Bizarre detail in Sydney real estate ad blasted: 'How is this legal?'

"Fake" images in real estate listings are becoming more and more common with many fed-up Aussies branding the practice misleading – but one real estate agent has defended it, claiming "everyone does it".

The over-the-top digital alterations for one Sydney property listed this week were hard to miss with the listing for a two-bedroom property in Schofields in Sydney's northwest quickly gaining attention online with house hunters left wondering; "How is this legal?".

Images for the apartment show a Photoshopped sunset overlooking the balcony and a bizarrely small outdoor lounge set edited into the scene. The smaller scale furniture is ostensibly designed to give the impression of a larger balcony space.

After the images were posted on realestate.com people flagged the edits, joking if the "outdoor furniture set [was] for ants" and branding it misleading.

"Weird sky, tiny outdoor furniture. This s**t should be illegal to advertise as a property for sale," one commented online, calling out the practice of altering real estate photos.

Real estate agent defends practice of 'digital styling'

The real estate agent for the listing, who Yahoo News has decided not to name, defended the practice by claiming "everyone does it" and said it was necessary given the property is being sold unfurnished.

"It's called digital styling... it helps it look more appealing," the agent told Yahoo News.

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He pointed to the disclaimer at the bottom of the advertisement which warns prospective buyers the images may be edited – something that was added after being contacted by Yahoo.

The agent encouraged those interested in the property to instead inspect it in person and not rely solely on the images online. "People do come in and inspect it before we take any offers, we don't just sell it on the internet," he said.

Agent must ensure ads are not misleading

In NSW it is the responsibility of the agent to ensure images used in real estate advertising are not misleading, and don't give prospective buyers the wrong impression of the property for sale — especially in terms of the nature, value or location of the home.

The small-scale furniture in the Sydney listing arguably gives the impression the balcony is larger, with measurements not provided in the floor plan. But it's certainly not the first listing to include altered images for no clear reason.

One Melbourne listing was flagged recently after a tree in the backyard looked "odd" and was accused of being digitally edited to appear in a healthier state than it really was.

Consumer Affairs Victoria are now investigating rental properties in the state which have been inaccurately depicted in promotional material, including using outdated images.

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