What is considered “public marketing”?
Public marketing is considered any advertising intended to draw attention to your listing from other agents outside of your office, as well as any consumers/the general public. This includes, but is not limited to, flyers displayed in windows, yard signs, digital marketing on public-facing websites (including social media 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.
What will happen if I am in violation of the policy?
Violations of the policy will result in notifications educating the Participant and Subscriber on the value of MLS cooperation. This “education-first, enforcement second” approach is consistent with how we address other MLS rules and is subject to change as this policy evolves in our market.
Am I allowed to advertise my listing outside of the MLS?
Yes. But if your listing is publicly advertised outside of the MLS and is not also in the MLS at that time, then your listing will need to be entered into the MLS within one business day.
What property types does this policy apply to?
This policy will only apply to sub-property types designated under Residential. The following special listing conditions will be excluded from this policy: auctions, foreclosures, and new construction.
Does this rule prohibit “Office Exclusives”?
No. "Office exclusive" listings are an option for sellers concerned about privacy and wide exposure of their property being for sale. In an office exclusive listing, direct promotion of the listing between the brokers and licensees affiliated with the listing brokerage, and one-to-one promotion between these licensees and their clients, is not considered public advertising.
What if my listing is “coming soon”? Can I put a yard sign out?
Placing a yard sign in front of your listing counts as public marketing and would trigger the one business day clock. If your listing is not yet ready to be on the market, then the sign would need to be removed.
Will ACTRIS be creating a Coming Soon (CS) status?
There will not be a Coming Soon (CS) status for implementation of this policy on May 1. However, ABoR and ACTRIS will continue to weigh implementation options, including a CS status, as this policy evolves.
What are my options if I sign the listing agreement, but the property isn’t ready to show for another two weeks?
As long as the property is not advertised outside of your office, you do not yet need to put the listing into the MLS. The same listing agreement rules that have previously applied still apply, which requires submission of a listing to the MLS within five business days of executing the contract, unless a listing date addendum is used.
What if my client wants to withhold the listing from the MLS?
Sellers are still allowed to not advertise their home for sale to cooperating Participants through the MLS. However, ACTRIS may request documentation signed by the seller which will acknowledge that no public marketing is allowed by anyone, including the homeowner(s). If the property is publicly advertised, regardless of any submitted documentation, then it will need to also be submitted to the ACTRIS MLS to avoid a violation.
What will be the fine if I don’t put the listing in the MLS within one business day of advertising it outside of my brokerage?
ABoR and ACTRIS MLS are taking an education-first approach to reinvigorate cooperation between brokerages. There will be no immediate fines issued for non-compliance, but this is subject to change as this rule evolves in our market. This “education first, enforcement second” approach on the value of MLS cooperation is consistent with how we enforce other MLS policies.
