New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines:

(Note: To print this information, just right-click and choose "print" from the menu that appears.)

Data Compliance Assurance Policy

Section 1.2 Detail on Listings Filed With The MLS: A property data form, when entered into the MLS computer by the listing broker, shall be complete in every detail which is ascertainable as specified on the property data form. Fines are levied per field, not per listing. Upon notice, the MLS Subscriber/Participant Member has five business days by which to correct the data.

Compliance Issue

Consequence

Failure to change an ascertainable field after being notified to do so or to follow the Photo Guidelines, IDX Rules or any other Rule violation.

$25- 2nd notice

$50- 3rd notice

4th notice-$100 and loss of MLS and lockbox privileges until data is corrected

Failure to enter a listing within five business days of seller’s written authorization unless the owner is absentee in which case entry must occur within five business days from the receipt of the seller’s written authorization.

$25

Failure to disclose a dual or variable commission rate in the MLS

$50

Failing to notice within five business days when a licensee who is waived should no longer be waived, including unlicensed personnel who become actively licensed (whether by the NCREC or NCAB).

$100 or back MLS fees, whichever

is more

Failing to remove a Lock Box within five business days of listing’s expiration, withdrawal, or closing. MLS will return the Lock Box to leaseholder.

$25

Allowing someone access to information who is not a client or customer. e.g., Loaning/giving any printed MLS information; agents/appraisers who give information to licensees who do not pay fees to the Wilmington MLS.

$500

Unauthorized use of lock boxes, including their use on rental property, personal use by Participants and/or Subscribers, will be subject to a fine of $100 or more and/or suspension as determined by the Board of Directors.

$100

Staff shall do the following:

  1. 1st notice: Email the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) and the Participant Member requesting that the data be modified within five business days
  2. 2nd notice: Email the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) and Participant Member along with the reason for the fine to the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) and requesting that the data be modified within five business days
  3. 3rd notice: Email and call the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) and Participant Member along with the reason for the fine  to the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) and requesting that the data be modified within five business days and the same fine shall be levied against the Participant Member;
  4. 4th notice: Call the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) and the Participant Member and tell the MLS Subscriber (Listing Agent) that all MLS services including loss of use of the lockbox system shall be suspended until the data is correct and the fine is paid.

Note:  When there is non-compliance and the circumstances are unusual (death in the family, extended vacations, etc.), the chief staff executive may make exceptions to the fines at their discretion. Any Subscriber or Participant Member whose request to waive a fine has been denied by the chief staff executive, may appeal to the Board of Directors.

With the exception of land, all listings REGARDLESS OF STATUS (active, pending or sold), must have a photograph except as noted below.

EXISTING STRUCTURES

Ø      Choose an appropriate value from the photo table for someone else to take the photo or Agent Submits if you will upload one yourself.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Ø      If the exterior is incomplete, choose Under Construction from photo table.  Put the year the house will be finished in the Year Built field, and Under Construction in the Construction Status field.

            Once the builder has locked the property, you will need to:

1.      Change the Construction Status from Under Construction to New.

2.      When the exterior is complete, choose an appropriate value from photo table for someone else to take the photo or Agent Submits if you will upload one yourself.

PRE-SALES

Ø      If the builder has selected a specific house plan for a specific lot, enter the listing within three business days of the listing date.  If the buyer can choose the house plan, enter the listing the same day it goes under contract with a status of Pending.  Under no circumstance would you wait until closing to enter the information.

Ø      If the exterior is incomplete, mark Under Construction in the photo field, or if you want to submit a picture, mark Agent Submits and upload a photo or sketch/rendering. In the Construction Status field choose Under Construction. In the Year Built field, enter the date the property will be completed.

Ø      Once the builder has locked the property, you will need to:

                        1.   Change the Under Construction field to New; and

2.   When the exterior is complete, choose an appropriate value from photo table for someone else to take the photo or Agent Submits if you will upload one yourself.

Ø      If proposed, put Proposed in the Construction Status field and Proposed in the Photo field, or if you want to submit a picture, mark Agent Submits and upload a photo or sketch/rendering.

Vendors have different schedules for pulling photo data from the MLS.  Check with each vendor to determine when they pull and how they bill their services to you.

Photos must be submitted within ten business days of entry date or in the case of proposed or new construction within 10 days of the builder completing the exterior.

 

Dear REALTORS®

The MLS Board of Directors has revised its Data Compliance Assurance Policy and its Guidelines for MLS Photos. Both are included in this mailing along with detailed information on fines that will be levied for failure to adhere to the Data Compliance Assurance Policy. Though the rule changes are effective immediately, no fines will be levied until July 1, 2003. The Board is delaying the assessment of fines to allow time for an intensive education process. It is our hope that this education process will improve agent compliance and reduce the need to levy fines in the future.

