Ask Texas REALTOR®

Q   I’m putting together a newsletter and there’s a lot of information in Texas REALTOR® and other magazines that I’d like to pass on. Can I reprint the articles in my newsletter if I credit the magazine as the source?

A  Members of the Texas Association of REALTORS® have permission to reprint articles from Texas REALTOR® magazine unless the article has a separate copyright notice at the end. We do ask that you include a line that states where and when the article originally appeared.

As for other publications, you might have success contacting them and requesting permission to reprint their articles.

Keep in mind that the information itself is not what is copyrighted–the presentation of that information is. So you can access information from various sources and write an article in your own words.

One additional area to watch is artwork. Just because you can easily download artwork from the Internet or photocopy it from a magazine does not mean you can use it (legally). Make sure if you plan to use artwork that you have the right to do so. For example, in most cases, TAR members may not reproduce artwork from the magazine in their own newsletters and publications.

One final note: You can find another good source for your newsletter by accessing TAR’s customizable marketing fliers from TexasRealtors.com. While these are designed to download and personalize for handing out to clients, members can also take the information and reprint it in their newsletters and other publications.

Have a question about finances, licensing, technology, marketing, or other real estate issues? Ask Texas REALTOR® by sending e-mail to texasrealtor@texasrealtors.com or fax to 512/370-2390. Not all questions can be answered.

Illustration © Artville.

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