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Illinois real estate email signature requirements

Illinois's advertising rules do not use the phrase “email signature.” The Real Estate License Act requires the sponsoring broker's business name and the licensee's name in all advertisements, and 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1450.720 lists what a licensee must include in an electronic or digital communication. We found no license number requirement.

Regulator: Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. Summarized from the rule text and official guidance linked below, as of October 15, 2026. Not legal advice.

Does the rule cover email?

  • Section 10-30(a) of the Real Estate License Act applies to advertising “in print, via the Internet, or through social media, digital forums, or any other media.” It does not define advertising or name email.
  • Rule 1450.715(d) says unsolicited marketing of licensed activities and prospecting for clients by licensees is considered advertising.
  • Rule 1450.720(g) says a licensee engaged in licensed activities using “any electronic or digital means of communication” must include, in the initial communication with a member of the public or another licensee: the licensee's name as licensed (a team name may be used in addition), the sponsoring broker's name, and the city and state of the sponsoring broker's registered physical office or, for a virtual office, a direct link to its website or digital platform.
  • Rule 1450.720(e) lists the same three items for a licensee advertising, marketing or soliciting business in connection with licensed activities. The rule never names email or signatures; its definitions in (a) refer to websites, digital platforms and social media.

Is a license number required?

  • We found no license number requirement for advertising in Section 10-30, Rule 1450.715 or Rule 1450.720.
  • What those provisions require instead is the licensee's name as licensed with the Division, the sponsoring broker's name, and the city and state of the broker's office.

Team names

  • Section 10-30(a) says team names may not contain inherently misleading terms such as “company,” “realty,” “real estate,” “agency,” “associates,” “brokers,” “properties,” or “property.”
  • Rule 1450.715(a)(2) lists the use of such terms in a team name as deceptive and misleading “unless the term is followed by the word ‘team’.” The statute text states no such exception, and we did not find guidance reconciling the two.
  • Section 10-30(f): where an ad shows the sponsoring broker's name and a team or individual name, the broker's business name must be at least equal in size or larger. Rule 1450.715(b)(2) lists three ways to meet this: font size, the area containing the name, or a logo that incorporates the broker's name.
  • Rules 1450.720(d)(1) and (e)(1) say that if the licensee is part of a team, the team name may be substituted for the individual licensee's name; (g)(1) says it may be used in addition to the individual name.

Anything specific to signatures

  • Section 10-30(f) says the sponsoring broker's business name and the licensee's name must appear in all advertisements, “including business cards.”
  • Section 10-30(d) and (e): a sponsored licensee may not advertise under their own name or as being in the real estate business without listing the sponsoring broker's business name, and advertising must be in the sponsoring broker's business name, which for a franchise includes the franchise affiliation as well as the individual firm's name.
  • Rule 1450.715(b)(1) says a logo or similar image is not part of the sponsoring broker's name unless it contains the name.
  • Section 10-30(g) and Rule 1450.715(f): a designated managing broker must identify as such in advertising that includes their name.
  • Rule 1450.705(b)(5) makes the designated managing broker responsible for supervising all advertising. Rule 1450.720(i) requires licensees to periodically review digital advertising so it stays current and not misleading.

A practical checklist

Our reading of the rules above, not language from any rule. Your broker-in-charge has the final say.

  • Show your name as licensed, the brokerage's business name (with franchise affiliation, if any), and the city and state of the brokerage's registered office or a link to its website.
  • Make the brokerage name at least as large as your name or team name.
  • Type the brokerage name as text, or use a logo that contains the name.
  • Avoid the listed words in a team name; if you keep one, include the word “team” and ask your managing broker.
  • Designated managing brokers should add that title.
  • Have your designated managing broker confirm the final wording.

What we could not confirm

  • Texts read from the Illinois General Assembly site: 225 ILCS 454/10-30 (shown as scheduled to be repealed January 1, 2030; source note P.A. 103-236, eff. 1-1-24); 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1450.715 (amended 49 Ill. Reg. 9512, effective July 7, 2025); 1450.720 (amended 45 Ill. Reg. 2851, effective February 23, 2021); 1450.705 and 1450.725.
  • HB 3186 (104th General Assembly) would add a homeowner's association fee disclosure to Section 10-30(a). The current statute text we read does not include it. We could not load the bill's status page, so we cannot say whether it passed.
  • We found no IDFPR FAQ or bulletin on advertising or email signatures. Illinois REALTORS articles that surfaced in search are trade-association summaries and were not used.
  • Rule 1450.720 does not define “electronic or digital means of communication” or say whether it covers email. We read only the advertising-related sections of Part 1450, not the whole Part.
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Sources (read October 15, 2026)

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