You will be receiving weekly emails highlighting several common input errors. The information in these emails and the time between each one will give you the opportunity to review your listings and make any necessary corrections. Each email will have “Data Compliance Review” and the number of the email in the subject line (e.g., “Data Compliance Review 1”). Having the same subject line will allow you to sort your Inbox by Subject and quickly find these emails. I will also explain how to find the data and how to decide whether your data meet the criteria of the Rule.

Thank you for taking your time to thoughtfully review the Rule changes below. I welcome your comments.

For the MLS Board of Directors,

Linda Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG
MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 1 (first weekly follow-up email):

{ Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

The Board of Directors and all of us who use the MLS thank you for taking time to place complete and accurate information in our MLS. The system becomes much more powerful and we can all better serve our clients and customers when complete listing information is entered into the MLS. 

Since the inception of multiple listing services, REALTORS® have been required to enter all ascertainable information. Some ask why the MLS doesn’t make the fields mandatory if the data is “ascertainable.” The reasons are many, but just one of them is related to the fact that listings should be linked to county tax data. The tax office can be a month – or in the case of Pender or Brunswick – months behind in placing the tax record into their system. Therefore, if tax information was mandatory, the listing could not be entered into the MLS until county tax records were updated.  For this reason and others like it, your MLS does not make many fields mandatory; doing so would prevent listings from being entered into the MLS system in a timely manner. Instead, we rely on members to enter full and accurate information that makes their listing more effective for their Seller and strengthens the MLS system for everyone.

In this first weekly email to help prepare you for the new MLS data and photo policies, we’d like to focus your attention on the sold data in MLS. All of these fields are required, but inaccurate data is often entered, particularly in two fields: Finance Terms and Seller Concessions. This data MUST come from the HUD 1 form. The Board of Directors urges companies to adopt standards that require the agents to:

To ensure that all of your 2003 sold listings meet the criteria, search for them by choosing the following information in the Search Tree:

  1. Status = Sold
  2. Important Dates = 01/01/03 through today’s date
  3. List/Sale Office Information, choose Listing Agent Name = your name
  4. Press Start

Print the list and check it against the HUD 1 form in your sold listing file.

Again, I thank you for your help in assuring that we all have correct data which will assist us in advising our clients and customers.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 2 (second weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

Dear MLS Members:

This second Data Compliance Review email focuses on proper mapping for all listings.  Mapping happens during the night after a listing is entered into Ambiance.  Sometimes a street name or number entered in a new listing may not already exist in the Ambiance mapping system.  When that happens, the street name or number is not properly recognized and the system will either map the address incorrectly or not map it at all.  You should check each listing the day after entry to ensure that it is mapped correctly.  Please make this step part of your listing process.  Please also take the time to search and review your existing listings for proper mapping and to make any necessary updates. 

I recommend the following process to check your listings for proper mapping:

  1. On the Menu choose, Listings, Search, All
  2. Click on all of the boxes, then click OK
  3. In the Search Tree choose: Status = Current, Sold, Pending
  4. Important Dates, Sold/Leased Date = 01/01/03 through today’s date
  5. List/Sale Office Information, choose Listing Agent Name(s) = your name
  6. Click on Special Features and choose On Map? Then select 1-No and 2-No-Plot Failed
  7. Press Start
  8. Choose View List
  9. Click the Select All icon
  10. Click the printer button
  11. Work with your office staff to ensure that any listings not mapped or mapped incorrectly are updated appropriately.

Again, I thank you for your help in ensuring that we all have correct data in the MLS.  This will greatly improve our ability to advise our clients and customers.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 3 (third weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

Dear MLS members:

This third Data Compliance Review email focuses on the Features information in your listings.

Buyer agents are your allies in getting your seller’s property sold.  They rely heavily on Features information and are much more likely to find and show your property to their buyer if your information is complete.  Some examples of Features data are:

Location/Features:

Fencing:

Features information can be critical to a buyer agent’s decision to show your property – even when it’s in their buyer’s price range.  Missing data means fewer showings for your seller and a longer wait to make the sale. Please review your listings and enter all applicable features.

