Team Advertising and Naming Rules for Real Estate Teams

Quick answer: Most states let a real estate team use its own name, as long as the name makes clear the team is part of a brokerage and not a separate company. In practice that means adding “Team” or “Group,” keeping out words like Realty, LLC or Associates, and showing the brokerage name at the size and in the places your state requires. A growing number of states also make teams register, name a team leader, or use set wording like “team at [Brokerage].”

This is general information, not legal advice. Team rules vary by state and are changing quickly. Check your state commission and your broker before you name, rename or advertise a team.

On this page: What counts as a team · Registering · Required words · Words to avoid · Size rules · Placement · Strictest states · Leaving a brokerage · Checklist

What counts as a team

Most states define a team the same basic way: two or more licensees, working under the same broker, who present themselves to the public under a shared name. New York, Virginia, Alabama and Ohio all use versions of that definition.

Two states go further. In Texas and Oregon, even a single agent working under a name other than their licensed name can count as a team.

Regulators care because a team name can make buyers and sellers think they are working with an independent company. The rules below all aim at the same thing: making sure the public can see which brokerage stands behind the team.

About 1 in 5 Realtors works on a team, according to NAR’s 2025 member data, so these rules touch a large share of the industry.

Does your team have to register?

Many states do not require registration, but a growing number do, and several put rules on the team leader:

• Texas: the broker registers the team name with TREC before any ad uses it. Anyone who leads a team must be a written delegated supervisor, reported to TREC, who takes a broker responsibility course.
• Oklahoma: the team name is registered with the Commission before use, must be unique in the state, and costs $100.
• Connecticut: teams register with the Department of Consumer Protection, with a yearly renewal fee.
• Kentucky: the principal broker notifies the Commission in writing of the team name and the team leader before any team advertising.
• Maryland: teams notify the Commission by email before advertising, and team leaders take a supervision course within 90 days.
• Virginia: every team must hold a business entity salesperson license from the Real Estate Board.
• Oregon: the managing principal broker approves each team, and teams give clients a written team disclosure.

Almost every state also expects the broker to approve the team name in writing, even where the regulator does not.

Naming your team: required words

The most common rule is that a team name must include “Team” or “Group.” Some states go further:

• New York: the word “team” only. “Group” and “associates” are not allowed. The name must include members’ full licensed names or be followed by “at” or “of” and the full brokerage name.
• South Carolina: starting May 15, 2027, team names must read “[Team Name] team at [Brokerage].”
• Pennsylvania: the team name must use a team member’s licensed name, like “Benjamin Franklin Team.” A made-up name is not allowed.
• California: the name must include the surname of at least one member with “team,” “group” or “associates.”
• Alabama, Georgia and Ohio: at least one team member’s name must appear in each ad.
• Maryland: the team name must connect directly to the brokerage name, with only “of,” “from,” “with” or “at” between them.

Some states have no team naming rule. North Carolina is one. Its advertising rule, 21 NCAC 58A .0105, sets no required words, banned words, size ratio or registration for teams. What it does require is the firm name in every ad, including each social post, and the broker-in-charge’s consent to advertise. The Commission’s own example of a team name is “The Bill Starr Team of XYZ Realty.” A team that works inside a firm needs no separate firm license, no broker-in-charge of its own and no assumed name filing, because the team name is treated as branding.

Words to keep out of a team name

States ban words that make a team sound like its own brokerage. The most common:

• Realty, Real Estate
• Brokerage, Brokers, Agency
• Company, Corporation, Inc., LLC, LP, LLP
• Associates, Properties

Florida has the longest list, with 16 or more words. “Realty” is the word that varies most:

• Banned in Florida, Colorado, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Massachusetts and Washington, and in Oregon from July 1, 2027
• Allowed in Texas if the name still ends in Team or Group, so “John Doe Realty Group” works and “John Doe Realty” does not
• Allowed in Nebraska and Illinois only when followed by the word team

“Group” is required in some states and not allowed in New York. When in doubt, “[Name] Team” is the safest pattern.

