Washington · advertising rules
What a real estate agent's website must show in Washington
Washington's advertising rule, WAC 308-124B-210, is short and centres on one thing: the firm's licensed name. All advertising for brokerage services, internet advertising, web pages and email included, must include the firm name or its licensed assumed name. A broker who advertises under a team name, title or brand that isn't a licensed assumed name must also show the firm's name clearly and conspicuously alongside it, avoid words that suggest a separate company or a firm, and get the designated broker's written approval first.
Updated Rules read 2026-10-07
Does a website count as advertising in Washington?
Yes, by name. The rule covers all advertising or solicitations for brokerage services and lists internet-based advertising, web pages and email. WAC 308-124B-210
“All advertising or solicitations without limitation for brokerage services, to include the internet-based advertising, web pages, email, newspaper, and other visual media must include the firm name or an assumed name as licensed.”
What every advertisement must show
The firm name, or the firm's assumed name as licensed. A firm operates only under its licensed firm name or licensed assumed name. WAC 308-124B-210
“A firm must operate under their firm name or an assumed name as licensed.”
Websites specifically
Web pages and email are listed in the rule, so your website and your email signature both carry the firm name or its licensed assumed name. The rule has no other website-specific requirement. WAC 308-124B-210
Team names
A broker or managing broker advertising under a name, title or brand (a team name, for instance) that is not a licensed assumed name must always display the firm's licensed name or licensed assumed name clearly and conspicuously in conjunction with it. WAC 308-124B-210
“Always use and display the firm's licensed name or the firm's licensed assumed name in a clear and conspicuous manner in conjunction with the use of such name, title, or brand.”
The name, title or brand may not suggest a legal entity separate from the firm ("Inc.", "LLC", "LLP", "Corp.", "firm", "company") or a firm or office ("realty", "realtors", "firm", "real estate"). WAC 308-124B-210
The firm's designated broker must approve the unlicensed title or brand in writing, in advance. WAC 308-124B-210
What gets agents in trouble
Advertising brokerage services, online or off, without the firm name or the firm's licensed assumed name. WAC 308-124B-210
A team name or brand with "Realty", "Real Estate", "Realtors", "Inc.", "LLC", "Company" or similar in it, or one used without the designated broker's advance written approval. WAC 308-124B-210
Worth knowing
WAC 308-124B-210 does not require a license number, a phone number or an address in advertising; it requires the firm's licensed name. WAC 308-124B-210
Every SiteCurb site has a broker-disclosure footer on every page, listings included: your name, your brokerage and your license number, plus a disclosure field for the text and links your state requires (Texas agents get a one-click helper for the two TREC links). Fill it in once and it is on every page.
How many agents this applies to
4,060 real estate agents were working in Washington when we last counted, across 41 brokerage offices. That is agents with a live profile on a brokerage's own site, not everyone holding a licence, so it is the population these rules actually bind day to day. The Washington brokerage directory breaks it down office by office. Counted 2026-10-07.
Sources
This page paraphrases the rules; the rules themselves are what bind you. Each was read on the date shown. If the DOL changes a rule, the page will lag until it is read again.
- WAC 308-124B-210 — Advertising — read 2026-10-07
- Regulator: Washington State Department of Licensing, Real Estate Commission
Not legal advice. When a rule and this page disagree, the rule wins; when in doubt, ask your broker or the DOL.
Questions people ask
What has to be on my website in Washington?
Your firm's licensed name, or its licensed assumed name. If you brand the site with a team name, show the firm's name clearly and conspicuously with it. On SiteCurb the broker-disclosure footer carries the firm name on every page.
Can my team be called "Smith Realty" or "Smith Group LLC"?
Not as an unlicensed team name. The rule bars names that suggest a separate company (Inc., LLC, Corp., company) or a firm or office (realty, realtors, real estate). The team name also needs your designated broker's written approval in advance.
Does my email signature count?
Yes. The rule lists email alongside web pages and internet advertising, so it should carry the firm name.