  1. On the Menu choose, Listings, Search, Single Family Homes
  2. In the Search Tree: Double-click on Status, then click on Current and Pending
  3. Double-click on List/Sell Office Information, double- click on Listing Agents Name(s), then click on your name
  4. Click on the “Start” button (If asked, “Do you want to save search results,” click the “No” button.  If no listings are found, repeat steps 1-4 for any other property classes you handle – for example: Multi-Family, Land/Acreage/Sites, etc.)
  5. Click on the “Single Family” tab
  6. In the lower right corner there is an icon that looks like binoculars (If you do not see it, you may have to move or maximize the top window in Ambiance.). Click on it. 
  7. Wait a little while until the screen refreshes with the entire listing showing.
  8. Click the “Zoom In” button and scroll as necessary to look at the Features section of that listing. If any corrections or additions are needed, click the “Print” button and write the correct or additional data on the printed sheet.  If no corrections or additions are needed, click the “Next” button to review your next Single Family Home listing.
  9. Continue until all of your Single Family Home listings have been reviewed. 
  10. Repeat these steps, substituting other property classes that you handle (e.g., Multi-Family, Land/Acreage/Sites, etc.) in place of “Single Family Home” until all of your MLS listings have been reviewed and corrected as necessary.
  11. Hand all corrected listing printouts to the appropriate staff member to make the changes in MLS.  If no corrections or additions were necessary, then congratulations!

Thank you again for your help in improving the data and the power of your MLS.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 4 (fourth weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

This fourth Data Compliance Review email focuses on zip codes.  A listing must have the proper zip code for the property’s street address.

To check for proper zip codes, please do the following:

  1. Go to WRAR.com.  Scroll down in the left menu and click on the “Zip Code Maps” link.
  2. Click on the “Map w/Major Streets” link under the applicable county
  3. Using the Zoom Tool (magnifying glass), zoom in on a particular zip code
  4. In AMBIANCE, On the Menu choose, Listings, Search, All
  5. Click on all of the boxes, then click OK
  6. In the Search Tree, double-click on Status and then click on Current, Pending and Sold.
  7. Under Area, double-click on Zip and enter a valid zip code (e.g., 28401).  Enter only 1 zip code!
  8. Double-click on Important Dates, double-click on Sold/Leased Date.  Enter 01/01/03 in the “From” box and today’s date in the “To” box.
  9. Double-click on List/Sell Office Info, double-click on Listing Agent Name(s), and click on your name.
  10. Click on the Start button.
  11. When the search is complete, will see a number in the “Listings Found” box at the right and you may be asked “Do You Want Search Results Saved?”  If asked the question, click NO.  If 0 is shown in the “Listings Found box, repeat the search steps and enter another valid zip code.  If listing were found, click on the Map tab at the top of the window.
  12. Hold down the Alt key and press the Tab key on your keyboard as necessary to switch between the current screen and the zip code map from wrar.com for comparison.  Are all of the plotted search result listings actually within the colored zip code area as shown on the wrar.com map?  If not, double click on the red square in Ambiance for any listing which is outside the zip code boundary.  Print the listing detail and enter the correct zip code on the listing sheet.  Do this for all plotted squares that are confirmed to be outside of the zip code you used in your search.
  13. Repeat the process, entering different zip codes at step number 7, until all of your listings have been verified or corrected.
  14. Give all of the corrected listings to your staff person to modify the data in our MLS

Thanks again to all of you for your time and effort in improving our MLS data.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 5 (fifth weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines. }

Dear MLS Members:

This fifth Data Compliance Review email focuses on Square Footage and Lot Dimensions.  Let’s first review the NC Real Estate Commission’s rule that your MLS has adopted:

It is often said that the three most important factors in making a home buying decision are "location," "location," and "location."  Other than "location," the single most-important factor is probably the size or "square footage" of the home.  Not only is it an indicator of whether a particular home will meet a homebuyer's space needs, but it also affords a convenient (though not always accurate) method for the buyer to estimate the value of the home and compare it with other properties.

…. when they (agents) do report square footage, it is essential that the information they give prospective purchasers be accurate. At a minimum, information concerning square footage should include the amount of living area in the dwelling.

After measuring each listing and accurately calculating the square footage, you need to place that information on the data entry sheet. For all Single Family listings, Ambiance converts your exact square footage to a range. When the property is sold, Ambiance then displays the exact square footage. Many agents use the price per square foot provided in Ambiance to assist them in comparing properties. If the exact square footage is not available, buyers’ agents are likely to miss the property or improperly consider it when making comparisons based on price per square foot.  There are too many listings in the MLS that show the beginning of a range (for example, 1301, 1401, 1501) as the exact square footage.

