Yes, for existing homes, if the words 'virtually staged' are on the photo. That is NSAR's MLS® Rule 3.20(a). NSREC's by-law separately bans any advertising that is false, inaccurate or reasonably capable of misleading, and its 2026 Advertising Requirements say changing permanent features is not allowed.
Nova Scotia is the only Atlantic province with a written virtual-staging rule, and it is unusually precise: what may be added, what may never be removed, and where the label goes.
Regulator: Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission · Association: Nova Scotia Association of REALTORS® (NSAR) · MLS / boards: NSAR MLS® System (Rules & Regulations, October 9, 2025)
Governing text: Real Estate Trading Act, S.N.S. 1996, c. 28, ss. 22(2)(a), 28 · NSREC Commission By-law (February 2026), By-law 759 · NSREC Advertising Requirements, 2026 edition, Use of photo-editing software; Use of AI
Quoted as written, with the source and the day we read it.
“The listing shall include a photo accurately depicting the property for sale (photos shall not be falsely manipulated so as to be misleading; nor shall they contain any promotional materials) or facsimile (except for vacant land).”
NSAR MLS® Rules & Regulations, October 9, 2025, Rule 3.20 — NSAR · read September 2, 2026
“Virtual staging is permitted for existing homes. Virtual staging is defined as using photo editing software to create a photo or conceptual rendering of what a room and/or property could look like, if it was staged or lived in. Renderings are required to have the word 'virtually staged' prominently displayed on the photo.”
NSAR MLS® Rules & Regulations, Rule 3.20(a) — NSAR · read September 2, 2026
“Modifying photo(s)/rendering(s) to include personal property items not conveyed with the real property is permitted. Permitted personal property modifications include, but are not limited to: applying digital photos of furniture, mirrors, artwork, plants, etc. into a photo of an empty room; removing existing furniture from a photo and replacing it with digital images of furniture […]”
NSAR MLS® Rules & Regulations, Rule 3.20(b) — NSAR · read September 2, 2026
“Modifying photo(s)/rendering(s) to include visual elements not within a property owner's control is prohibited. Modifications include, but are not limited to: editing in a view that is not physically possible from the specified location in the real world; removing power lines, water towers and/or nearby highways”
NSAR MLS® Rules & Regulations, Rule 3.20(c) — NSAR · read September 2, 2026
“A licensee must not engage in any advertising, promotion, or representation made to the public that is: (a) false; (b) inaccurate; (c) reasonably capable of misleading the recipient or intended recipient; (d) in bad taste; (e) offensive or harmful to the best interests of the public or harmful to the image of the real estate industry; or (f) prohibited by law.”
NSREC Commission By-law, February 2026 edition, By-law 759 — NSREC · read September 2, 2026
“Photo-editing tools must be used carefully to avoid misleading property images. Minor edits, like removing a garbage bin or car, are allowed, but changing permanent features or misrepresenting the property is not.”
NSREC Advertising Requirements, 2026 edition, p. 12 — NSREC · read September 2, 2026
“Licensees remain fully responsible for any content they use in advertising, including material generated by AI tools. Whether the content is original or AI-assisted, once it is shared or marketed, the licensee is responsible for ensuring it complies with all applicable rules and standards.”
NSREC Advertising Requirements, 2026 edition — Use of Artificial Intelligence — NSREC · read September 2, 2026
The four things a listing has to get right.
| Disclosure to buyers | RequiredOn the photo itself: NSAR Rule 3.20(a) requires the word 'virtually staged' prominently displayed on every rendering. No remarks-line rule, but By-law 759 makes an undisclosed staged photo 'reasonably capable of misleading'. Source |
|---|---|
| Label on the image | YesThe words 'virtually staged', prominently, on the photo. Rule 3.22 bans any other text on listing images, so the label is the sanctioned exception. Source |
| Unaltered original | No specific rule foundNeither the NSAR rules, the by-law nor the Advertising Requirements require an unaltered original. Sedam Staging ships one with every listing anyway. |
| Off-limits alterations | ProhibitedNo falsely manipulated photos (3.20); no views that are not physically possible, no removed power lines, water towers or highways (3.20(c)); only personal property may be added or replaced (3.20(b)); NSREC: 'changing permanent features or misrepresenting the property is not' allowed. 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 Nova Scotia.
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 →
The word 'virtually staged', prominently displayed on the photo. That is the wording in NSAR Rule 3.20(a), and it is what Sedam Staging burns into every listing image.
No. Rule 3.20(c) names both: editing in a view that is not physically possible from that spot, and removing power lines, water towers or nearby highways. NSREC's 2026 requirements add that changing permanent features is not allowed.
Yes, for misleading images though not yet for virtual staging: $500 for advertising a photo of a different lot in 2025, and $1,500 in 2026 for sending buyers videos of the wrong property. Fines run $500 to $1,000 per count.
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
The clearest rule in Canada: staging allowed, disclosed in the remarks; 'virtual enhancing' banned
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
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 (every quotation is from the primary PDF text; the NSAR rules file is member-hosted, so cite it as the NSAR MLS® Rules & Regulations, October 9, 2025). 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.