How big the brokerage name must be

Every state wants the brokerage name to be easy to see. The size rules fall into a few groups:

Size rule	Examples
Brokerage name larger than the team name	Arizona, Delaware, Vermont
Brokerage name equal or larger	Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Pennsylvania
Team name no larger than the brokerage name or logo	Florida
Brokerage name at least half the team name	Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas
Team name no more than 2x the brokerage name	South Carolina (from 2027)
Brokerage name at least 1/3 the team name	New Mexico
No ratio, just “clear” or “prominent”	Colorado, Washington, Massachusetts

If you advertise in more than one state, design to the strictest rule. A brokerage name the same size as the team name passes almost everywhere.

Where the brokerage name must appear

The brokerage name belongs on everything that markets the team: signs and riders, business cards, vehicle wraps, email signatures, websites, print ads and social media.

Social media rules differ the most:

• In each post: North Carolina requires the firm name in the post itself. Virginia, since April 1, 2026, requires the firm name and office contact information in every ad, including social posts.
• On the profile: Texas allows the broker information on the account’s profile page.
• Next to contact information: Florida wants the brokerage name next to, or directly above or below, the contact details.

Domains, handles and logos. We found no state that bans a team-name domain or social handle outright. Texas says a web address alone is not an ad. The page or profile it leads to must still show the brokerage properly, and NAR’s Code of Ethics requires domains and handles to give a true picture. Franchise brands add their own rules: RE/MAX and Keller Williams brand guides, for example, limit how team names and logos appear next to the office brand.

Unlicensed team members. New York, Ohio and Arizona require unlicensed people in team ads to be clearly labeled as unlicensed. Pennsylvania does not allow unlicensed staff to be shown as team members. Oregon’s team disclosure lists each member and whether they are licensed.

Titles and claims. South Carolina’s 2027 rules bar team leaders from calling themselves CEO, president or owner; “Team Leader” is fine. Claims like “#1 team” or “specialist” need proof. Washington’s guidelines, for example, warn against “specialist” claims without the education or experience to back them.

The strictest states at a glance

These 12 states have the most detailed team rules. Each card links to that state’s full card in Fair Housing and Real Estate Advertising Rules by State, which covers every state.

When a team changes brokerages

Teams move, and the name does not always go with them.

• The brokerage may own the name. Maine’s Commission treats a team name as the brokerage’s service mark. Other states are less direct, but listings generally belong to the brokerage, not the team.
• Put it in writing first. NAR recommends that team agreements cover who owns the team name, logo, client lists, website, domain and social accounts, and what happens when a member leaves or the team dissolves.
• Trademarks. A federal trademark application starts at $350 per class. Real estate services fall in Class 36. Get legal advice before filing, since your brokerage agreement may already address it.
• Plan the rebrand. A move can mean new signs and riders, cards, wraps, website, email signatures, social profiles and print. The new state rules also apply from day one.

Enforcement and what’s changing

Team advertising is a common source of complaints:

• Pennsylvania: a three-agent team advertised under a made-up name, sometimes without the brokerage name. The Commission fined all three agents and raised the total to $5,000, and the complaint also named the brokerage and the broker.
• Nebraska: the Commission reported a sharp rise in advertising complaints, almost all about brokerage name prominence or team ads that looked like independent brokerages, with fines up to $2,500.
• Maryland: advertising fines of $2,500 per licensee, and more for a broker who fails to supervise.
• Texas: advertising-only complaints are dismissed if fixed within 14 days. Otherwise they can lead to formal discipline.

The direction is clear. Since 2025, Alabama, Arizona, Oregon, Virginia and New Jersey have added or tightened team rules, and South Carolina’s new rules start in May 2027. States are adding required wording, banning “realty,” removing one-click allowances, requiring registration, and treating team leaders as supervisors.

