Listing Load Filter: Ask Technical Terry

Ask Technical Terry is a series RMLS™ aims to offer once a month. RMLS™ subscribers will drive the content—submit any question about RMLS™ to Technical Terry in the comments or by emailing communications@rmls.com. Don’t be shy—we won’t identify you by name.

Dear TT:

I am so frustrated! Ever since Listing Load got updated, whenever I start a new listing and save it as in progress I’ll come back later to finish it, and it’s GONE! Sometimes this happens several times per listing! I’ll then call the RMLS™ Help Desk and they help me see all the in-progress listings I’ve started. What the heck is going on?

Tired in Tigard

Dear TT:

How frustrating! As you’ve experienced when contacting the RMLS™ Help Desk, your listings are still there but the new “filter” option is set with criteria that keeps the listings from appearing on your screen. Let me show you how to access the filter and change the settings.

The filter button is located here on Listing Load.

Notice there are three unique tabs available in Listing Load: Listings, In-Progress, and My Inventory. The filter button gives you unique options for each tab as shown here.

LISTINGS FILTER:

Notice the variety of filtering options you have available! Also note the ability to clear all filter values, and apply the filter values you’ve chosen. Don’t forget “Save Criteria” if you want the filter to retain your choices for that particular tab!

IN-PROGRESS FILTER:

Once again, so many options! Again you’ve got the ability to clear all filter values, apply the filter values you’ve chosen, and and save the criteria to retain your choices for that particular tab.

MY INVENTORY FILTER:

Again you’ve got a cornucopia of options, the ability to clear all filter values, apply the filter values you’ve chosen, and save the criteria for that particular tab.

Since we’re on the topic, I’ve also heard that the RMLS™ Help Desk staff has gotten plenty of calls from subscribers wondering why they can’t edit their listing in the My Inventory tab. The My Inventory tab is simply that: it shows your inventory based on the filter settings you’ve applied. All editing capabilities are performed under either of the other two tabs.

I hope this helps, TT. Just remember, if you’ve saved a listing in progress and it seems to have disappeared when you come back to RMLSweb, check the filter! I’d bet you’ll find a filter option has been chosen that keeps the listing from appearing.

Technical Terry

Dear Technical Terry:

Why do you sign some of your responses “Ask Technical Terry?” Typically, one signs a letter or email using his or her name.

Ward Smith

Dear Ward Smith:

Great question! Indeed—sometimes I use my full name, which includes my first name Ask (from Norse mythology), sometimes I use initials, and in one of the blog posts I reviewed I forgot to sign off at all! I’m so embarrassed. Be assured that these oversights were made in the pursuit of quality content for RMLS™ subscribers.

A. Technical Terry

A Fresh Look for Listing Load on RMLSweb and Other Improvements Coming February 5th

RMLS™ is polishing up a round of improvements to RMLSweb set to make their debut on February 5th. Among these is a bold new look for Listing Load, more responsive design for search functions, and easier listing edits.

Tile View, a new look available to users in Listing Load, will feature large icons. Status, price, and other details may be easily edited by clicking on icons and/or text. Listing view counts can also be accessed through this interface. My Inventory has also been added as a tab in Tile View and List View, although access remains through the Back Office menu anywhere in RMLSweb.

In addition to Listing Load’s easier interface, RMLS™ has also reworked the search pages on RMLSweb to be responsive to a user’s browser. This means that users on a mobile device will find the search options easier to use.

Subscribers can use this increased responsivity to easily make changes in the field. Listings with an accepted offer, for example, may be changed instantly—well within the 24 hour time window required for changing a listing’s status in RMLSweb. Furthermore, users who have had difficulty navigating RMLSweb using a mobile device or a regular browser set at less than full screen should have an easier experience when using the site.

Because these search pages have been reworked, users will also notice some layout changes on searches. When switching to Map View on Advanced Search, for example, will push the search criteria over to a left sidebar so users may see the map and criteria all on one screen.

The majority of these changes are a direct result of subscriber feedback, including Listing Load focus groups held over the last several months by Beth Raimer, our new product manager. If you’re interested in participating in future focus groups, contact Beth Raimer directly. We especially encourage REALTORS® from outside the Portland metro area to participate!

