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Tax, SDIRAs & Cost Segregation

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Michael Mahung
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Legal to Film & Share Property Interior?

Michael Mahung
Posted Jun 24 2022, 20:13
Kind of a weird question - Does anyone know if it's legal to film and share the interior of a publicly listed property?

For instance, if a property is listed on the MLS and you walk through it and share the video with a client, that seems relatively normal.
But what if you posted that video online? Could the seller take legal action against you?

Any thoughts on occupied vs. staged vs. empty properties?

Wondering what other peoples takes would be on this.

Thanks!

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JD Martin
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JD Martin
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ModeratorReplied Jun 24 2022, 20:17

If you had no vested interest in the property and were posting it for your own use I would think they'd have some kind of claim against you. If you are filming a duly listed property for a client, you have a reasonable interest in the property (they're trying to sell - you're trying to buy). 

Why would you be posting the video online? 

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Michael Mahung
Replied Jun 24 2022, 20:27
Quote from @JD Martin:

If you had no vested interest in the property and were posting it for your own use I would think they'd have some kind of claim against you. If you are filming a duly listed property for a client, you have a reasonable interest in the property (they're trying to sell - you're trying to buy). 

Why would you be posting the video online? 


Interesting - A few reasons I was thinking for posting the video online:

Historical Context - Neighborhoods can change rapidly, being able to document the "before & after" of certain areas, blocks or individual properties can be useful for looking back at how things used to be. For instance, my childhood home in Bronzeville, Chicago was completely gut rehabbed. I would love to have a way relive my old memories in my old home before it was permanently changed.

Out of State Investors - Many investors live in HCOL areas and invest in LCOL neighborhoods. Posting videos showing new developments in certain areas and the quality of work being done can help both out of state and local investors get a feel for what's happening in different states without having to travel to see everything in person.

People Looking to Move - I have several friends who don't know that there are "nice" properties on the south side of Chicago. Having an online resource to show that people live south of the city, and showing how much further your money can stretch in different areas can help give context.

There are other reasons/thoughts for doing this, those are just three off the top of my head.
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JD Martin
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JD Martin
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ModeratorReplied Jun 24 2022, 20:32
Quote from @Michael Mahung:
Quote from @JD Martin:

If you had no vested interest in the property and were posting it for your own use I would think they'd have some kind of claim against you. If you are filming a duly listed property for a client, you have a reasonable interest in the property (they're trying to sell - you're trying to buy). 

Why would you be posting the video online? 


Interesting - A few reasons I was thinking for posting the video online:

Historical Context - Neighborhoods can change rapidly, being able to document the "before & after" of certain areas, blocks or individual properties can be useful for looking back at how things used to be. For instance, my childhood home in Bronzeville, Chicago was completely gut rehabbed. I would love to have a way relive my old memories in my old home before it was permanently changed.

Out of State Investors - Many investors live in HCOL areas and invest in LCOL neighborhoods. Posting videos showing new developments in certain areas and the quality of work being done can help both out of state and local investors get a feel for what's happening in different states without having to travel to see everything in person.

People Looking to Move - I have several friends who don't know that there are "nice" properties on the south side of Chicago. Having an online resource to show that people live south of the city, and showing how much further your money can stretch in different areas can help give context.

There are other reasons/thoughts for doing this, those are just three off the top of my head.

 The easy answer then is to get the property owner to sign a release for use of the video. Then you can do pretty much anything you want. I think that will be more difficult than not to get, as most people don't want their homes paraded out without good reason, but you could certainly present one or more of those reasons to them and they might be agreeable. Of course, you could always do it by stealth and just take your chances, but if some unnecessary misery were to befall any of those sellers/homes and someone could trace any of it back to you (i.e. the criminal saying "Well, I knew what was in there because I saw this video"), then you could also perhaps be successfully sued. 

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Michael Mahung
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Michael Mahung
Replied Jun 24 2022, 20:42
Quote from @JD Martin:
Quote from @Michael Mahung:
Quote from @JD Martin:

If you had no vested interest in the property and were posting it for your own use I would think they'd have some kind of claim against you. If you are filming a duly listed property for a client, you have a reasonable interest in the property (they're trying to sell - you're trying to buy). 

Why would you be posting the video online? 


Interesting - A few reasons I was thinking for posting the video online:

Historical Context - Neighborhoods can change rapidly, being able to document the "before & after" of certain areas, blocks or individual properties can be useful for looking back at how things used to be. For instance, my childhood home in Bronzeville, Chicago was completely gut rehabbed. I would love to have a way relive my old memories in my old home before it was permanently changed.

Out of State Investors - Many investors live in HCOL areas and invest in LCOL neighborhoods. Posting videos showing new developments in certain areas and the quality of work being done can help both out of state and local investors get a feel for what's happening in different states without having to travel to see everything in person.

People Looking to Move - I have several friends who don't know that there are "nice" properties on the south side of Chicago. Having an online resource to show that people live south of the city, and showing how much further your money can stretch in different areas can help give context.

There are other reasons/thoughts for doing this, those are just three off the top of my head.

 The easy answer then is to get the property owner to sign a release for use of the video. Then you can do pretty much anything you want. I think that will be more difficult than not to get, as most people don't want their homes paraded out without good reason, but you could certainly present one or more of those reasons to them and they might be agreeable. Of course, you could always do it by stealth and just take your chances, but if some unnecessary misery were to befall any of those sellers/homes and someone could trace any of it back to you (i.e. the criminal saying "Well, I knew what was in there because I saw this video"), then you could also perhaps be successfully sued. 


Gotcha, the video being used as a tool for criminals isn't something I had put much thought into. I appreciate your perspective on this!