![RMLS™ Rules Roundup for December 2019]()
by RMLS Communication Department | Jan 17, 2020
The RMLS™ Rules and Regulations Committee has requested that periodic reports are given to subscribers about the number and types of formal rules violations, along with information about informal violations and courtesy notifications by type. Read “If a RMLS™ Rule is Broken, What Happens?” for a deeper explanation.
Have you ever spotted something wrong in a property listing on RMLSweb? The Data Accuracy team is responsible for sorting things out whenever a RMLS™ subscriber contacts us—whether that is via the “Report Issue” button on a listing, by email, or contacting us directly by phone. In December 2019 our team handled 195 phone calls.
We track 32 specific issues in Listing Data Checker (LDC), the software that helps us spot and correct issues proactively. Six of these are courtesy notifications, but the other 24 are informal violations of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. In addition to our focus on education we also process formal violations throughout the year.
HOT TOPICS
As winter moves into spring and the volume of new listings starts to increase remember that personal promotion on video and virtual tours are a violation of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. Any video or virtual tour that is linked on your listing must be devoid of any identifying personal and brokerage information. This means that the tour(s) themselves cannot have any identifying personal promotion information. If you have a video or virtual tour that is branded with personal promotion, you can post it on your own personal website.
FORMAL VIOLATIONS
The RMLS™ Rules and Regulations Committee reviews all formal complaints which allege a violation of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. The committee has the power to impose sanctions.
The committee reviewed three formal violations in December for a total of $1,750.00 in fines.
- 5.1.l – Unauthorized use of lockbox system: A buyer’s agent did not follow showing instructions.
- 5.1.l – Unauthorized use of lockbox system: A buyer’s agent gave a lockbox access code to their buyer.
- 5.1.l – Unauthorized use of lockbox system: A buyer’s agent did not follow showing instructions.
INFORMAL VIOLATIONS
In December 2019, RMLS™ Data Accuracy staff reviewed 24,823 listings in addition to the 384 notices sent through “Report Issue” button on RMLSweb. Of the items reviewed, 810 violation notices and 1,459 courtesy notices were sent out.
| Category | December |
| Missing Tax ID | 316 |
| Personal Promotion | 92 |
| Incorrect or Missing Information | 86 |
| Missing Owner Name | 46 |
| Missing School | 43 |
| No Showings | 29 |
| Duplicate Listing | 26 |
| Year Built Description | 25 |
| Conditions to Compensation | 24 |
| Missing or Incorrect 1st Photo | 18 |
| Duplicate Listing in Different Categories | 13 |
| Is Property a Condo | 12 |
| Inaccurate Lot Size | 5 |
| City Unknown | 5 |
| Partial Bathrooms 5+ | 3 |
| Missing Condo Unit Number | 2 |
| Listing Input in Incorrect MLS area | 2 |
Following are the courtesy notifications sent to RMLS™ subscribers in December 2019:
| Category | December |
| Listing is Set to Expire | 695 |
| Listing Still Pending | 410 |
| Multiple Owner Names in First Field | 240 |
| New Listing Input Over 24 Hours | 114 |
When we notice an uptick in a specific type of violation (perhaps a rule recently changed or market conditions lead to an increase in a certain type of issue) we may also put a notification up on RMLSweb, educating subscribers before one of their listings gets flagged and we need to contact them.
RMLS™ Data Accuracy can be reached via email or by phone at (503) 236-7657 if you ever have questions about the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations, if you wonder whether a specific listing has inaccurate data, or if you want to chat with us more about the above information.
![RMLS™ Rules Roundup for December 2019]()
by RMLS Communication Department | Dec 19, 2019
The RMLS™ Rules and Regulations Committee has requested that periodic reports are given to subscribers about the number and types of formal rules violations, along with information about informal violations and courtesy notifications by type. Read “If a RMLS™ Rule is Broken, What Happens?” for a deeper explanation.
Have you ever spotted something wrong in a property listing on RMLSweb? The Data Accuracy team is responsible for sorting things out whenever a RMLS™ subscriber contacts us—whether that is via the “Report Issue” button on a listing, by email, or contacting us directly by phone. In November 2019 our team handled 205 phone calls.
We track 32 specific issues in Listing Data Checker (LDC), the software that helps us spot and correct issues proactively. Six of these are courtesy notifications, but the other 24 are informal violations of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. In addition to our focus on education we also process formal violations throughout the year.
