At the annual National Association of Realtors Conference & Expo in San Francisco Nov. 8-11, NAR's board of directors voted 729-70 to approved MLS Statement 8.0, also known as the Clear Cooperation policy. The policy requires listing brokers who are participants in a multiple listing service to submit their listing to the MLS within one business day of marketing the property to the public.
NAR's MLS Technology and Emerging Issues Advisory Board proposed the policy as a way to address the growing use of off-MLS listings, also known as "pocket listings." The advisory board concluded that leaving listings outside of the broader marketplace excludes consumers, undermining Realtors' commitment to provide equal opportunity to all. The policy does not prohibit brokers from taking office-exclusive listings; nor does it impede brokers' ability to meet their clients' privacy needs.
Following is the full text of MLS Statement 8.0:
Within one (1) business day of marketing a property to the public, the listing broker must submit the listing to the MLS for cooperation with other MLS participants. 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.
MLSs can adopt the policy any time, but they must adopt it no later than May 1, 2020.
Also at the meeting, the board of directors approved a change to NAR's Code of Ethics training requirement and extended the ethics training cycle requirement to every three years instead of every two years. The change was made upon the recommendation of a presidential advisory group in order to give members more time to fit the Code of Ethics training into their continuing education schedule and to give local associations adequate time between cycles to administer the program.
NAR's Code of Ethics, adopted in 1913, was one of the first codifications of ethical duties adopted by any business group. The Code ensures that consumers are served by requiring Realtors to cooperate with each other in furthering clients' best interests.
Realtors are required to complete ethics training of not less than 2.5 hours of instructional time. The training must meet specific learning objectives and criteria established by NAR. If a Realtor who fails to meet the ethics training requirement is suspended of all the rights, privileges and services to which they are entitled to receive from NAR, as well as their local and state Realtor association, until they satisfy the training requirement.
"People use the terms Realtor and real estate agent interchangeably, but they are not the same. Although both are licensed to sell real estate, there are basic differences between them. The Code of Ethics and membership with NAR and their state and local associations are what differentiates a Realtor from other real estate licensees," explains Alan Barbic, president of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors.
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 4,000 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.
Variations of this article have appeared in local area newspapers.
For further information, please email or call the SILVAR office at (408) 200-0100.