Photograph Requirement Coming Soon to RMLSweb Listing Load

Starting December 6th, listing agents will be required to upload at least one photo in Listing Load before a new listing can be published on RMLSweb.

Agents working with sellers who wish to omit photographs from their listings will need to indicate that preference on Listing Load. In an in-progress listing, click “Edit” in the Photo field. The Photo Manager will open, then click on “Seller Requires Photo Omission.”

Agents who publish a listing using the “Seller Requires Photo Omission” option will be required to then provide a Photograph Omission Form or equivalent to RMLS™ within 72 hours after the listing is published. If the RMLS™ Rules Department does not receive the form, they will follow up with the listing agent via email. Listings where the seller has omitted a photo will show a “Photo Omitted by Seller” image.

If a listing is published with a photo omission but the seller changes their mind, an agent can still upload photo(s). Navigate to Photo Manager, then click “Cancel Photo Omitted by Seller and Replace Image with First Photo,” as shown below.

As part of this change, RMLS™ will also be phasing out its service of uploading photos emailed to photos@rmls.com.

Photography is crucial in selling properties, and RMLS™ recognizes the need for this data in the publishing process. RMLSweb listings appear on many other websites (including RMLS.com, REALTOR.com, and IDX sites). This change ensures both the photo(s) and data will be available for websites when new listings are published.

View the amended sections of the RMLS™ Rules and Regulations for more information. If you have any questions regarding these changes, contact Help Desk at helpdesk@rmls.com or by phone at (503) 872-8002, or toll free at (877) 256-2169.

Listing Load Enhancements – Questions and Answers

We’ve put together a list of the questions that our subscribers may have about the Listing Load enhancements that will be out in mid-September. This article is updated as we receive additional questions and comments from our subscribers.

**New Question**

Is there a character counter in this release? Will there be an increase to the character count in Public Remarks?

There is a character counter for the remarks sections included with the new release. A request for additional characters in Public Remarks will be submitted to our Forms Committee, brokers who gather each year to assess the data we collect on our listing forms. Don’t forget that there is additional room for remarks on the Supplement Forms, if any of those are appropriate for your listing.

**New Question**

Will Listing Load now work in the Chrome browser?

Listing load will still not work with Chrome at this time. We are maintaining the IE and Firefox whitelisting currently in place. Our goal is to include Chrome in that group, but testing with that browser is not complete.

How will the changes to Listing Load affect me?

Although some of the pages may look different, the basic work flow has not changed dramatically. The enhancements we’ve added should make your ultimate experience more streamlined and productive.

If I have problems using the new Listing Load, what can I do?

RMLS™ trainers and Help Desk are here to answer any questions you have. You can reach us by phone at 877-256-2169 or email helpdesk@rmls.com. In case you need to get started when our offices and Help Desk are closed, we have also prepared an on-line tutorial available 24/7.

Why are you changing Listing Load? I know how to use it and it works.

We compiled many subscriber comments and requests about listing load over the last few years, and the upcoming changes reflect those requests. The result is a new detail view of the listing load search results with quick access to listing reports (agent full, tax full, history, photos and map) directly from the listing load screen. However, if you prefer, there is still a list view that looks very much like the old results screen. You can choose your experience.

What feature am I going to love the most?

We don’t really know, but it could be the Auto-save function, if you have ever lost work.

Where can I go to get information about the changes?

We’ve put together a summary about the changes that you can read here. You can also plan ahead and sign-up for a class in late September or find out how to set-up a training in your own office for Listing Load Enhancements by contacting training@rmls.com or 503-236-7657.

Spotlight on Supplements: Additional Structures and Farm & Ranches

Learn more about these two new Supplement forms!

Five new Supplement forms became available for subscribers on August 3rd. These new forms allow subscribers to share even more details about their listings. Read about the Additional Structures Supplement form and the Farm and Ranches Supplement form below!

Additional Structures Supplement:

The new Additional Structures Supplement allows listing agents to describe buildings or structures on the property other than the main building itself. For example, do you have a client who is selling a home with a chicken coop? Or, perhaps your client’s home has a particularly lovely gazebo. You can use this form to describe these additional structures that add to the listing’s attraction.

