Yes, and the disclosure goes in the public remarks. Alberta's provincial MLS® rules, used by Pillar 9 and the Calgary Real Estate Board, allow virtual staging with realistically sized furniture and require the listing brokerage to disclose it in the public remarks. 'Virtual enhancing', which changes walls, layout or the size, type or location of windows, is banned outright.
Alberta is the only western jurisdiction with an explicit rule, and it draws the clearest line in the country between staging and altering.
Regulator: Real Estate Council of Alberta · Association: Alberta Real Estate Association · MLS / boards: Pillar 9 and the Calgary Real Estate Board — Provincial MLS® System Listing & Practice Rules (January 2024)
Governing text: Real Estate Act Rules, s. 42(a) · Provincial MLS® System Listing & Practice Rules for Alberta REALTORS®, Rules 2.04(g), 2.04(h) · RECA Advertising Guidelines (2016)
Quoted as written, with the source and the day we read it.
“Virtual Staging means adding virtual unattached goods (chattels) of realistic size to property photos in order to give perspective on room dimensions.”
Provincial MLS® System Listing & Practice Rules for Alberta REALTORS®, January 2024, Definition ii — Pillar 9 / CREB / AREA · read September 2, 2026
“Virtual Enhancing means virtually changing, adding, or augmenting features on property photos that would materially affect the property value. This may include walls, or changing the layout, locations, size, or type of windows.”
Provincial MLS® System Listing & Practice Rules, Definition hh — Pillar 9 / CREB / AREA · read September 2, 2026
“When using Virtually Staged property images, images of a show home or show suite, or artist's renderings, the Listing Brokerage must disclose this fact in the public remarks on the Board's MLS® System.”
Provincial MLS® System Listing & Practice Rules, Rule 2.04(g) — Pillar 9 / CREB / AREA · read September 2, 2026
“Virtually Enhanced images, or any photos that may misrepresent the property, are not permitted on the Board's MLS® System.”
Provincial MLS® System Listing & Practice Rules, Rule 2.04(h) — Pillar 9 / CREB / AREA · read September 2, 2026
“Licensees must not: (a) make representations or carry on conduct that is reckless or intentional and that misleads or deceives any person or is likely to do so”
Real Estate Act Rules, s. 42(a) — RECA · read September 2, 2026
“Virtually enhanced photos are prohibited on the MLS system if they misrepresent a property in a way that would affect its value. Virtual staging with realistically sized, unattached furniture is permitted, but must be disclosed in the public remarks.”
CREB policy, as quoted — Real Estate Magazine, 2026-03-30 · read September 2, 2026
The four things a listing has to get right.
| Disclosure to buyers | RequiredIn the public remarks: Rule 2.04(g) says the listing brokerage 'must disclose this fact in the public remarks on the Board's MLS® System'. Source |
|---|---|
| Label on the image | No specific rule foundThe rule places the disclosure in the remarks, not on the image. Rule 2.04(b) bars wording 'not related to the property' on photos; a staging label relates to the property, but confirm with your board before relying on it. Source |
| Unaltered original | No specific rule foundNo rule found. |
| Off-limits alterations | ProhibitedVirtual enhancing: changing walls, the layout, or the location, size or type of windows, or anything that 'would materially affect the property value'; and any photo that 'may misrepresent the property' (Rule 2.04(h)). Source |
Plain words, consistent with the rule above. Sedam Staging writes the same line into the disclosure file that ships with every listing.
Public decisions and reports involving altered or virtually staged listing photos relevant to Alberta.
Sedam Staging burns the “Virtually staged” label into every listing image, ships the untouched original beside it, compares every render against the photograph so walls, windows, floors and built-ins never move, and writes the remarks line into the download. See the renders we refused →
In the public remarks of the MLS® listing. Rule 2.04(g) names that place specifically. Sedam Staging's download includes the remarks line ready to paste, and the label on the image is extra.
Changing, adding or augmenting features that would materially affect the property's value: walls, the layout, or the location, size or type of windows. It is banned. Adding realistically sized furniture is staging, and it is allowed.
Yes. The Provincial MLS® Rules were written with Pillar 9, CREB and AREA together, and CREB's own policy repeats the two-part test: staging allowed with remarks disclosure, enhancing prohibited.
The same four questions, answered from each regulator's own text. The national layer for Canada →
BCFSA's AI guideline, a $6,000 penalty, and a watermark catch in Vancouver
SREC's advertising bylaw and a members-only MLS® rulebook
The Real Estate Services Act's ban on deceptive ads, and an unsourced labelling claim
RECO, TRESA, and the PropTx MLS® image rule
OACIQ's AI-image statement and Centris
FCNB, the Real Estate Agents Act, and an unpublished MLS® rulebook
NSAR MLS® Rule 3.20 and NSREC By-law 759
An Act that only asks for the agent's name
The 2019 Act's advertising test and the Superintendent's Code
An Act we could not read, a members-only rulebook, and the national rules
A licence can be pulled for publishing any misrepresentation about a trade
The same Act as the NWT, no board, and the national rules
Listing across the border? The rules in the United States, state by state.
How this page was made. Each quotation was read at the linked source on September 2, 2026; our confidence that it is current and complete is high (the provincial MLS® rulebook was read from the January 2024 PDF, the newest version retrievable; CREB's own member policy is quoted through trade press). Rules change and boards add policies; the linked documents are the authority, and this is a plain-language summary, not legal advice. Spotted a change? Tell us and we will fix the page.