<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Plenty of Australians know how it feels to spot a promising </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/housing" rel="" target="_blank" title="rental listing"><span>rental listing</span></a><span> only to realise the photos were edited as soon as they arrive at an inspection.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Now </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/artificial-intelligence" rel="" target="_blank" title="AI"><span>AI</span></a><span> is making it easier for landlords and agents to enhance or overhaul property photos and it's making the already stressful process of finding housing even harder.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's crazy the number of inspections I've gone to that look nothing like the pictures," Emma*, who is hunting for a rental in </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/sydney" rel="" target="_blank" title="Sydney"><span>Sydney</span></a><span>, told nine.com.au.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>LIVE UPDATES:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/us-israel-iran-war-live-updates-march-24-donald-trump-latest-world-news-headlines/a6d7c67d-9a69-4279-88eb-985ccda7fb13" target="_blank"><strong><span>'Zombie ships' pass through Strait of Hormuz, Trump postpones strikes</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's hard to tell which ones have been AI-edited or which ones have been Photoshopped until you actually get to the unit and realise you've wasted your time."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>There's currently nothing stopping agents from using AI-altered property photos without disclosing it.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But that could soon change – at least in NSW, where Emma's trying to rent.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/ai-real-estate-photos-is-it-legal-rules-laws-everything-to-know-explained/f6735107-48b8-45f7-9d4e-39958e68cf5e" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A bill currently before NSW parliament would force landlords and agents in the state to admit when they've used AI to edit real estate pictures.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Tenants' Union of NSW chief executive Leo Patterson Ross called it the first step towards much-needed reform.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We're trying to make agents think twice about how they are digitally altering photos so you might see less of the really dodgy stuff," he told nine.com.au.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><strong><span>Have you got a story? Contact</span></strong></em><span> </span><strong><em><span>reporter Maddison Leach at</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="mailto:mleach@nine.com.au" target="_blank" title="mleach@nine.com.au"><strong><em><span>mleach@nine.com.au</span></em></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australian Consumer Law prohibits misleading or deceptive conduct in real estate listings with penalties of up to $220,000 for an individual and $1.1 million for a company.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But enforcement is rare.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's difficult to gather complaints and the evidence of the wrongdoing," Patterson Ross said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Though the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) enforces the rules at a national level, real estate advertising regulation is primarily governed at a state and territory level.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It's done through property legislation and fair trading/consumer affairs agencies, which largely rely on reports from tenants about breaches.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But reporting can be daunting when you're trying to secure housing in a rental crisis.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"If you want the place, you probably aren't going to fight about it," Patterson Ross said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"And if you aren't trying to move in or don't move in, it's almost certainly not worth your time and energy and core costs and trying to construct a prosecution.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"So this is somewhere where the government would need to be more active."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>WORLD:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/new-york-laguardia-airport-air-canada-plane-collides-with-vehicle-on-runway/4f2be952-d811-4899-ab5f-bdf59fd6525f" target="_blank"><strong><span>Traffic controller's chilling admission minutes after deadly plane crash</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Emma hasn't reported any of the property photos she suspects to have been digitally altered through AI or other means.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>She worries it could tank her chances of securing a rental in the competitive Sydney market.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Obviously I'm not applying for the dodgy units, but if I apply for another place with the same agent or real estate company it could screw me," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Patterson Ross still encourages prospective tenants to file a complaint with Fair Trading about misleading real estate listings.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Including photo evidence, like a screenshot of edited listing images compared to photos taken at the property during an inspection, is important.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>While a single complaint may not attract a lot of attention, Fair Trading can take action when multiple complaints pile up.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We want to see Fair Trading really being a visible and active regulator that real estate agents know if they do the wrong thing, someone's watching and someone will hold them to account," Patterson Ross said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Because for a long time, there's been a lot of rules on paper that if you were a dodgy agent you could avoid."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/fuel-shortage-how-much-does-australia-have-left-explained/f266e2d2-6b91-4166-8f7e-bb424620cc09" target="_blank"><strong><span>How much fuel does Australia have left?</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="player__video-container"><img alt="" src="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/3CZ6AElmQZNDFbLeZlITT4cYaUY=/750x0/https%3A%2F%2Fvms-network-images-prod.s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com%2F2025%2F11%2F735003%2Fpickerimage.jpg"/></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Landlords and agents have been using virtual staging and photo-editing software to enhance listing images for years now.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Some people argue AI is just another tool they can use now, provided it's done honestly and responsibly.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Real Estate Institute of NSW chief executive Tim McKibbin said that's what most agents are doing.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I haven't heard of any actions by Fair Trading in relation to misleading with the use of Photoshop or AI or the like," he told nine.com.au.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He said using AI to clean up or enhance the quality of a property photo is fine as long as it doesn't "change the reality" of the property.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"There's nothing wrong with demonstrating what the property would lend itself to."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>*Name changed.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><em><span>EVER MISS A STORY:</span></em></strong><span> </span><em><span>Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 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