

There are still no laws in Canada that directly address AI in real estate marketing. But even without formal regulation, a set of industry best practices is taking hold:

• Label any AI-altered images clearly

• Don’t hide flaws or structural issues of a property

• Show AI-enhanced images alongside the unaltered “before” picture where possible

• Avoid fully AI-generated images

In simple terms: you can use AI to show what a space could be, not to distort what it actually is.

And buyers and renters are watching. Some expect zero AI use, others are fine with it if it’s disclosed. Either way, transparency is the baseline for building trust with prospects.