HOT TOPICS
This fall we have heard some concerns regarding buyers agents potentially giving out SentriLock codes when they are unable to be present at a showing. As a reminder this is a violation and it is never okay for a buyers agent to give a lockbox code to anyone for any reason. If you are unable to be present with your buyer please arrange for someone else to show the property or reschedule the showing.
FORMAL VIOLATIONS
The RMLS™ Rules and Regulations Committee reviews all formal complaints which allege a violation of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. The committee has the power to impose sanctions.
The committee did not review any formal violations in November as they did not meet.
INFORMAL VIOLATIONS
In November 2019, RMLS™ Data Accuracy staff reviewed 27,010 listings in addition to the 405 notices sent through “Report Issue” button on RMLSweb. Of the items reviewed, 1,029 violation notices and 1,774 courtesy notices were sent out.
| Category | November |
| Missing Tax ID | 416 |
| Personal Promotion | 127 |
| Incorrect or Missing Information | 82 |
| Year Built Description | 77 |
| Duplicate Listing | 63 |
| Missing School | 57 |
| Missing Owner Name | 56 |
| No Showings | 35 |
| Missing Condo Unit Number | 26 |
| Is Property a Condo | 19 |
| Missing or Incorrect 1st Photo | 17 |
| Listing Input in Incorrect MLS area | 15 |
| Conditions to Compensation | 12 |
| Duplicate Listing in Different Categories | 9 |
| Inaccurate Lot Size | 7 |
| HUD | 3 |
| City Unknown | 2 |
| Duplicate Listing Different Agent | 1 |
| Is Listing a Short Sale | 1 |
Following are the courtesy notifications sent to RMLS™ subscribers in November 2019:
| Category | November |
| Listing is Set to Expire | 1,066 |
| Listing Still Pending | 336 |
| Multiple Owner Names in First Field | 282 |
| New Listing Input Over 24 Hours | 90 |
When we notice an uptick in a specific type of violation (perhaps a rule recently changed or market conditions lead to an increase in a certain type of issue) we may also put a notification up on RMLSweb, educating subscribers before one of their listings gets flagged and we need to contact them.
RMLS™ Data Accuracy can be reached via email or by phone at (503) 236-7657 if you ever have questions about the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations, if you wonder whether a specific listing has inaccurate data, or if you want to chat with us more about the above information.
by RMLS Communication Department | Nov 11, 2019
This Week’s Lockbox Activity
For the week of October 28-November 3, 2019, these charts show the number of times RMLS™ subscribers opened SentriLock lockboxes in Oregon and Washington. Activity decreased again last week in both Oregon and Washington.
For a larger version of each chart, visit the RMLS™ photostream on Flickr.
![RMLS™ Rules Roundup for December 2019]()
by RMLS Communication Department | Nov 7, 2019
The RMLS™ Rules and Regulations Committee has requested that periodic reports are given to subscribers about the number and types of formal rules violations, along with information about informal violations and courtesy notifications by type. Read “If a RMLS™ Rule is Broken, What Happens?” for a deeper explanation.
Have you ever spotted something wrong in a property listing on RMLSweb? The Data Accuracy team is responsible for sorting things out whenever a RMLS™ subscriber contacts us—whether that is via the “Report Issue” button on a listing, by email, or contacting us directly by phone. In October 2019 our team handled 205 phone calls.
We track 32 specific issues in Listing Data Checker (LDC), the software that helps us spot and correct issues proactively. Six of these are courtesy notifications, but the other 24 are informal violations of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. In addition to our focus on education we also process formal violations throughout the year.
HOT TOPICS
October saw an increase of accidental status changes on listings. In some cases, the Seller’s Agent accidentally changed the status to Bumpable Buyer (BMP) shortly after publishing the listing in RMLSweb. Each status change results in a history record being created, and when a status change occurs accidentally, this can potentially cause confusion for other subscribers. If you navigate to the status change module in Listing Load by accident and do not wish to change the status of your listing, simply press the “Cancel” button.
FORMAL VIOLATIONS
The RMLS™ Rules and Regulations Committee reviews all formal complaints which allege a violation of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations. The committee has the power to impose sanctions.
The committee did not review any formal violations in October as they did not meet.
