--- title: "Iowa real estate website and advertising rules" description: "Check Iowa brokerage-name placement, website disclosures, teams, advertising approval, social media, IDX, and fair housing against primary sources." canonical: "https://scalewithsearch.com/articles/website-rules-iowa" --- ## Site navigation - [Scale With Search](https://scalewithsearch.com/) - Real estate - Real estate - [Real estate](https://scalewithsearch.com/for/real-estate) - Work - Start here - [Send your brief](https://scalewithsearch.com/work#send-your-brief) - [Prepare your six-question brief](https://scalewithsearch.com/work#prepare-your-six-question-brief) - Build - [Site build, content library with SEO, signal desk](https://scalewithsearch.com/work) - For your business - Trades and home services - [Auto body and collision shops](https://scalewithsearch.com/for/auto-body-and-collision-shops) - [Foundation and home repair contractors](https://scalewithsearch.com/for/foundation-and-home-repair) - [Garage door and fencing contractors](https://scalewithsearch.com/for/garage-door-and-fencing-contractors) - 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Agent-controlled website pages also need the agent's legal name, office city and state, and states of licensure. Check those disclosures on each page carrying your advertising or information. The sources below were read on 2026.10.10. Iowa's current advertising chapter is [481—Chapter 2010](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Its heading identifies the former citation as 193E—Chapter 10, before 2026.06.10. Use the current numbering when checking an older advertising guide. ## Place the brokerage name next to your name Iowa Code §543B.25 states: > An individual licensee or real estate team shall conspicuously display the name of the brokerage immediately preceding or immediately following the individual licensee’s name or real estate team name in any advertising or information made available to the public. Source: [Iowa Code §543B.25, 2026 edition](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/2026/543B.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Check each agent or team name in the header, biography, landing page, and advertising graphic. Keep the brokerage name immediately before or after that name. A separate brokerage name elsewhere in the footer does not establish the required relationship to a name higher on the page. The implementing rule, 481—2010.1, defines the display standard: > “conspicuously display” shall mean advertisement that, when presented, a reasonable person would be able to identify or observe. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1, opening paragraph](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Inspect the rendered names on a phone and desktop. This is a practical check of the display standard. The cited rule supplies no fixed pixel size or universal agent-to-brokerage font-size ratio. The same rule requires advertising to identify the licensed business: > Every licensee, when advertising real estate, will use the licensed business name or the name under which the broker is licensed and affirmatively and unmistakably indicate that the party is a real estate licensee and not a private party. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1, opening paragraph](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Keep that identification visible in the advertisement itself. ## Include the required information on each advertising page For a website or social media account owned or controlled by a licensee, 481—2010.1(5) requires information on: > each page of the site on which the licensee’s advertisement or information appears Its required fields include: > a. The licensee’s legal name; For the affiliated firm name, paragraph “b” specifies: > as that firm name is registered with the commission (abbreviations are not permitted) That paragraph also requires the firm name immediately before or after the individual licensee's or team's name. The remaining fields are: > c. The city and state in which the licensee’s office is located; and > d. The states in which the licensee holds a real estate broker or salesperson license. