Why Your Listing Is On My Website

Jay Thompson has been on a roll lately - providing excellent content for agents and brokers! Today he talks about the basics of IDX - and, although he frames the discussion around his local MLS, the concepts will apply to whatever geographic region you find yourself in. Take it away, Jay!

I get emails like this all the time…

Hello Phoenix Real Estate Guy. Can you tell me why you have my listing on your web site?

The short answer is because YOU authorized it when you entered the listing.

Apparently though, there are a number of real estate agents and even Designated Brokers that do not understand IDX (Internet Data eXchange).

How it is possible in this day and age for agents to not understand the fundamentals of IDX is mind-boggling. That Designated Brokers don’t understand it is… well, it’s incomprehensible. Yet many don’t seem to get it.

Given that, here is the long answer…

IDX is the system and technology that allows agents and brokers to share real estate listings on IDX enabled websites. There are, according to ARMLS (Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service), “thousands of Broker/Agent Websites that display ARMLS IDX listings on the Internet”.

So you see, not only is your listing displayed on my site, it is also displayed on thousands of sites in the Phoenix metro area (as well as national listing aggregation sites).

And that’s a good thing, right? I mean you are trying to get your listing sold aren’t you? You found your listing on my site — and so can potential home buyers. In marketing-speak that is called “exposure”.

But what if I don’t want my listing shown on other websites?

Easy-peasy, just opt out of IDX. You have two options:

In ARMLS, agreeing to display your listings via IDX is the default. If you don’t want your listings displayed on other IDX enabled real estate sites then you need to opt out of the program.

Option 1

For individual listings you can opt out of IDX by UNchecking a box when you enter the listing in the MLS. Here is a screen shot of the ARMLS listing entry “Export” tab:

See where it says, “Listing Export Options”? And under that is a checked box labeled “IDX”? Just uncheck that box, click save and that particular listing will not be sent out in the IDX data feed to thousands of web sites. I’d be sure to disclose to your seller however that your marketing plan includes removing their listing from those thousands of websites. They’ll probably want to know that.

Option 2

If you are a Designated Broker, you can complete an opt out form and submit it to ARMLS to have ALL of your current and future listings removed from the IDX feed. Of note, opting out of IDX completely also means that you cannot display other brokerages listings on your IDX enabled real estate site.

There you have it

*I* can’t remove your listing from my site. You authorized it to be displayed on my site, so only you can have it removed from the data feed that puts it here. If you don’t want your listing exposed to potentially thousands of prospective home buyers, go into the MLS listing and uncheck the box, or opt-out of IDX altogether. Just remember, you owe it to your sellers to explain what you are doing, and why you are doing it.

Further Reading:
I strongly recommend reading the following web page and document. They explain IDX in detail. You owe it to yourself and your clients to fully understand how IDX works — it’s a HUGE part of Internet marketing in real estate.

ARMLS Web Page on IDX: Contains basic info on IDX.

ARMLS IDX Package: Contains complete information about IDX, including the IDX Policy, IDX Data sets, and how to sign up for a free IDX product.

If you are an agent outside Arizona, your MLS and / or Association should have similar documentation available.

To view the original article, visit the Phoenix Real Estate Guy blog. To learn more about IDX, check out these resources.