You can describe up to six additional structures using this form. Other types of structures you can describe are garages, barns and second residences! You can also specify whether or not a Conditional Use Permit is required for the second residence.

The form allows you to enter in information about the additional building’s dimensions, approximate square footage, numbers of bedrooms and bathrooms, and the year it was built.

Remember to use the Supplement Public Remarks field to provide even more details about the additional structure(s)!

Click here to view the Additional Structures Supplement.

Farm and Ranches Supplement:

The Farm and Ranches Supplement form contains fields that already existed for the former Farm (FRM) category. But, with the new Supplement form for Farm and Ranches listings, you have even more options for describing the property.

New options available are:

Certified Organic Yes/No field
New value option for CRANBOG (Cranberry Bog) in Currently Usable field
Extended the Approx. # of Acres field to offer options for nursery, orchard or vineyard

This Supplement form has a Public Remarks field as well for you to further describe the property.

Click here to view the Farm and Ranches Supplement.

Want to know more about Supplement forms? View the Utilizing Supplement Forms tutorial, it’s a visual learning experience!

To see the other Supplement forms and to see other changes that were released with the Forms Change, view the Listing Forms Change Summary document.

Questions? Contact the RMLS™ Help Desk at 503-872-8002 or toll-free at 877-256-2169.

Spotlight on Supplements: Condo and Amenities

Learn more about these two new Supplement forms!

On August 3rd, our Forms Change was released, which made five new Supplement forms available for subscribers to use to share even more information about their listings. In this blog post, we are highlighting the Condo and Amenities Supplement forms. Later, we will highlight the other new Supplement forms.

Condo Supplement:

The new Condo Supplement includes fields that offer the ability for Listing Agents to describe the condo building beyond just the unit for sale. For example, there is a field for Condo Conversion Yes/No, and a field for the number of condo units in the complex.

Want to provide information about the condo association? The Condo Supplement makes this possible. There are fields for Condo Association Name, Condo Association Contact, Condo Association URL and Condo Association Phone.

There is also a field for Pending HOA Litigation Yes/No. Keep in mind that the condo association information and pending litigation fields are kept private and can only be viewed by subscribers, meaning that they are not included in client reports.

Note: We moved the Upper Condo Level field from the address line of the main Listing Load page to the Condo Supplement form. The visibility of the field stays the same (the field will only be visible when the “Condo Unit Location” is set as UPPER).

Click here to view the Condo Supplement.

Amenities Supplement:

Is your client an avid public bus commuter? Does your client have a child who rides the public school bus? Or perhaps your client has a pet that needs frequent trips to the park? The Amenities Supplement allows Listing Agents to describe the distance from the property to different public features, such as parks, bus stops and shopping areas.

The Amenities Supplement also provides a field for Easement Information and a field for Walk Score! Many consumers are familiar with the Walk Score website, which rates neighborhoods for distance to walkable amenities, like shops, restaurants, transportation, etc. Visit walkscore.com for more information. The Walk Score field in the Amenities Supplement allows for the actual number of the walk score to be entered.

Click here to view the Amenities Supplement.

General Information:

On a general note, we want to mention that all of the new Supplement forms (except for Auction, which isn’t new) provide a Public Remarks field to further describe the property for that supplement.

Want to know more about Supplement forms? View the Utilizing Supplement Forms tutorial, it’s a visual learning experience!

To see the other Supplement forms and to see other changes that were released with the Forms Change, view the Listing Forms Change Summary document.

Questions? Contact the RMLS™ Help Desk at 503-872-8002 or toll-free at 877-256-2169.

Year Built Description Now Required for Residential Listings

Brush up on Year Built Description terms!

This year’s Forms Change went into effect on August 3rd, 2011. One of the important changes this year is that the Year Built Description field is now required for Residential listings only. The addition of this requirement will help us report on new home sales versus existing home sales statistics.

With the different options available to select for the Year Built Description field, we thought a refresher on what the different terms mean may be beneficial to subscribers. Here is a list of the available terms and their meaning:

APPROX: Approximately – Year Built indicates the approximate year in which the home was built.

