Why can't you just put my telephone number on my MLS listing?

Written by Don Martin. For his updates go here.

The MLS is like a great big old country club.

The country club may have the best golf course in town or the finest restaurant in the state. But the fact is, if you’re not a member, or WITH a member, you are not going to be able to enjoy either one. (Click to Tweet!)

When it comes to the MLS, the brokers are the members. It was originally created by brokers for brokers. You can be a guest, but it takes a lot to become a member.

As guests, a lot of people have been satisfied without having to become a broker themselves. You can always see some of their actual remarks here.

My customers ask me if their phone number will be on the listing. The answer is YES… and NO. It’s on there in three places, but just not where they can see it unless they are a Realtor.

So let’s look at why the MLS was set up in the beginning.

The MLS was set up to SHARE INFO between brokers!

Period. A broker could use another broker’s info to sell the house directly. A broker could use another broker’s info to publish as their own in order to sell it. In fact, they each spend a considerable amount of money to have that privilege.

A Tale of Two MLSes

People don’t generally realize that there are two. All the information that exists regarding a certain listing is on the master MLS listing. That is the one that we, as Realtors use to input details of the house. That is also the one that we, as Realtors use to get the info we need to set up showings and to make offers.

There is also a sanitized version that does not contain information about commissions, or contact information for showings. This is the public version. Some websites that offer search engines available to the public use this sanitized version. If the public has questions or wants to make an appointment, the only point of contact there is the Realtor who put it there.

If a Realtor wants to give a print-out of listings to a prospective buyer, he gives them the sanitized version so the only number they have to call is that of the Realtor who gave them the info sheet. In the agreement with all Brokers is permission to take that information concerning a house and fit it into their own template, so that it looks like one of their own listings. They can then make money by being the buyer’s broker.

None of this would be possible if the information included directions to call someone else. But remember this is a tool that belongs to Realtors. You can use it if you do it correctly through a broker. But if you need to drive a nail, you can borrow a carpenter’s hammer, but you can’t put YOUR name on it. All you can do is drive the nail and give it back to the carpenter.

You can’t out-smart the MLS!

So don’t even try. Spend your energy on something more productive. They will see it if you try to photo-shop your phone number on the house, the roof, the lawn or in the sky. They will detect even the faintest of watermarks. They will see it in the text, even if its backwards or encoded. They will see it even if you have a small “For Sale” sign in the yard that can be magnified to reveal the number.

I don’t mean for this to sound like the voice of experience, but I do know what I’m talking about. If you’re a newcomer, it’s easy to think that you have thought of something equally new, but don’t spend too much time on it. They just don’t allow your contact number on the listing.

So do it right, and get it done now! Call me at 615-973-8970
or go to mlsDon.com to get started.

Don Martin
Martin Properties