On Friday accounting got a call from an MLS user that also utilized another MLS and was very surprised that the costs were not the same. The federal Department of Justice expressly forbids MLS's to get together and determine a price. This is a fundamental component of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act that competitors may not conspire to fix prices (price-fixing). The economy and availability of services will naturally lead to similar pricing just as in the auto-industry most mid-size cars from different manufacturers will be within a similar range with outliers- the BMW midsize can be expected to be out of the range as they offer a product based on luxury/quality and the Yugo would be much lower, even outside of the low end of the range because it is selling economy.
We are required as MLS to determine our pricing based on our products and services. As to the MLS's in question, this user did not avail herself of any of the discounts putting her at the high end of MLSOK's price range. Our price is determined by what we have to offer and our discounts are based on the amount of work and resources we save when MLS users use both of our primary products, (Supra Lock Box Program & MLS Database) using both reduces the resources needed to bill and collect. The pre-pay discount saves on labor costs & paper/postage costs because we aren't having to send out all 4000 invoices over and over again in an attempt to collect.
To use two MLS's is the choice of the REALTOR calling. One can belong to a board but not belong to their MLS. This was a result of a fairly famous law suit at NAR. The court ruled that boards and MLS's cannot be tied together (illegal tie-in). So the person that called could remain in her board but opt to use ONLY the MLSOK. This assumes the REALTOR calling is the broker. Only the broker can determine which MLS they will use.
From a strictly business perspective the OKCMAR MLS is far more cost-effective and holds most if not all of the listings in the surrounding MLS's. MLSOK subscribers enjoy a technologically advanced programming, a public-sided site with lead generation, listing syndication with lead generation, liability protection with Secure MLS, free showing service, free online documents and Customer Relationship-Document Management platform, tax data and e-neighborhood reports, social media tools and virtual tour creator. The discounts from MLSOK result in a $40.50 monthly fee. Our discounted Supra Key fees are $20.25 per month. So although our MLS fees increased by $10 in 2007 the Lock box fees decreased by $5. The net change was $5 per month for a far superior product (again provided discounts are utilized).
1 comment:
Dawn, I have said this before, Realtors should go out of state to real estate meetings and see what other MLS's charge, and what services they get. I can assure you from going to Inman, CRS National, Active Rain RainCamp, and others, the amount of jaw dropping you get all that for that price makes you smile about being a member of OKCMAR and the MLS system. One of the reasons for lower visitation to places like realtor.com, Zillow, and Trulia is partially because MLS systems like our are doing community outreach, and also the viral spread of listings through ListHub and the virtual tour program. Keep up the good work.
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