Apply the Housing Special Ad Category correctly

Why it matters

Meta's Advertising Standards require US advertisers running housing ads to self-identify under the Special Ad Category and use only approved targeting options. Meta says ads may be rejected if the right category is not chosen. Beyond Meta, the Fair Housing Act applies to the words and images in your ad. The category protects you from accidental discriminatory targeting; the checklist protects you from discriminatory content.

Step by step

1. 01

   Know what counts as Housing

   Meta describes the Housing category as covering ads about housing opportunities. Meta's help page does not give a complete list, so Anu applies a simple rule: listing ads, open house ads, home value or seller lead ads, buyer search ads and database campaigns about buying or selling are all Housing. If an ad promotes buying, selling or renting a home, or your services for doing so, treat it as Housing. Meta also states that Advantage+ catalog ads using Home Listing catalogs must use the Housing category.

   Check: You can name the category for each ad you plan: Housing for all seller, buyer and database campaigns in this part.

2. 02

   Declare Housing when you create the campaign

   1. In Ads Manager, create or open the campaign.
   2. Find Special Ad Categories at the campaign level.
   3. Below Categories, choose Housing.
   4. Below Countries, choose the countries where the ads will run (normally United States).

   You will do this for real in chapter 5. Declaring it first matters because the audience options in the ad set change once Housing is selected.

   Check: The campaign shows Housing under Special Ad Categories and the country you serve.

3. 03

   Learn the targeting limits so the ad set does not surprise you

   Housing limits for advertisers in or reaching the US, from Meta's help center and Marketing API documentation

   Option	Under Housing
   Location	Country, region, state, province or city. No ZIP or postal codes. No location exclusions. Cities, addresses and pins expand to at least a 15-mile (25 km) radius in the US and Canada.
   Age	Fixed at 18 to 65+. Cannot be edited.
   Gender	All genders. Cannot be edited.
   Detailed targeting	Some demographic, behavior and interest options are unavailable. Excluding detailed targeting is unavailable.
   Lookalike audiences	Unavailable, including Advantage+ lookalike.
   Saved audiences	Unavailable; existing saved audiences are updated to comply.
   Custom audiences	Listed as supported; some options only in Meta Ads Manager.
   Special Ad Audiences	No longer creatable in Ads Manager since August 2022.

   Check: You can explain to a teammate why the age, gender and ZIP fields are locked in your ad set.

4. 04

   Apply Fair Housing to words, images and questions

   Avoid	Write instead
   "Perfect for young families"	"4 bedrooms, fenced yard, half-mile from Lincoln Park"
   "Ideal for retirees"	"Single-level living, no stairs from garage to kitchen"
   "Walk to St. Mary's"	"0.4 miles to Main Street shops and transit"
   "Exclusive neighborhood"	"Homes in Harbor Point sold for a median of $X last quarter (MLS)" (only if true and sourced)

   Check: Your draft copy contains no description of who should live in the home.

5. 05

   Run the compliance checklist and save it with the campaign

   Copy the checklist below into the campaign folder for each campaign. Complete it before you decide to publish, and again whenever you add a new ad or form.

   Check: Every box is ticked, or the unticked items have a written fix before launch.

Copyable templates

# Housing ad compliance checklist (Anu Playbook, Part 06)

Review before you publish anything. Not legal advice; have your broker or attorney review.

## Campaign
- [ ] Special Ad Categories: Housing selected
- [ ] Countries: only the countries you actually serve (normally United States)
- [ ] Campaign, ad set and ads are still in draft or the campaign is toggled off

## Audience
- [ ] Locations are countries, states, counties or cities you serve (no ZIP codes)
- [ ] No location chosen or skipped because of who lives there
- [ ] Age left at Meta's fixed 18 to 65+; gender left at all
- [ ] No detailed targeting chosen to stand in for a protected group
- [ ] Any customer list was collected with permission to use it for advertising
- [ ] No lookalike or saved audiences (Meta blocks these for Housing)

## Ad creative
- [ ] Copy describes the property or service, never the kind of person wanted
      (no "perfect for young families", "ideal for singles", "walking distance to [church]")
- [ ] Images show the home, the area or you; if people appear, they are not used to signal who is welcome
- [ ] Every number in the ad is true and you can document it
- [ ] Your name, brokerage and any state-required disclosures appear where your license law requires
- [ ] Equal Housing Opportunity statement or logo where your broker requires it

## Instant form
- [ ] No questions about race, ethnicity, religion, health, disability, sexual orientation,
      financial information (income, credit score, debt), criminal history or government IDs
- [ ] Questions ask about the property, timeline and area, not about household makeup
- [ ] Privacy policy URL is a web page (not a PDF) and describes how you use the data
- [ ] Consent text says who will contact the person and how (call, text, email)
- [ ] Contacting people only for the purpose stated on the form

## Follow-up
- [ ] Opt-out requests (STOP, "remove me") honored in the CRM immediately
- [ ] Same script and same speed for every lead, regardless of name, accent or area

How to test it

Open your draft campaign (after chapter 5) and confirm Special Ad Categories reads Housing. In the ad set, confirm the age range shows 18 to 65+ and you cannot select ZIP codes. If you can select a ZIP code, Housing is not applied.

Troubleshooting

Advanced technical details

Optional. You can follow every step above without these.