West Hawaii Real Estate | September 14, 2018 15
New homeowners face difficulties when removing photos from online listings
Consulting Sales/Leasing Services Property Management
OFFICE SPACE
WITH KITCHEN
1395 sq ft.
Great coastal views
Available immediately
is the leading full-service Commercial Real Estate fi rm on
the Big Island. TCG is looking for potential qualifi ed tenants
as well as commercial property owners who need leasing
services for their property or a Leasing Agent and Property
Manager. They also offer consulting services for commercial
real estate issues.
Monique Peacock, (PB)
• Consulting
• Sales/Leasing Services
• Property Management
is the leading full-service Commercial Real Estate fi rm on
the Big Island. TCG is looking for potential qualifi ed tenants
as well as commercial property owners who need leasing
services for their property or a Leasing Agent and Property
Manager. They also offer consulting services for commercial
real estate issues.
Monique Peacock, (PB)
RB-19825
PO Box 908, Kailua-Kona, HI 96745 • Offi ce (808) 329-1111
www.TCGKona.com • email: mp@TCGKona.com
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goal with
: We recently purchased a
property and, like many
other consumers, we want
the listing photos removed
for both privacy and security
reasons.
However, as you may know, this
is a huge problem.
The real estate and property appraisal
industry claims that it’s bad for
business, which trumps individuals’
privacy or security concerns. It’s a nowin
battle that needs to be addressed.
There needs to be a provision for
home buyers to opt out of keeping the
photos online indefinitely. A program
like the “Do Not Call” list to get listings
removed upon request is tantamount
to personal security, especially online.
In our case, the seller’s agent
refused our immediate request to
remove the listing with photos after
closing. Other real estate companies
claim the photos are necessary, as they
serve as comparables for their clients.
Is there any recourse for consumers
regarding this matter?
—Deborah, of Chicago
A: My first move was to turn to
Lauren Johnson, a 14-year real estate
veteran currently with Kale Realty in
Chicago, to help me uncover some
answers for Deborah.
I also received some advice from
Lesley Muchow, deputy general counsel
for the National Association of Realtors.
According to information Johnson received
from the Multiple Listing Service
(the huge regional database that lists
properties for sale and can be searched
by price, neighborhood and features),
secondary photos can be suppressed
from an MLS listing only at the request
of the listing or managing broker.
Secondary photos consist of interior
shots and any additional exterior
shots the listing broker wishes to
include. The primary photo always is
an exterior shot of the property.
Per the MLS:
“Photos submitted to the MLS may
not be removed from the Service with
the exception of (1) replacing photos
to reflect a change in the seasons, (2)
reflecting improvements to the home;
or (3) substituting a higher quality
photo of the same image.
“While secondary photos may not
be removed from the Service, a listing
broker may instruct the Service to
suppress off market secondary photos
(but not primary photos) from the Service’s
data feed to third parties (such
as Zillow.com, Realtor.com, Trulia.com
and the listing agent’s own brokerage
site). Unauthorized removal of photos
shall result in a $250 fine and the photos
will be restored to the listing.”
Which is all to say that neither the
buyer’s agent nor any other non-listing
agent can remove interior photos
from an MLS real estate listing. Only
the seller’s agent can do that.
Johnson additionally shared with
me that each real estate site linked to
the MLS is required to refresh downloads
from the database at least once
every 12 hours in order to pull in
new data and exclude old data that
has been removed.
For all intents and purposes, listing
photos loaded to the MLS are the
“property” of the MLS. Any request
to suppress them from public view is
considered an exception.
The MLS argues that any information
used to market a property via its
database must stay with the listing
because the data is used for both
comparative market analysis and
home appraisals.
Johnson recommended Deborah
reach out to the listing broker’s office
manager to request the removal of photos
of her new home if she is unable to
get the listing agent’s cooperation.
A real estate office’s managing
broker typically is authorized to edit
all of the office’s real estate postings.
Muchow cautioned that for those
real estate sites that are not directly
populated by the MLS, there is little
control over how often information
gets updated and moved.
But a homeowner should feel free
to request that the third-party site
remove unwanted photos. If the request
falls on deaf ears, a homeowner
should enlist the assistance of his/
her broker to get this accomplished,
Muchow said.
/www.TCGKona.com
link