FIXER: Fixer – Needs Repair.

NEW: New – Construction completed, but home has never been occupied.

PROPOSD: Proposed – Not yet under construction.

REGHIST: Home is on the Register of Historic Homes.

REMOD: Remodeled – Some or all of the home has been remodeled.

RESALE: Resale – Existing home for sale.

RESTORD: Restored – Homes restored to original condition.

UNDERCON: Under Construction – Ground broken and construction actually under way.

UNKNOWN: Unknown due to loss of county records.

Want more information about the Forms Change? Read the Listing Forms Change Summary document. Or, watch our new tutorial, Utilizing Supplement Forms.

With the new changes to the Listing Input Forms on RMLSweb, it may be a good idea for subscribers to attend an RMLS^™ Updates class taught by our Training Department. Offices can also contact our Training Department to schedule a visit to get personalized instruction on the new changes. Contact RMLS^™ Training at 503-236-7657 or access the RMLS^™ Training calendar on RMLSweb under the Toolkit option.

Questions? Contact the RMLS™ Help Desk at 503-872-8002 or toll-free at 877-256-2169.

Coming August 3rd: Listing Forms Change

Includes New Supplement Forms!

Each year, the RMLS™ Forms Committee, which is comprised of volunteer Realtor® subscribers, recommends changes to the Listing Input Forms to be approved by the Board of Directors. The annual Forms Change will be released on August 3rd, 2011 from the suggestions made in 2010.

Click here to view the Listing Forms Change Summary document.

Click here to watch the Utilizing Supplement Forms tutorial!

Extended Outage: The upcoming changes to Listing Load will require some additional time to update the website. As a result, RMLSweb will be in maintenance mode from 7 p.m. on Tuesday, August 2 to 7 a.m. Wednesday, August 3. Please plan your work schedule around this outage.

Five New Supplement Forms Available On RMLSweb: We are adding new Supplement forms for Additional Structure(s), Amenities, Condo, Farms & Ranches and Water Rights.

There are Supplement form navigation links at the top of the “Listing Load: Edit Listing” page and also in between the individual form sections. These links will take the user to the Supplement form section at the bottom of the page.
To add an Amenities, Additional Structures or Water Rights Supplement form, the user must check the “include” box on the far right side of the Supplement section bar in order to see the Supplement fields and to input information into them. The Supplement forms for Auction, Farm and Condo cannot be selected or unselected with a check box. These will be included as required by selecting an Auction price type, a Property Type of Condo or a Property Type of Farm (or Farm/Forest).
When viewing a report within RMLSweb, users will have the option to “Show/Print Supplements” at the top of the page.

Below are some of the significant changes to the forms:

Year Built Description Field: Starting on August 3rd, this field will become required for all Residential listings. We will backfill this field (fill in the Year Built Description for you according to certain criteria), but suggest that if you have ACT, BMP, PEN or WTH listings that are Residential, to select the Year Built Description before August 3. We are also adding a RESALE option to this field. The criteria we are using for our backfill process is as follows:

If the Year Built Description is blank and Occupied By is Proposed or Under Construction, then the Year Built Description will become Proposed or Under Construction.
If the Year Built Description is blank and the List Date is within the last 5 years, then Year Built Description becomes UNKNOWN.
If the Year Built Description is blank and the List Date is older than 5 years and Status is ACT, BMP, PEN or WTH, then the Year Built Description becomes UNKNOWN.

Farms and Ranches: Due to the addition of the Farms and Ranches Supplement form, we will be converting Farm listings to either Residential (RES) or Lots and Land (LND) categories, according to specific criteria. The conversion of Farm listings to either RES or LND is based on the following criteria:

If Habitable Residence is Yes, then the listing will be converted to RES
If Habitable Residence is No, then the listing will be converted to LND
If Habitable Residence is blank (meaning it was a pre-RMLS listing), and the number of bathrooms is greater than zero, then the listing will be converted to RES, otherwise it will convert to LND.

Want to know more about the changes? Attend one of our RMLSweb updates classes at your local RMLS™ office. See the Training Calendar to find a class near you.