Please take just a moment to double check your listing(s) by doing the following:

  1. In the AMBIANCE menu, choose Listings, then Search, then All.
  2. Click on all of the boxes, then click the OK button.
  3. In the search tree, double-click on Status and then click on Current, Sold, and Pending.
  4. Double-click on Important Dates.  Double-click on Sold/Lease Date.  In the From box enter 01/01/02.
  5. Double-click on List/Sell Office Info, double-click on Listing Agent Name(s), and then click on your name.
  6. Click on the Start button. (If you get no results in the Listings Found box to the right, you do not have a listing or you may have made a mistake. Please review the search criteria.)
  7. Click on the View List Tab.  Look at column titled HtSqFt Range.

Do any of your listings look suspicious, showing the beginning of a range?  If so, please correct the data.

Using the data on the View List tab:

  1. Click on the City button below the City column.  In the search window, double-click on Property Description.  Scroll down until you see Land Dimensions. Double-click on this value.
  2. Now click on the List Date button below the List Date column.  In the search window, double-click on Basic Info.  Scroll down until you see Classification.  Double-click on this value.
  3. Click on the column header for Classification to sort the list alphabetically.

Look at any listings that have Condo-Modular and Condo-Stick Blt on-site. Do these listing have Condo as a value in this field?  If not, please correct the data.

Look at any listings that have Townhouse-Modular and Townhouse-Stick Blt on-site.  Do all of these listing have a Townhouse in this field?  If not, please correct the data.

Finally, look down the Land Dimensions column to see if you have any value entered other than the dimensions.  For example, “irregular” would not be appropriate nor would “approx. xx acres.”  Even if you cannot place every lot’s dimensions into this field, please enter all that are possible.  Please correct any inaccurate information and provide the form to your staff person for correction.

Again, I thank you for your help in ensuring that we all have correct data in the MLS.  This will greatly improve our ability to advise our clients and customers.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG
MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 6 (sixth weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

This sixth Data Compliance Review email focuses on street address problems. Entering address information inaccurately may keep someone from showing your seller’s property!

Please take just a moment to double-check your listing by doing the following:

  1. In the AMBIANCE menu, choose Listings, then Search, then All.
  2. Click on all of the boxes, then click the OK button.
  3. In the search tree, double-click on Status and then click on Current and Pending.
  4. Double-click on List/Sell Office Info, double-click on Listing Agent Name(s), and click on your name.
  5. Click on the Start button. (If you get no results in the Listings Found box to the right, you do not have a listing or you may have made a mistake. Please review the search criteria.)
  6. Click on the View List tab. At the bottom of the window, click on the button that has 2 blue checkmarks to select all listings.  Now click on the button with the plain printer icon to print the list (it is in a row of four buttons that each show a printer icon… you want to click the first one on the left of that row). Review the column titled Street Name to see if you inadvertently entered the Direction (N, S, E, W, etc) along with the Street Name text for any of the listings. If you did, cross out just the direction info (N, S, E, W, etc) and write it into the preceding column, titled Street Dir.  For any listings that do not show street direction information but should, go ahead and write it into the Street Dir column next to those listings (N, S, E, W, NE, NW, SE, SW).  Provide the printout with corrections to the appropriate staff person to make the updates in Ambiance.
  7. Now click on the big button below the City column. In the search window, double-click Basic Info. Scroll down until you see Classification. Double-click on this value.
  8. Now click on the big button below the List Date column. In the search window, double-click Basic Info. Scroll down until you see Address2. Double click on this value.
  9. Click on the column header for Classification to sort the list alphabetically. Look to see if you have any listings that have Condo-Modular, Condo-Stick Blt on-site, Townhouse-Modular, or Townhouse-Stick Blt on-site. Do all of these listings include the unit number in the address? If not, please provide a note to the appropriate staff person to make the changes in Ambiance. Be sure to give them the MLS number for each listing that needs to be updated and the unit number information that needs to be added for each.

Again, I thank you for your help in ensuring that we all have correct data in the MLS.  This will greatly improve our ability to advise our clients and customers.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

 Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 7 (seventh weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

Dear MLS Members:

This seventh Data Compliance Review email focuses on missing photos. Please take just a moment to double-check your listings by doing the following:

  1. In the Ambiance menu, choose Listings, then Search, then All.
  2. Click on all of the boxes except Land/Acreage/Sites, then click OK.
  3. In the search tree, double-click on Status and then click on Current, Sold, and Pending.
  4. Double-click on Important Dates. Double-click on Sold/Leased Date. In the From box, enter 01/01/02.
  5. In the search tree, double-click on List/Sell Office Info, double-click on Listing Agent Name(s), and click on your name.
  6. In the search tree, double-click on Special Functions. Double-click on Number of Photos and click on 0 (zero).
  7. Click on the Start button. (If you get no results in the Listings Found box to the right, either you do not have a listing or you do not have any missing photos. If you’re not missing any photos, congratulations!)
  8. If the Listings Found box shows one or more listings found, click the View List tab at the top of the window.
  9. Click on the big button below City. In the search window, double-click Property Description. Scroll down until you see Construction Status. Double-click on this value.
  10. Click on the column header for Construction Status to sort the list alphabetically.