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1(5)(a)–(d)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Use the registered firm name without abbreviating it. Check your homepage, biography, service pages, landing pages, and property pages. A disclosure available only through an About-page link does not put the required fields on each advertising page. For a firm-owned or firm-controlled website or social media account, 481—2010.1(4)(a) adds this readability language: > in a font size that is readable to a reasonably prudent person It requires the registered firm or trade name, without abbreviations, immediately before or after the individual or team name. Paragraphs “b” and “c” require: > b. The city and state in which the firm’s main office is located; and > c. The states in which the firm holds a real estate brokerage license. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1(4)(a)–(c)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Keep firm information and individual information distinct. For which office and licensed-state information belongs in your site's disclosure, confirm with your broker. ### Does Iowa require your license number on the website? The website field lists in 481—2010.1(4) and (5) specify names, office location, and states of licensure. They do not list a license number. The reviewed Commission FAQ addresses license numbers in a transfer application, rather than website advertising. Sources: [481—2010.1(4)–(5)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf) and [Commission Real Estate FAQs](https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/other-professional-licensure/real-estate-licensees/real-estate-faqs). Read 2026.10.10. UNRESOLVED: These reviewed sources do not establish a general agent-website license-number display requirement. For any additional number-display requirement applying to your site, confirm with your broker. ## Check the team's relationship to the brokerage Iowa Code §543B.5(20) defines a real estate team as: > two or more licensees assigned to the same broker working together to provide real estate brokerage services and representing themselves to the public as a team. Source: [Iowa Code §543B.5(20), 2026 edition](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/2026/543B.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. The advertising rule states: > An individual licensee or real estate team that is not a principal broker or firm is not required to register a trade name. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1, opening paragraph](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. That distinction does not remove the brokerage-placement requirement. Keep the brokerage immediately before or after the team name in public advertising. The reviewed Iowa text does not supply a list of prohibited team-name words or require a particular team-name suffix. For the proposed name and brokerage policy, confirm with your broker. ## Keep advertising under broker supervision 481—2010.1(3) states: > All advertising is conducted under the supervision of the broker. The paragraph requires the broker to ensure accuracy. After learning of a material error or an advertisement violating Chapter 2010 or Chapter 543B, the broker must correct it: > within ten calendar days. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1(3)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. There is a separate approval rule for unlicensed support personnel. Their barred activities include: > Preparing promotion materials or advertisements without the review and approval of licensee and designated broker; Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2007.13(4)(b)(3)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2007.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. The rule also permits those personnel to: > Write advertisements and promotional materials for the approval of the licensee and designated broker; Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2007.13(4)(a)(7)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2007.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Apply that approval condition when unlicensed support personnel prepare advertising. It is distinct from the general supervision rule. For your site's reviewer and approval process, confirm with your broker. 481—2010.1(2) separately states: > Real estate advertising cannot be misleading or deceptive or intentionally misrepresent any property, terms, values, or policies and services of the brokerage. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1(2)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Check property details and service claims alongside the disclosure fields. Correct unsupported wording through the broker's review process. ## Apply the rules to social media and electronic messages The definition of advertising in 481—2010.1(1) expressly includes: > email, signs, websites, social media and business cards. