California AB 723.
What the statute requires, what an audit looks like, and how SEAREI ships the four compliance files in one delivery.
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California Business and Professions Code §10140.8.
Added by AB 723 (Pellerin), in effect since January 1, 2026. The operative text of §10140.8 — read it on the California Legislative Information site — provides:
A real estate broker or salesperson, or person acting on their behalf, who includes a digitally altered image in an advertisement or other promotional material for the sale of real property shall include in the advertisement or promotional material a statement disclosing that the image has been altered and a link to a publicly accessible internet website, URL, or QR code that includes, and clearly identifies, the original, unaltered image. The statement shall be reasonably conspicuous and located on or adjacent to the image and shall include language indicating that the unaltered images can be accessed on the linked internet website, URL, or QR code.
A “digitally altered image” is one changed by editing software or AI to add, remove, or modify property elements — fixtures, furniture, appliances, flooring, landscaping, or neighboring properties — and excludes routine adjustments such as lighting, color correction, or cropping. Willful violation is a crime under California Real Estate Law (Bus. & Prof. Code §10185).
What an AB 723 audit looks like.
The California Department of Real Estate (DRE) has investigative and disciplinary authority over deceptive marketing by licensees under Bus. & Prof. Code §10176, and willful violation of §10140.8 is a crime under §10185. Civil exposure for misrepresentation also exists under Cal. Civ. Code §§1709–1710. An MLS review or a buyer dispute over a listing photo turns on the same records either way: the original unaltered image, the disclosure as it was published, and when the alteration was applied — so the practical step is to keep that documentation with every listing.
The disclosure wording for this market.
Virtually staged / digitally altered. Original, unaltered image available at the verification URL or via the QR code.
Four concrete deliverables per job.
- Disclosure-labeled export. Every staged photo ships with the §10140.8 disclosure language placed on or adjacent to the image.
- Original photo on a permanent public URL. The unaltered original is hosted at
app.searei.com/verify/[job-id]and remains accessible without a SEAREI account. - A dated certificate that can’t be quietly changed. An HTML certificate retained permanently with a tamper-proof fingerprint of every file, the disclosure text used, the timestamps of staging and delivery, and the job ID.
- A dated record of every change. Every step on the listing — upload, overlay applied, certificate generated, re-rendered after revisions — is timestamped and shown on the verification URL, so a DRE or MLS compliance officer can see the full history of every image months after the listing closes.
Bill text and legislative history: California Legislative Information — AB 723 (2025–2026 session).
SEAREI provides compliance workflow tools. This page is not legal advice. Confirm final disclosure requirements with your MLS, brokerage, and California legal counsel.
The rule differs board by board. A few related markets to compare — the full list is on the compliance overview:
Last updated: May 6, 2026 · SEATECHONE LLC
New to the rules? Start with the complete AB 723 guide or the disclosure glossary.