A team-name checklist

1. Check your state’s definition of a team and whether you must register or notify the regulator first.
2. Get your broker’s written approval of the name.
3. Include the required word: “Team” or “Group” in most states, “team” only in New York, “team at [Brokerage]” in South Carolina from May 2027.
4. Remove words that suggest a brokerage: Realty, Real Estate, Brokerage, Company, Associates, Properties, Inc., LLC.
5. Include a member’s name where your state requires it.
6. Make sure the name does not copy another team or company.
7. Size the brokerage name to your state’s rule. Equal size is the safe default.
8. Put the full brokerage name on every sign, card, wrap, email signature, web page and social post or profile, following your state’s placement rule.
9. Make sure domains and handles lead to pages that show the brokerage.
10. Label unlicensed people, and skip titles like CEO or owner.
11. Keep proof for any “#1,” “top” or “specialist” claim.
12. Put ownership of the name, logo, domain, social accounts and CRM in a written team agreement.
13. Mark upcoming deadlines: South Carolina May 15, 2027, and Oregon July 1, 2027.

A marketing leader, full-time or fractional, usually owns this checklist and the broker’s sign-off. A social media manager or marketing generalist can keep templates and profiles in line.

Key takeaways

• A team name must show the team is part of a brokerage, not a separate company.
• “[Name] Team” with the brokerage name at equal size is the safest pattern in most states.
• Keep Realty, LLC, Company and Associates out unless your state clearly allows them.
• Social media placement rules vary more than anything else. Check your state.
• More states are adding registration, required wording and team leader rules each year.
• Decide who owns the name and accounts before anyone moves.

Sources

Show all 19 sources

• Texas Real Estate Commission, Team names and assumed names, Using “Realty” in team names and Delegated supervisors
• New York, 19 NYCRR 175.25
• South Carolina Code, § 40-57-360 and SC Real Estate Commission, Team names
• Pennsylvania Real Estate Commission, Team advertising and PA Realtors, Team name enforcement
• Florida Administrative Code, Rule 61J2-10.026
• Oklahoma, OAC 605:10-9-3.2
• Maryland Real Estate Commission, Teams
• Alabama Real Estate Commission, Act 2025-380 summary
• Arizona Department of Real Estate, Substantive Policy Statement 2025.03
• Oregon Real Estate Agency, Team regulation
• Kentucky, 201 KAR 11:105
• Virginia Code, § 54.1-2106.1 and 18VAC135-20-190
• North Carolina, 21 NCAC 58A .0105 and NC Real Estate Commission, Team scenario: setting up a team inside a firm
• California, B&P Code § 10159.7
• Washington Department of Licensing, Real estate advertising guidelines
• Maine Real Estate Commission, Teams FAQ
• Nebraska Real Estate Commission, Commission Comment, Winter 2025
• National Association of Realtors, Who’s legally responsible for real estate teams and Code of Ethics
• U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, 2025 trademark fees

Frequently asked questions

Can our team name include Realty?

Usually not. Florida, Colorado, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Massachusetts and Washington keep it out of team names, and Oregon joins them on July 1, 2027. Texas allows it only if the name still ends in Team or Group, and Nebraska and Illinois allow it only when followed by team. Check your state before you print anything.

Does the brokerage name have to be on every Instagram post?

It depends on the state. North Carolina and Virginia require it in each ad, including each post. Texas allows it on the profile page. Florida wants it next to the contact information. Check your state's card in our state-by-state guide.

If our team leaves the brokerage, does the team name come with us?

Not automatically. Maine treats a team name as the brokerage's service mark, and listings generally stay with the brokerage. Settle who owns the name, logo, website, domain and social accounts in a written team agreement before anyone moves, and get legal advice before filing a trademark.

Can our unlicensed assistant appear in team ads?

It depends on the state. New York, Ohio and Arizona allow it only if the person is clearly labeled as unlicensed. Pennsylvania does not allow unlicensed staff to be shown as team members. Oregon requires the team disclosure to list each member and whether they are licensed.