Kathy Condon    

No doubt some of you are aware of recent industry news articles highlighting the potential risk to agents and brokers in displaying listing data on an IDX site. The Getty Images issue in Wichita,  Kansas and the Fair Housing violation in Tampa, Florida are two examples of situations where brokers with IDX sites have been targeted for violations for listings of other brokers.  

Getty Images, a stock photo agency, has been targeting various IDX sites where they have found their copyrighted photos displayed without permission.  No doubt, the Internet makes it easy to pirate attractive photos and upload them for your listings.  However, doing this not only puts you at risk, it puts every broker using MLS data on an IDX site at risk because it is the person who displays the photos or artwork on their site that is liable.

In a somewhat related incident, a Florida agent was recently subject of a Fair Housing lawsuit for remarks appearing in a listing on his IDX website. Like the Getty Images situation above, the listing did not belong to the agent. Fortunately, the lawsuit was dismissed when it was discovered that the plaintiff was going after the wrong real estate company.  

So, what is the best way to avoid these problems? Well, the first and most obvious thing to do is avoiding using photos without permission. Doing so not only creates liability for you, but also for your fellow brokers. Companies like Getty Images aggressively protect their copyrights.

In addition, agents should always be careful when writing listing remarks as to avoid any potential Fair Housing violations. MLS PIN does not use screening software for the remarks. When a possible Fair Housing violation is brought to our attention, we will reach out to the listing broker and advise them. Any agent or broker who is concerned about listings with potential Fair Housing violations appearing on their IDX sites might want to consider removing the Remarks field from display if your vendor supports it.