INFORMAL VIOLATIONS
In October 2019, RMLS™ Data Accuracy staff reviewed 17,579 listings in addition to the 406 notices sent through “Report Issue” button on RMLSweb. Of the items reviewed, 1,098 violation notices and 1,282 courtesy notices were sent out.
| Category | October |
| Missing Tax ID | 405 |
| Personal Promotion | 106 |
| Incorrect or Missing Information | 105 |
| Missing Owner Name | 86 |
| Missing Condo Unit Number | 84 |
| Missing School | 74 |
| Year Built Description | 65 |
| No Showings | 38 |
| Missing or Incorrect 1st Photo | 37 |
| Listing Input in Incorrect MLS area | 29 |
| Duplicate Listing | 19 |
| Conditions to Compensation | 18 |
| Is Property a Condo | 15 |
| Inaccurate Lot Size | 6 |
| Duplicate Listing in Different Categories | 6 |
| City Unknown | 3 |
| HUD | 2 |
Following are the courtesy notifications sent to RMLS™ subscribers in October 2019:
| Category | October |
| Listing is Set to Expire | 457 |
| Multiple Owner Names in First Field | 365 |
| Listing Still Pending | 353 |
| New Listing Input Over 24 Hours | 107 |
When we notice an uptick in a specific type of violation (perhaps a rule recently changed or market conditions lead to an increase in a certain type of issue) we may also put a notification up on RMLSweb, educating subscribers before one of their listings gets flagged and we need to contact them.
RMLS™ Data Accuracy can be reached via email or by phone at (503) 236-7657 if you ever have questions about the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations, if you wonder whether a specific listing has inaccurate data, or if you want to chat with us more about the above information.
by RMLS Communication Department | Nov 5, 2019
Each year on the RMLS™ Subscriber Satisfaction Survey, we ask how our members receive news from RMLS™. This year, 54.2% of respondents said they get news through the RMLS™ Weekly Report. We’d love to see a higher number here, because the RMLS™ Weekly Report is one of our few ways to keep subscribers regularly updated about RMLS™ news, new features we’ll be releasing, and events we may be holding in your area.
Have you been missing the RMLS™ Weekly Report? Here are a few reasons we may be missing your mailbox.
Issue #1: Incorrect/Missing Contact Email on RMLSweb
We update the send list for the RMLS™ Weekly Report every few weeks directly from RMLSweb. Check your user preferences (Document #1756 can help) to make sure the address in the “RMLSweb Contact Email” field is current.
Issue #2: You’ve Opted Out of Constant Contact Emails
RMLS™ uses Constant Contact to send the RMLS™ Weekly Report each week. We also use the service to send Market Action to subscribers each month as well as periodically sending other important messages.
Perhaps there is another business who also uses Constant Contact, and you clicked the “SafeUnsubscribe” link at the bottom of their email. That actually unsubscribes you from ALL Constant Contact mailings, including those from RMLS™.
Issue #3: The Dreaded Spam Filter
RMLS™ employees have the ability to see certain types of interaction with each email we send through Constant Contact. Periodically a subscriber will contact us saying they’re not receiving the RMLS™ Weekly Report, and we can see the email was indeed sent to them and did not bounce back. This is the toughest issue to solve because it requires that the subscriber do some detective work on their end, as it’s likely that the messages are being caught in some sort of spam filter along the way.
If we see that we have sent emails to you with no bounces, we will first ask you to check out any spam filters you may have on your email program, on your email server, or anywhere else on your side of the process. It’s tough to tell you where to look because everyone’s email is set up differently. For example, Mary may use a web-based email service like Gmail or Hotmail, while Elizabeth may have a custom domain (betsy@betsysellshouses.com) that auto-forwards to her Comcast address. Meanwhile, Fred may work for a company with an IT staff that control their mail servers, and he views everything using Outlook.
Mary, Elizabeth, and Fred will each need to do a different type of detective work.
Mary’s web-based email may have one or more spam folders to look in. Elizabeth may need to search for emails through her domain host (whoever she pays for betsysellshouses.com) and through Comcast, her internet service provider (ISP). Fred will have to look in his Outlook spam folder(s) but he’ll also have the help of his coworkers in IT to help.
Often that will solve the problem, but if it doesn’t, the next step is determining whether Constant Contact has been blacklisted at a subscriber’s email provider.
Issue #4: Blacklisting
If RMLS™ staff determines emails to a subscriber are being sent successfully but the subscriber can’t find them in various spam filters, it may be because Constant Contact servers have been blacklisted by your ISP. If Server A has been blacklisted by Server B, it means that no email from Server A will be accepted by Server B and it will never get to the subscriber.
What can RMLS™ do to solve this issue? The subscriber should reach out to their ISP, email provider, or (in Fred’s case) IT staff to get Constant Contact removed from the blacklist. Constant Contact has a letter template that subscribers can use to contact an ISP about blacklisting issues.
If this doesn’t resolve things, we can help you or your ISP connect with Constant Contact to resolve the issue.
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