Posted by admin on May 28th, 2008
In the real estate world, MLS stands for multiple listing service. MLS is like a big book of houses for sale. If you have a home for sale through a realtor, unless you specifically request that your home not be in this listing, you should be currently listed in your local MLS. Listing your home in the MLS database is one of the services you are paying a realtor to perform for you.
Having your home in the MLS listing is not a bad thing. The multiple listing service is how realtors and prospective home owners are able to find your home. It would be impossible for someone to drive around town and write down all the houses for sale, the MLS gives realtors a listing of ever home available at any given point in time.
If you have decided to sell your home yourself and are not receiving as many showings as you would like, you need to get listed in your local MLS database. Being listed in the MLS database will help you market your home locally as well as nationwide. More marketing means more viewings which will aid you in selling your home quicker.
Do not fear the MLS. The marketing potential of this service is mind bending. The MLS database is used by many realtors to provide content on their websites and your home could be seen by potential buyers across the country and around the world. Next time you a realtor or potential home buyer asks if your home is listed in the MLS, tell them yes.
Posted by admin on May 31st, 2006
The future of the real estate industry
Is there an easy answer to the question about where the real estate industry is headed? It doesn’t seem that way at this point. With the anti-competitive legal battles continuing between the DOJ and the National Association of Realtors (NAR), it’s hard to determine exactly what the future may hold. Although, it seems NAR is not going to lie down and allow flat fee MLS and discount brokers to have the same effect on their industry as discounters had on the stock brokerage and travel industries. But, lucky for discount brokers, it seems this is a double edged sword for NAR, as the harder they fight the more press they draw to alternative listing models, the outrageous commission structure that has been in place forever, and "fixing" that seems to take place in real estate. Isn’t weird that, theoretically, an agent is doing the same work for a $100,000 listing as they are for a $500,000 listing but will be compensated five fold for the latter? As flat fee MLS companies and discount brokerages continue to assume a larger market share, one must wonder if NAR is fighting in vain to prevent change. A homeowner should be afforded the opportunity to decide what services are needed in order to sell the home, not obligated to sacrifice 6 percent for a bundle of unwanted services. It is no secret that the exposure created through an MLS listing cannot be attained as a for sale by owner, so why not allow consumers to utilize a real estate professional who is willing to unbundle the services and offer them on an a la carte basis? To me it’s simple, NAR is attempting to eliminate competition and it is up to consumers to voice their opinion and concerns. Don’t get stuck without a choice!
Posted by admin on May 18th, 2006
What’s the biggest influence on the real estate industry
What has had the biggest effect on change in the real estate industry? Has it been lawsuits filed by the Department of Justice providing increased awareness of flat fee MLS companies and limited service brokerages? Has the internet and the display of MLS listing information had the greatest effect? Or has it been free websites providing home valuation information to home sellers? Whatever the answer, one thing is for sure, the industry is changing on a daily basis. There are more alternatives to selling with a traditional agent than ever before and the internet has empowered home sellers. Sellers can learn home valuations, search for homes currently for sale in their area for pricing, list in the MLS and create home fliers all from the convenience of their own PC. It will be interesting to see over the next few years if technology will have the same effect on the real estate industry as it did on the travel agency industry.
Posted by admin on April 21st, 2006
List your home in the MLS for a low one time fee
For a one-time low cost a Flat Fee Broker will provide an MLS Listing. It can be a inexpensive way in which to advertise. If you are wishing to maintain the rights of a For Sale By Owner, flat fee MLS will allow you to accept not only offers presented by Realtors but also offers made directly to you by unrepresented purchasers potentially saving you thousands on the buy side of the transaction as well. If you are selling your home yourself you may have already decided that compensating a realtor that brings you a buyer is fair. With a flat fee MLS listing you are merely agreeing to those terms up front but still maintaining the right to sell your home on your own. An MLS listing is a valuable tool to getting the home sold.
Posted by admin on April 21st, 2006
Maximizing your marketing efforts
When getting your home sold an MLS Listing is crucial. Placing your home for sale with a Flat Fee MLS broker can be a cost effective way of advertising the home to thousands of potential customers. MLS listings not only reach those realtors in the listed area but also reach the public through websites like Realtor.com. With a flat flee broker the cost to list a home is just a small fraction of the cost of marketing through classifieds and other print ads, not to mention the 5-6 percent traditionally rendered to list in the local MLS. With available enhancement packages, the broker can post open houses, multiple photos, customized remarks and showcase your home on websites like Realtor.com.
As the number of home buyers beginning their home search on the internet continues to grow, be sure you are taking advantage of the available avenues to better expose your home and the best method available is the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
Posted by admin on February 25th, 2006
Residents of NM express concerns over minimum service rules
The New Mexico Real Estate Commissions appears poised to impose new regulations that would limit the ability of consumers in that state to choose the real estate services they want. One choice that would go away with the commissions ruling is the ability for consumers to purchase a listing on the MLS for a flat fee. Commissioner Tom Keesing admitted that, "Sometimes we have to make rules for the benefit of the public that limit us to some degree." Commission President David Steinborn said, "I will vote in favor of the wording as it’s proposed."
In opposition to the commissioners is the United States Justice Department along with informed consumers. Bill Jones with the United States DOJ said, "We want to preserve a maximum amount of choice for consumers." "This is for the benefit of the big boys of real estate," said Las Cruces resident Mel Barlow.
"This rule will take away my right as a consumer to hire, to pay with my money, a real estate licensee to do for me what I want done, as I want it done." Las Cruces resident Randy Gomez said he understands the commission’s concerns, but he still wants to have the choice to work without a real estate agent, yet have access to the MLS. "One of the things that would help me is to market it on the MLS," he said. "I understand what the pitfalls are… if I feel that I’d like to sell the property myself and I’d like to have access to the MLS and I understand by way of disclosure of the person who’s going to put it on MLS for me that it is very limited as to what their liabilities are going to be, and I sign off on that and I’m educated about that, I think I should have the right to do that."
See Also
- Real Estate Commission to Vote on Rules
The New Mexico Real Estate Commission is set to vote today on proposed changes that would set minimum services that licensed real estate agents would have to provide to clients.
Posted by admin on February 19th, 2006
National MLS Coverage Expanded
Flat fee mls services are now available in additional states through nationwide discount brokerage services website www.MLSLion.com. After a recent article in Inman News, more flat fee brokers around the country registered for membership with this fast growing portal for home sellers seeking to obtain the exposure of the Realtor MLS for their home sales without giving up thousands of dollars in real estate commissions. MLSLion now offers flat fee listing to consumers in approximately 40 states including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisianna, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia Washington, Wisconsin.
See Also