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1(1)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. For firms, 481—2010.1(6) states: > A firm using any Internet electronic communication for advertising or marketing, including but not limited to email, websites, and social media accounts, includes the information in 481—subrule 2010.1(4). For licensees, subrule (7) requires: > on the first or last page of all communications the information in subrule 2010.1(5). Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.1(6)–(7)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Read these provisions alongside the each-page website and social-account requirement. A first-or-last-page instruction for communications does not erase subrule (5). Check the advertisement as viewers receive it, including an exported graphic or message. For a particular social format, confirm with your broker. ## Check IDX pages without inventing a statewide feed disclaimer Apply the quoted website disclosure rules to pages carrying your advertising or information, including property-search and listing-detail pages. Check what the final page displays around the listing component. These are applications of 481—2010.1(4)–(5), rather than a separate IDX exemption or template. The chapter also addresses expired listings. Under 481—2010.3(1), when a listing expires without a new written listing or extension: > the licensee immediately ceases advertising and active marketing of the property. Source: [Iowa Administrative Code 481—2010.3(1)](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/chapter/481.2010.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Review your expired-listing marketing with that condition in view. Distinguish your own advertising from another listing's permitted feed display. UNRESOLVED: The reviewed Iowa provisions do not establish a statewide IDX attribution sentence, listing-broker display template, or feed-update interval. For the applicable feed permissions and disclosures, confirm with your broker. ## Review fair housing wording separately from the logo Iowa Code §216.8(1)(c) prohibits this advertising conduct: > To directly or indirectly advertise, or in any other manner indicate or publicize that the purchase, rental, lease, assignment, or sublease of any real property or housing accommodation or any part, portion, or interest therein, by persons of any particular race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, disability, or familial status is unwelcome, objectionable, not acceptable, or not solicited. Source: [Iowa Code §216.8(1)(c), 2026 edition](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/2026/216.pdf). Read 2026.10.10. Check property descriptions, neighborhood copy, landing pages, and social advertisements for that prohibited message. Adding a housing logo does not change discriminatory wording. UNRESOLVED: Chapter 2010 and the cited Iowa housing provision do not establish a universal Equal Housing Opportunity logo or statement requirement for ordinary agent websites. This source review does not determine obligations from a particular housing program, feed agreement, or brokerage policy. For any applicable logo or statement requirement, confirm with your broker. The [real estate website scope](/for/real-estate) provides a place to define which pages and disclosures a website review must inspect. ## A short checklist for your own site These checks apply the quoted provisions. They are not additional Iowa rules. 1. Compare the displayed firm name with its Commission registration. Keep the registered wording without abbreviations. 2. Place that name immediately before or after each advertised agent or team name. 3. Check each advertising page for your legal name, office city and state, and licensed states. 4. Inspect the same fields on your phone layout, social advertising, and electronic marketing communications. 5. Confirm the team name, approval process, and unlicensed-support-personnel review with your broker. 6. Check property and service claims for accuracy. Route material errors through the broker's correction process. 7. Review expired-listing marketing. Confirm IDX permissions and required feed disclosures with your broker. 8. Remove prohibited discriminatory wording. Confirm any applicable housing-logo or statement requirement with your broker. 