Agent Contact * (click to email)

Admin

May

8

DOJ sets sights on more MLS boards

Filed Under Marketing, Real Estate, Technology

050808watcher As the DOJ case against NAR enters into a critical path this summer, the DOJ is starting to take aim at other players in the MLS game. This is only the beginning and it is very apparent to many, that NAR’s iron fisted rule on the MLS will not come out of this unscathed.

Having interacted with over a hundred of the top MLS’s through the United States I can say from my perspective, that this is going to be welcomed with open arms for those wanting to open this up to the masses and to help create a free and unfettered access to this data. The way it has been controlled has got to change. The times and the technologies brought to bear in today’s digital world that we live in are also changing and this is another one of those changes that is coming soon to an MLS Board near you.

Barry Cunnigham over at the Blood Hound Blog wrote a great post on the latest foray into this battle The War Against The MLS Continues | The MLS Must Fall!.

It is worth reading and before you comment, you should arm yourself with the knowledge of actually reading the content of the complaints as filed by the DOJ (links are in the posts - his and mine). Also, be sure to check out the article I wrote back in February 2007 that goes into more background and details on this. MLS Data compliance and NAR vs. DOJ

Related Posts:

Comments

2 Responses to “DOJ sets sights on more MLS boards”

Nestor & Katerina Gasset on May 10th, 2008 2:54 pm

So what makes all work that a broker does to get a listing not of any value. Are we public servants? I did not know that if we are listing agents that means the public can demand us to give our listings to them for free. Brokers have every right to own their exclusive right to sale contracts. I don’t like our MLS and I do agree with you about the political stuff because I have a battle going on with ours right now over how we have to list short sales.

The part I don’t agree with is that brokers do all the work and we are not going to just give it to any one to advertise for Free without our consent. This public dissemination of our data opens only us up for liability too! Katerina
Tom Townsend on May 10th, 2008 2:56 pm

“I did not know that if we are listing agents that means the public can demand us to give our listings to them for free.”

Yes they can, and they will, it’s only a matter of time. I agree that their should be some exclusive right to the sales contract but the data that is used to get the listing sold is not getting dispersed widely enough due to the MLS issues. The genie is out of the bottle now, most home sellers and buyers know that their are myriad possibilities for searching for homes on the Internet and I don’t see why their can’t be a nationally shared DB other than the one owned and ruled by NAR.

As for GTAR’s latest on the short sales issue….stand by. That is one they are playing with fire and I believe cause for this may be due to active board members from NAR that have influence on this. Either way, the news has not been widely dispersed to the general public and once it is….they may have to change their tune.

I think the major issue here is that you as a Broker need to be more vocal on the issue. I noticed that you did not even mention the name of the board….they have everyone so scared to say anything….what do you expect ? Comment on it in a public forum and offer constructive crtitcism and they can’t touch you.