If you are missing photos, it may be okay; you may have a new construction property that is not yet ready to have a photo taken. Please review the following Guideline for MLS Photos to see if you should have a photo entered for any of the listings found in your search. If after reading the information below, you find that you do have listings that require photos, please upload a photo for each one or ask your vendor to do so. Please also remember to change each listing’s Photo table field to the appropriate value.

Guideline for MLS Photos

With the exception of land, all listings REGARDLESS OF STATUS (active, pending or sold), must have a photograph except as noted below.

EXISTING STRUCTURES

            Choose an appropriate value from the photo table for someone else to take the photo or Agent Submits if you will upload one yourself.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

            If the exterior is incomplete, choose Under Construction from photo table.  Put the year the house will be finished in the Year Built field, and Under Construction in the Construction Status field.

            Once the property is locked by the builder, you will need to:

1.      Change the Construction Status from Under Construction to New.

2.      When the exterior is complete, choose an appropriate value from photo table for someone else to take it or Agent Submits if you will upload one yourself.

PRE-SALES

            If the builder has selected a specific house plan for a specific lot enter the listing within three business days of the listing date.  If the buyer can choose the house plan, enter the listing the same day it goes under contract with a status of Pending.  Under no circumstance would you wait until closing to enter the information.

            If the exterior is incomplete mark Under Construction in the photo field, or if you want to submit a picture mark Agent Submits and upload a photo or sketch/rendering. In the Construction Status field choose Under Construction. In the Year Built field enter the date the property will be completed.

            Once the property is locked by the builder, you will need to:

                        1.   Change the Under Construction field to New; and

2.   When the exterior is complete, choose an appropriate value from photo table for someone else to take it or Agent Submits if you will upload one yourself.

            If proposed, put Proposed in the Construction Status field and Proposed in the Photo field or if you want to submit a picture mark Agent Submits and upload a photo or sketch/rendering.

Vendors have different schedules for pulling photo data from the MLS. Check with each vendor to determine when they pull and how they bill their services to you.

Again, I thank you for your help in ensuring that we all have correct data in the MLS.  This will greatly improve our ability to advise our clients and customers.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines

Data Compliance Review 8 (eighth weekly follow-up email):

{Note:  On Thursday, May 1, all MLS members received an email from Linda Coite, MLS President (distributed by John McManus) detailing the new MLS data and photo policies and a new fine schedule that will be implemented on July 1, 2003.  This is one of several follow-up emails to educate members on common MLS errors and help them avoid future fines.}

Dear MLS Members:

This eighth Data Compliance Review email focuses on ensuring that listings are linked to the tax records. Please take just a moment to double-check your listings by doing the following:

  1. In the AMBIANCE menu, choose Listings, then Search, then All.
  2. Click on all of the boxes, then click the OK button.
  3. In the search tree, double-click on Status and then click on Current and Pending.
  4. Double-click on List/Sell Office Info, double-click on Listing Agent Name(s), and click on your name.
  5. Click on the Start button. (If you get no results in the Listings Found box to the right, you do not have a listing or you may have made a mistake. Please review the search criteria.)
  6. Click on the View List Tab. Find the big button below List Date and click it.
  7. In the Search Window that opens, double-click on Internal Information.
  8. Find Pid# (Pid#, not Pin#) and double-click it.

Finding a Pid# for a listing in the Pid# column does not guarantee that the listing is actually linked to the tax record; however, the absence of a Pid# number in that column does guarantee that the listing is not linked to the tax record. Please record the MLS numbers for the listings that are missing Pid#s and instruct the appropriate staff person to have them linked to the tax records. There will be times when a new subdivision may not yet appear in the tax record and you won’t be able to enter the data, but please make every attempt to provide this information as soon as possible when it does become available.

Your staff is aware of the requirement to link every MLS listing to the tax record. Please renew your focus on maintaining these links to help improve the MLS for everyone. There are many good reasons to do this, and I am sure you know them all, but one of my favorites is that a tax-linked listing enables MLS users to get a footprint of the property (when one is available).

Again, I thank you for your help in ensuring that we all have correct data in the MLS. This will greatly improve our ability to advise our clients and customers.

Linda J. Coite, ABR, CRS, GRI, LTG

MLS President

Back to beginning of New MLS Data and Photo Policies / Associated Fines