9. Confirm any additional license-number display requirement with your broker. ## Related: Real estate - [Check your real estate website in 30 minutes](/articles/real-estate-website-audit) - [Test the seller inquiry path on your real estate website](/articles/seller-inquiry-path-agent-website) - [Own your real estate website: domain, hosting, editing, and leads](/articles/own-your-site) ---- ```text .|########||. .|########||. .|########||. |##||. .||##|. |##||. .||##|. |##||. .||##|. |#|. .|#|. |#|. .|#|. |#|. .|#|. |#| |#| |#| |#| |#| |#| .#| |#. .#| |#. .#| |#. .#. .#| .#. .#| .#. .#| |#. .#| |#. .#| |#. .#| |# ...... #| |# ...... #| |# ...... #| .# ||#########| #| .# ||#########| #| .# ||#########| #| .#. |######||######|. .#. .#. |######||######|. .#. .#. |######||######|. .#. #. .##|###|##|#|######| .# #. .##|###|##|#|######| .# #. .##|###|##|#|######| .# || |##|#||||||||||||#||#| || || |##|#||||||||||||#||#| || || |##|#||||||||||||#||#| || # |#||||||||||||||||||||#| #. # |#||||||||||||||||||||#| #. # |#||||||||||||||||||||#| #. || |#||||||||||||||||||||||#| || || |#||||||||||||||||||||||#| || || |#||||||||||||||||||||||#| || # .#||||||||||||||||||||||||#| # # .#||||||||||||||||||||||||#| # # .#||||||||||||||||||||||||#| # || ....|||#||||||##|#|||#|#||##||||....|. || || ....|||#||||||##|#|||#|#||##||||....|. || || ....|||#||||||##|#|||#|#||##||||....|. || #. . ....|# ....#||| ||| .#||| ....#. .# #. . ....|# ....#||| ||| .#||| ....#. .# #. . ....|# ....#||| ||| .#||| ....#. .# # . ||||#| .#####|| . .#| .#||| ||||# #. # . ||||#| .#####|| . .#| .#||| ||||# #. # . ||||#| .#####|| . .#| .#||| ||||# #. .| ||||| #. |#|||||. || #. |#||. .||||| || .| ||||| #. |#|||||. || #. |#||. .||||| || .| ||||| #. |#|||||. || #. |#||. .||||| || || |.... #. ....|#. |. ...|. ....|| || || |.... #. ....|#. |. ...|. ....|| || || |.... #. ....|#. |. ...|. ....|| || #. .||||||##||||||##||####|||||||#||||||#| .# #. .||||||##||||||##||####|||||||#||||||#| .# #. .||||||##||||||##||####|||||||#||||||#| .# # .||####|###########################|. # # .||####|###########################|. # # .||####|###########################|. # # .#||||||.#.|| # |. ..# #| #|||||#| # # .#||||||.#.|| # |. ..# #| #|||||#| # # .#||||||.#.|| # |. ..# #| #|||||#| # # .#|||||| .. |# ## |#| ...#|#|||#| # # .#|||||| .. |# ## |#| ...#|#|||#| # # .#|||||| .. |# ## |#| ...#|#|||#| # # .#|||#|# .# .#| #| ##|.#..#|||||#| # # .#|||#|# .# .#| #| ##|.#..#|||||#| # # .#|||#|# .# .#| #| ##|.#..#|||||#| # # .#||||||############|######|||||#| # # .#||||||############|######|||||#| # # .#||||||############|######|||||#| # # |...||#||||||#||||#|#||||||#|||||#||| |.| # # |...||#||||||#||||#|#||||||#|||||#||| |.| # # |...||#||||||#||||#|#||||||#|||||#||| |.| # #. .. ||||# .|||##|. |#| .|| || .|||#. #| # .# #. .. ||||# .|||##|. |#| .|| || .|||#. #| # .# #. .. ||||# .|||##|. |#| .|| || .|||#. #| # .# || | ...|| ...##| | #| .|. |. ##### .. .| || || | ...|| ...##| | #| .|. |. ##### .. .| || || | ...|| ...##| | #| .|. |. ##### .. .| || || ||||| || ||||#| . |. |. |#. ||||| |#| || || || ||||| || ||||#| . |. |. |#. ||||| |#| || || || ||||| || ||||#| . |. |. |#. ||||| |#| || || .# |.....#|....|#.||||.|||##.|#|....||.#||.#. #. .# |.....#|....|#.||||.|||##.|#|....||.#||.#. #. .# |.....#|....|#.||||.|||##.|#|....||.#||.#. #. #.|||||||#############################| ||| .# #.|||||||#############################| ||| .# #.|||||||#############################| ||| .# || ##||#||#||||||#||#||#||#||##. || || ##||#||#||||||#||#||#||#||##. || || ##||#||#||||||#||#||#||#||##. || # .#|||||||||#||#|||||||||||#| # # .#|||||||||#||#|||||||||||#| # # .#|||||||||#||#|||||||||||#| # || |#||||||||||||||||||||||#| || || |#||||||||||||||||||||||#| || || |#||||||||||||||||||||||#| || .# |#||||||||||||||||||||#| #. .# |#||||||||||||||||||||#| #. .# |#||||||||||||||||||||#| #. || |#||||||||||||||||||#| || || |#||||||||||||||||||#| || || |#||||||||||||||||||#| || #. .######|#|#########| .# #. .######|#|#########| .# #. .######|#|#########| .# .#. |#####||||#####| .#. .#. |#####||||#####| .#. .#. |#####||||#####| .#. |# ||########|| #. |# ||########|| #. |# ||########|| #. |# ...... #| |# ...... #| |# ...... #| |#. .#| |#. .#| |#. .#| |#. .#. |#. .#. |#. .#. .#| |#. .#| |#. .#| |#. |#| |#| |#| |#| |#| |#| .|#|. .|#|. .|#|. .|#|. .|#|. .|#|. |##||. .||##| |##||. .||##| |##||. .||##| .||########||. .||########||. .||########||. 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