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 May 2020, our team handled 546 phone calls.

We tracked 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 26 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

At the beginning of May, a new rule called Clear Cooperation 8.0 was introduced. This rule simply means that if a listing is to be marketed in any way to the public, it must be input into the MLS within 24 hours, excluding weekends and postal holidays. If your client wishes to hold their listing out of the MLS, then the property is only able to be marketed to your firm.

As a reminder, public marketing includes, but is not limited to, flyers displayed in windows, yard signs, digital marketing on public facing websites, brokerage website displays (including IDX and VOW), digital communications marketing (email blasts), multi-brokerage listing sharing networks, and applications available to the general public.

This month, we also want to continue reminding everyone to please also check the listing for special accommodation requests or notes from the home seller or seller’s agent prior to scheduling a 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 meet in May 2020 as there were no cases to review.

INFORMAL VIOLATIONS

In May 2020, RMLS™ Data Accuracy staff reviewed 30,954 listings in addition to the 475 notices sent through “Report Issue” button on RMLSweb. Of the items reviewed, 1,290 violation notices and 1,900 courtesy notices were sent out.

The following are the courtesy notifications sent to RMLS™ subscribers in May 2020:

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 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.