Listing Syndication Now Part of Broker Office Policy Manuals in Colorado

Colorado Real Estate Commission Position 21 (CP-21) was officially revised this week to include Listing Syndication within office policy manuals. CP-21 is a long standing position statement that covers a variety of topics suggested for real estate office policy manuals such as handling earnest money, contract review and, as of April 7th, listing syndication.

Timing is perfect considering the recent changes between listing syndication giant, Listhub, and consumer portals, Zillow and Trulia. As of April 7th, Listhub and Zillow Group ended their contract with one another, leaving brokers and agents wondering how their listings will be sent to consumer portals.

Increased marketing exposure for listings can be beneficial but may also come at a cost. Duplicate listings, lag time on listing changes, unauthorized use, unfavorable Terms of Use and re-syndication have become increasingly problematic. These issues, combined with general confusion of how listings are sent to third parties, may cause Managing Brokers to struggle with forming office policy regarding how, when and where listings should be displayed. In turn, agents are often unsure how to answer consumer questions regarding marketing properties on third party sites.

Lauren Hansen, CEO of IRES and former state MLS Presidential Advisory Group member, presented information to the Colorado Real Estate Commissioners to encourage listing syndication dialogue between Broker owners and agents in February 2015. "I'm thrilled with the Real Estate Commission's decision to include listing syndication in CP-21. To my knowledge, Colorado is the first real estate licensing entity in the country to make this move," said Hansen. "I'm hopeful that this decision will be a launching pad for thoughtful discussion regarding the pros and cons of listing syndication at office meetings." To help brokers with the process, IRES drafted an office policy template related to Listing Syndication participation that they can cut, paste and revise as they see fit.

According to the Real Estate Commission, the implementation of the new and improved CP-21 position will take effect immediately.

IRES was formed in 1996 as a regional Multiple Listing Service (MLS) in Colorado by five Boards and Associations of REALTORS®. IRES has a known reputation of providing an innovative and robust database for real estate professionals. Their office is centrally located in Loveland, Colorado. Additional information about IRES can be found on their company website, www.IRES-net.com.