Copyrights in general are complex and can be difficult to understand. This is especially true of anything that is liable to intellectual property – the way that photography is.

So, this article is written for real estate agents in mind but applies to everyone. I’m going to break this down using multiple examples that anyone can follow, so read through to the end.

Understanding Copyright in Real Estate: A Quick Primer

You have spent several hours, maybe even weeks, preparing high-quality marketing materials for a beautiful property listing: this includes hiring for professional photographs, crafting detailed descriptions highlighting the home’s unique features, a custom brochure, and a comprehensive analysis of how the property fits into the local market.

However, after some time on the market, the property didn’t sell, and the homeowners decided to take it off. Six months later, they choose to re-list with a new agent: Agent B. Agent B receives a copy of all of your original marketing materials and decides it would be faster and easier to use them as-is instead of creating new ones.

Agent B uploads the same photos, uses identical descriptions, and even distributes your brochure (with your branding removed) to prospective buyers. Additionally, Agent B reuses your market analysis without updating or adjusting it to the latest local data.

That, my friends, just won’t fly. In the same way that Agent B does not have the right to re-use your materials, it also applies to photography. But you might be thinking, “How does that relate to photography, after all, I paid for the photograph.”

Paying for the Photograph vs. Owning the Copyright

When you hire a professional photographer to take images of your listing, what you’re actually purchasing is a license to use those photos—not ownership of the photos themselves. Think of it like leasing a car: you have full access and freedom to use the car as you need, but at the end of the day, you don’t own it outright.

Let me give you one more example to help drive the point home. Say you decide to take out an ad on a local radio station. You want a cool song or jingle. So, you go online and your purchase a license to use a catchy song on your ad. Another agent from your brokerage hears your ad, and wants to use the same song for their advertisement. Do you have the right to ‘give them’ the song? No, because you don’t own it. Your rights to use it only extend to using it on your own ad. They would have to purchase a separate license for their own advertisement.

With real estate photography, you’re paying for what’s called standard use licensing. This license typically allows you to use the photos for the duration of the listing, and sometimes a bit longer if you need them for your portfolio or general marketing purposes. However, just like in our earlier scenario, if that property goes back on the market with a different agent, your license to use those images does not carry over to another agent.

Why You Can’t Pass On Licensed Photos

Does this also apply if your stager, or the home remodeler, house cleaner, property manager, etc wants to use the images? Absolutely!

To keep things fair and within the law, new agents or any third parties need to obtain their own license for the photos, just as you did. This protects the integrity of the photographer’s work and keeps everyone on the right side of copyright laws. This doesn’t mean that they need to hire me to go out and reshoot the property and give them new photos. They simply need to purchase the rights to use the same images that were licensed to you.

What Happens if Someone Uses Photos Without Permission?

If Agent B were to use the photos without permission, this could lead to a copyright claim. Generally, this means I, as the photographer, have the right to request that the images be taken down, and in some cases, there can even be legal or financial consequences.

Licensing Helps You Look Professional

When you respect copyright and licensing agreements, you’re showing homeowners, colleagues, and clients that you do business the right way. It’s about maintaining integrity and respecting the work that goes into every part of a listing—from photos to descriptions. And if you’re ever unsure, I’m always here to explain the terms of the license, so you know exactly what’s allowed and what isn’t.

Bottom Line

Paying for a photo shoot isn’t the same as owning the photos. Licensed use allows you to showcase the property in its best light, while respecting the work and rights of everyone who’s contributed.