Property Agent Social Media and Paid Ads: CEA Rules in Practice

Do CEA advertising rules apply to Facebook, Instagram and TikTok ads?

Yes. The preamble of CEA's Practice Guidelines on Ethical Advertising (PG 2/2011) says promotional publicity and advertisements include website and internet postings, online advertising, SMS and social media. Section 7 adds that all advertising rules apply equally to the internet.

Two parts are specific to social media and paid formats. Section 2.1 lists the five details required in online advertising, and section 7.3 says any social networking account used for estate agency work must show the agency licence number and your registration number in the profile. Our property agent website guide covers the website side; this guide covers ads and posts.

What every property ad must show

Section 2.1 of PG 2/2011 requires these details in flyers, banners and online advertising:

The guidelines expect the labels 'Estate Agent Licence Number' and 'Salesperson Registration Number', or the accepted alternatives 'CEA Licence Number' and 'CEA Registration Number', before the numbers. On a short video or story, put them on the final frame and in the caption so they are visible however the ad is viewed.

Claims, prices and photos that get agents into trouble

The content rules in section 3 of PG 2/2011 apply to a 15-second video as much as to a brochure. These are the ones most often broken in social ads.

• Prices must match the client's instructions. In a CEA case study published in March 2024, a salesperson who posted online ads for three new developments with prices well below the developers' prices was fined S$14,000 and suspended for five months.
• No 'King of', 'Specialist' or 'Expert' titles. Claims of expertise or success rate must be backed by verifiable facts and records.
• Yields and returns need a source. If you state rental yields or capital gains, give the basis, a credible data source and the time period.
• Real photos of the actual unit. No enhanced photos, photos of a different unit, or views from a higher floor than the one advertised.
• Owner consent and no copied ads. You need the owner's prior consent, and copying another agent's listing is not allowed.
• No dummy listings to collect leads. Advertising a unit that is not available, to gather contacts, is prohibited.
• Take ads down promptly. Remove ads once the property is no longer available or the agreement ends, including boosted posts still running.

New launch ads and 'pending approval' projects

New launch campaigns are where social ads, landing pages and lead forms come together, and where CEA has issued specific guidance. Under Practice Circular PC 04-13, when a project has not yet been approved for sale:

• the ad must not imply that it has been approved for sale;
• it must prominently say so, for example 'pending approval for sale' or 'seeking indication of interest';
• words such as 'New Launch', 'Register for VVIP Preview', 'Sales Team' and 'Sales Hotline' must not be used;
• agents must not collect cheques or conduct sales for the project.

PG 2/2011 also requires agents marketing new projects for developers to follow URA's housing developer rules and intellectual property law when using logos and images. Do not present your page or ad as the developer's 'official' site unless the developer has authorised it.

Lead forms, follow-up and the Do Not Call rules

Paid ads are usually built to collect phone numbers. What you do next is covered by the PDPA, the Do Not Call (DNC) provisions and CEA's own rules on SMS and calls.

1. 1

   Say what you will do with the details

   State on the form that you will contact the person about the property or service they asked about. Meta requires a privacy policy link to run lead ads, according to its help page on lead ad privacy policies.

2. 2

   Ask for marketing consent separately

   If you want to send other listings later, add a separate, unticked consent box. Clear and unambiguous consent is what lets you skip DNC checks for marketing messages.

3. 3

   Check the DNC Registry before marketing calls or texts

   Without clear consent, check Singapore numbers on the DNC Registry first. Results are valid for 21 days; our DNC registry check guide explains how.

4. 4

   Follow CEA's SMS and call rules

   PG 2/2011 section 4.2 bans SMS advertising and cold calls between 10pm and 9am, and requires an unsubscribe option in SMS ads. Stop immediately if someone asks.

5. 5

   Store leads securely and delete old ones

   Keep leads in one place your agency controls, with access limited, and delete those you no longer need.

Automating the first reply, so a lead gets an instant acknowledgement and lands in your CRM, keeps response times fast without bending these rules. See automating lead follow-up from enquiry forms.

Do it yourself or get help?

Most of this is a discipline rather than a technical job: a template with the five details on every creative, a vetting step with your agency, and a lead form with honest wording. You can set that up yourself in an afternoon.

If you want the pieces built, IT Sorted's Landing Page (S$690) gives you a campaign page with the required details and a lead form, ready for Meta Pixel and Google Analytics. Workflow Automation (S$390 per workflow) can route leads from forms to a sheet or CRM with an instant reply, and the PDPA Compliance Pack (S$690) covers the privacy policy and consent wording. Your agency's KEO still approves the ads.