AI-edited apartment photos are drawing new scrutiny from renters
Renters say AI staging can make listings look larger or better kept, while regulators in New York and California are beginning to respond.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
3 min read
AI-edited real estate photos are making it harder for some renters to judge apartments before they visit, according to reporting by The Verge. The issue matters in tight rental markets because a convincing listing can send applicants to units that look meaningfully different in person.
The Verge reported on Joyce, a New Yorker searching for her first apartment alone, who said she rushed to see a Manhattan studio after photos showed a bright space with a fireplace and a renovated-looking kitchen. When she arrived, she told The Verge, the apartment was smaller than the images suggested, the sink was different, the stove was missing knobs and the fireplace was not there.
Joyce said a friend later pointed to an odd detail in one listing image: a plant sitting on a gas stove. She told The Verge that the photos seemed to show an imagined version of the apartment rather than the actual unit she toured.
Real estate agents have long used photography and staging to make homes look more appealing, The Verge reported. Generative AI has lowered the effort needed to alter listing images, giving brokers and landlords tools that can add furniture, change finishes or make a room appear more polished.
Virtual staging has a legitimate use
Bee, a Florida Realtor who asked The Verge to withhold her last name for privacy reasons, said virtual staging can help buyers and renters see how a home might look with different furniture or modest updates. She said digital staging can cost from about $40 to $400, while physical staging can run into the thousands.
Bee showed The Verge an active listing with older furnishings, then a version she had restyled using ChatGPT. She said she was not using the edited image in the public listing, but shared it with clients as an example of how the room could be updated.
Bee named Stuccco and BoxBrownie as virtual staging tools she uses, according to The Verge. She also drew a line between showing possible furniture or renovation ideas and creating misleading advertising, saying she sees legal risk when listings do not clearly explain what has been changed.
Renters are watching for AI tells
Madison, a Queens resident looking ahead of her fall lease expiration, told The Verge she has seen more AI-enhanced listings while searching on StreetEasy. She said misleading apartment images existed before AI, but the newer edits can look close to real until small details in furniture or room layout raise doubts.
Joyce told The Verge she noticed repeated visual patterns in AI-touched listings, including many potted plants. She also said listing descriptions have begun to feel machine-written, with repeated phrases such as “charming,” “cozy” and references to “spa-like finishes.”
The Verge reported that regulators are starting to address the problem unevenly. New York recently put an AI disclosure law in place for ads, though the law is focused largely on synthetic performers rather than AI-generated furniture. The New York Department of State also warned last year about misleading AI-generated or AI-enhanced home listings and noted that brokers are already barred from dishonest advertising.
California has gone further, according to The Verge, with an Altered Image Law requiring property advertisers to disclose AI changes or enhancements to images. Rules still vary by state, leaving renters to inspect listings closely and compare online photos with what they see at showings.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.