Property images and information in Cotality products

Cotality acquires the rights to use and display property listing data from a range of sources. As an example, when a property is listed for sale or rent, photos and data are uploaded to real estate advertising sites. The terms of those websites may allow them to share or "sub‑license" that data with providers like Cotality.

We use this publicly available historical record to help build a comprehensive view of Australian property over time.

Property images are about more than looks—they are a vital data layer in the Cotality property universe. They help bridge the gap between numbers (like land size) and reality.

• For Professionals: Valuers, banks, and brokers use these images to assess a property’s characteristics and condition, supporting physical inspections where applicable.
• For Homeowners: This data helps you get a valuation that reflects the most recent condition of the property when applying for a loan or selling your home.
• For Buyers: It provides helps provide transparency in the homebuying journey.

If you are the owner, you can manage your property’s presence on our consumer platform, OnTheHouse:

1. Search for your property on OnTheHouse.com.au
2. Select the “Claim Your Home” option
3. Once verified, you can choose to suppress (hide) specific images from public view on that site

Please note that this tool does not remove the Google street view, and such tools are not currently offered for Cotality’s research platforms.

Cotality maintains long‑term records of property information to support property research and market understanding. Removing historical records may result in gaps in the data relied on by industry participants and consumers.

Understanding a property’s history helps with:

• Fair Valuations: Banks and lenders rely on historical data to provide mortgage approvals.
• Market Integrity: It prevents "data gaps" that could lead to uninformed decisions by buyers or sellers.

While we do not delete historical data as a general rule, we will always work to correct data that is factually inaccurate.

We understand that properties evolve over time, and historical property imagery tells a story as to how a property has changed through its lifetime. These images form part of the broader property record and support users in understanding how a property has changed over time.

Under Australian Privacy Law, information about a property (sale price, attributes, and photos of the structure) is not generally considered "Personal Information" about an individual. In addition, Cotality is permitted to display this data as part of our property research services and data analytics as we hold legally enforceable licenses for this data from our sources.

We take matters related to security and privacy of our data seriously; however, we note requests to remove imagery rarely fall under a one-size-fits-all model. This is why we have updated our policy and procedure to better understand the specific context of each request. By asking for additional information on how an image identifies an individual or creates a unique risk, we can make more informed decisions that protect our users' safety without unnecessarily removing non-identifying property data. This approach helps us balance individual concerns with the broader public and customer interest in maintaining comprehensive property market information.

As an industry-leading data broker, Cotality has a responsibility to provide a comprehensive view of the Australian property market. In the past, removals often led to gaps in a property’s history that made it difficult for our customers to understand the evolution of the property over time. We’ve standardised our procedures to ensure we aren't removing vital market information without a specific privacy or safety-based reason.

Standard floor plans usually do not contain personal information. They represent the 'bones' of the property as it was designed or sold, rather than how it is currently occupied or secured. Cotality does not suppress this information if there is no personally identifiable information regarding a property owner (vendor or purchaser).

We take your safety very seriously. We trust that if you are in a high-risk situation, you have reported your concerns to the Police or relevant authorities.

Cotality is committed to our obligations under Australian Privacy Law. In compliance with privacy regulation, Cotality generally does not suppress property data from our platform/s, unless the request is made by the property owner or occupier and is supported by evidence of a legitimate privacy concern or a safety based risk of harm.

Further our data handling practices comply with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), including the Australian Privacy Principles, and we apply appropriate technical and organisational safeguards to protect any personal information held by Cotality.

Should you find that an image contains "Personal Information" (i.e. something that identifies you specifically, rather than just the house), we will work with you to address it immediately. Please contact our team directly at CustomerCare@Cotality.com.

While you may recognise your personal belongings or decor, this information generally does not allow the public to identify who lives there; rather, it shows the interior or exterior characteristics of the building.

If you believe an image contains specific high-risk content, please let us know at CustomerCare@Cotality.com so we can investigate further in line with our established procedures. We will work with you to address any concerns where appropriate.

Each site has a distinct purpose. OnTheHouse (our platform which supports property listings) site is designed specifically for the active marketing of a property. Its primary goal is to help owners and agents find a buyer or tenant. Once a transaction is complete, the 'marketing' phase ends. We allow homeowners to remove imagery here because the immediate need to advertise the interior of their living space has concluded.

The sites that are designed to return historical property for research purposes (such as PropertyValue or RP Data) serve a different, more technical purpose; providing long-term transparency and data integrity for the real estate market, strengthening the decisions made by industry members (such as real estate agents, valuers, banks & brokers, and government bodies) and reducing risk in a property transaction for consumers (vendors and purchasers).

As an important part of the property profile, Cotality generally does not suppress images from our research platforms unless there is a legitimate purpose to do so (e.g. safety‑based risk of harm).

It is important to note that Cotality can only manage content on our own platforms. If you would like images removed from other websites, we recommend contacting the respective website owners directly.