Questions? Contact the RMLS™ Help Desk at 503-872-8002 or toll-free at 877-256-2169.

New Photo Manager Available on RMLSweb

You can now upload multiple photos at one time and add captions to photos!

The new, transformed Photo Manager is now available in Listing Load on RMLSweb! Feedback from subscribers in the 2010 Subscriber Satisfaction Survey, as well as other channels, showed a need for RMLS™ to update our photo loading functions. Due to this interest, we have released a new Photo Manager, which enables users to upload multiple photos at one time, add captions to photos, and provides users with added functionality to make uploading and maintaining photos much more efficient.

Here are some exciting things you can do with the new Photo Manager:

Upload multiple photos at one time. When locating photos to upload, you can now select multiple photos and upload them all together. The new photo upload feature also displays thumbnail previews of the photos, as well as status and progress information, so you can track the uploading process. Note: To use this feature, you will need to install the free Microsoft Silverlight plugin on your computer, which can be downloaded here. For users who don’t want to download Silverlight, the previous functionality of uploading photos individually will still be available via a link on the Silverlight installation prompt screen.

Add captions to your photos. You can now add captions and sub-captions to your photos from a list of provided captions. If you don’t see a caption that fits your desired description, please email the desired caption to rules@rmls.com. The captions will only appear within RMLSweb and not in data feeds at this time. Note: you cannot assign a caption to the first photo.

Drag and drop your photos to reorder. The new Photo Manager allows you to drag and drop your photos to reorder them, making it easier than ever to manage all of your photos! To rearrange, simply click on the photo you would like to reorder, and drag that photo to the location you would like it to appear. Once the photos are in the desired order, you must click “Save the Order” before continuing for the changes to be saved.

Auto resizing. No more stretched photos! One of the reasons the new Photo Manager will be more efficient than ever is that it now resizes photos for you! Silverlight allows you to select any sized photo and will resize it prior to upload. It will resize the photo to the size of 640 x 480. This makes uploading faster! For best results, we recommend using landscape photos. However, the Photo Manager now recognizes the orientation of the photo (whether landscape or portrait) and will now add padding (white space) to portrait photos to make them into a landscape-oriented photo. Therefore, portrait photos are now accepted and will be resized (with padding/white space) to prevent distortion and stretching.

Other highlights:

Bulk deletion – delete multiple photos at one time!
List & Preview/Grid View – two viewing options via a dropdown menu!
New arrow buttons – allows scrolling through photos using a “previous” and “next” method!
Pop-up Viewer – view and print larger photos!

For more details and information on the Photo Manager, take a look at Document #1726: How to Upload Photos Using Photo Manager. Or, watch our video tutorial: Adding Photos To Your Listing.

If you have any questions or need help with the Photo Manager, feel free to call Help Desk at 503-872-8002 or toll-free at 877-256-2169.

New Fields and Feature Options Coming Soon to the Listing Input Forms

RMLS™ will no longer be printing contracts or input forms

At RMLS™, we take your feedback very seriously. Every year the Realtors on our Forms Committee review your suggestions regarding changes to the listing contracts and input forms and make recommendations to the Board of Directors. This year they have identified several changes to the forms that will be in effect April 28, including several new feature options and a new field for Energy Efficiency.

In addition, the committee and the Board of Directors carefully reviewed the declining usage of the printed input forms and decided that in order to be more responsive to the real estate market in the future, we will only be publishing the input forms electronically from now on. Printed input forms will no longer be for sale starting on April 15. The electronic forms are available in several formats on RMLSweb:

Printable blank PDFs that you can fill in by hand. (If you use this method, you may want to purchase NCR paper from your local office supply store or EMAR so you don’t have to fill them out twice.)
e-Forms that can be filled in on your computer and printed out.
Print listing agreements from Listing Load.

If you prefer to have them professionally printed yourself, please email frontdesk@rmls.com for a copyright permission letter.

There will be no changes to the contracts or addendum forms at this time. However, we will not be reprinting them in the future. Starting April 15, you may purchase the printed contract pages and addendum forms at a special 2-for-1 rate while supplies last.
More information about the specific field and feature changes will be available shortly. Stay tuned!