Real Estate CameraA good virtual staging disclosure is short and literal: "Virtually staged. Furniture and decor are not included." Put that label on or under the staged photo, add a line to the public remarks, and upload the unstaged original right beside it. Below are copy-paste versions for captions, MLS remarks, social posts, flyers and a sign for the showing, for staged and decluttered photos, plus enhanced ones.
Each template is tied to a rule we've already checked in our guides to virtual staging MLS rules and California's AB 723. This is not legal advice. Your MLS's current rules and your broker come first.
What the wording has to do
Rules differ by board, but they ask the disclosure to cover the same ground.
- Name the edit. Every MLS rule set in our MLS guide wants staged photos labeled. CRMLS accepts "virtually staged," "digitally altered" or "digitally enhanced" in the photo description field.
- Sit where the buyer is looking. Canopy MLS requires the disclosure on the image or in the virtual tour and says captions or remarks alone are not acceptable. California's AB 723 wants the statement "on or adjacent to the image."
- Point to the original. AB 723 requires a link, URL or QR code to a public page showing the unaltered photo. CRMLS and Canopy want the original immediately before or after the edited one.
Wisconsin is next. 2025 Wisconsin Act 69, effective January 1, 2027, says a licensee "shall in all advertising disclose" when it has been altered with technology, including AI, "to add, remove, or change elements of the property that creates a false or misleading impression of the property." Zillow's July 2026 post on AI listing photos says New York and New Jersey have bills under consideration too.
Templates for virtually staged photos
On the image
Two or three words, in a corner that survives cropping. This is the version Canopy asks for.
Virtually staged
Photo caption or description field
CRMLS wants the label here. On boards that don't require it, it still costs you nothing.
Virtually staged. Furniture and decor are not included. Unstaged photo follows.
Change "follows" to "precedes" if your board wants the original first. Bay East requires it immediately after. CRMLS accepts either side.
MLS public remarks
This is the line CVR MLS requires, and the placement NC REALTORS® recommends for North Carolina.
Some photos are virtually staged. Furniture and decor shown are not included. Unstaged originals are included in the photo set.
Put it in the first two lines of the remarks, not after the showing instructions. A disclosure nobody reads is doing the minimum.
Instagram or Facebook post
In California the statement has to sit on or next to the image, so I'd put "Virtually staged" on the photo itself and repeat it in the caption with the link. The caption alone may not count as adjacent in a carousel.
Just listed: 3 bed, 2 bath on Maple Street. The living room and primary bedroom are virtually staged, and the furniture isn't included. Unedited photos: [link]
Flyer or printed brochure
No MLS field does this job on paper, and a flyer counts as promotional material under AB 723. Print this right beside the photo with a QR code.
Digitally altered image: virtually staged. Scan for the unaltered photos.
Sign at the showing
No rule we've read requires one. Print it anyway. A buyer who saw a furnished living room online and walks into an empty one should find the explanation taped by the door, not work it out alone.
Some online photos of this home were virtually staged. The furniture you saw isn't here and isn't included in the sale. The empty rooms you're walking through are the real ones.
Templates for decluttered photos
Decluttered photos are the easiest to forget. Removing a seller's furniture is an alteration under AB 723, which names furniture specifically. CRMLS's guidance also counts a virtually emptied room as altered. Say what was removed so nobody thinks the room was always bare.
Caption: Digitally altered: furniture and personal items removed. Original photo follows.
Remarks: Some photos have been digitally altered to remove furniture. Originals are included.
If you removed furniture and then staged the same room, say both: "Digitally altered: existing furniture removed and room virtually staged."
Templates for enhanced photos
California's statute excludes lighting, sharpening, white balance, color correction, straightening, cropping and exposure changes "that do not change the representation of the real property." A photo that was only brightened and straightened usually needs no label under the statute.
Two exceptions. The Bay East MLS rule FAQ lists "AI enhancements" among altered images, which goes beyond the statute. And if a window was solid white in your original and the edit now shows a view, the software filled in something the camera didn't record. Check it against what's outside. Where your board wants a label, or you're unsure, use this:
Digitally enhanced: color and exposure corrected, walls straightened. Nothing added or removed.
That last sentence matters. It tells a buyer exactly how much changed.
Where each line goes
| Edit | Photo caption | On the image | Remarks | Original beside it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virtually staged | Yes (CRMLS) | Yes (Canopy) | Yes (CVR MLS) | Yes (CA, Canopy) |
| Decluttered | Yes | Where your board requires it | Yes | Yes (CA) |
| Staged after decluttering | Name both edits | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enhanced only | If your board asks | No | No | Not required under AB 723 |
Wording that causes trouble
- "Photos for illustration purposes only." Vague. It doesn't say what changed, and a buyer can't tell which photos it covers.
- "AI enhanced" on a staged photo. It understates the edit. Staging adds furniture, so call it staging.
- One disclaimer on the first photo only. Label every staged or decluttered image. Photos get shared one at a time.
- A label buried after the showing instructions and the HOA details. Put it near the top.
- "Staged" on its own. Buyers read that as real furniture in the room. Write "virtually staged."
None of this wording fixes an edit that shouldn't exist. Canopy prohibits adding a pool or fireplace or removing power lines, and CRMLS forbids changing wall color, flooring or landscaping. No label makes those acceptable.
How Real Estate Camera handles disclosure
Real Estate Camera flags every staged result "virtually staged" in the app and asks you to confirm disclosure before export. It doesn't print the label on the image, so you add the wording above yourself: on the image where your board or state requires it, and in the caption and remarks everywhere else. The original stays next to the edit in the app, ready to upload beside it.
Staging costs 2 credits a room. Declutter is 2, Enhance 1. The app doesn't do sky replacement or twilight, so those labels never come up.
For the full board-by-board rules, read the virtual staging MLS rules guide. For the edits themselves, see removing furniture from photos and which rooms are worth staging. And if Zillow is where most of your buyers look, our Zillow listing photos guide covers what Zillow said in July 2026 about AI-altered photos.
Questions
What should a virtual staging disclosure say?
Keep it short and literal: "Virtually staged. Furniture and decor are not included." Put "Virtually staged" in the photo caption, add a line to the public remarks, and upload the unstaged original beside the staged photo. In California, the statement also needs a link or QR code to the originals.
Do I need to disclose decluttered photos?
In California, yes. AB 723 names removing furniture as an alteration. CRMLS counts a virtually emptied room as altered. Label it "Digitally altered: furniture removed" and show the original.
Do I need to label a photo that was only brightened or straightened?
Not under California's statute, which excludes lighting, white balance, color correction, straightening and exposure changes that don't change how the property is represented. Some MLSs are broader. Bay East lists AI enhancements as altered, so check your board.
Is a disclaimer at the bottom of the listing description enough?
Not everywhere. CVR MLS accepts a remarks disclosure, but Canopy MLS says captions or remarks alone are not acceptable and wants the label on the image. California wants the statement on or next to the image itself.
Does Real Estate Camera add the label to the photo?
No. The app flags staged results as virtually staged and asks you to confirm disclosure when you export. It doesn't print text on the image. Add the wording yourself using the templates in this guide.