This message reminds you of the requirement to submit each listing to which your company is a party to OneKey within one business day after marketing the property to the public. This rule, known as the “Clear Cooperation Policy” (CCP), ensures that brokerages who take part in OneKey to gain access to complete, accurate listing information from other brokerages do not get to “free ride” by withholding their own listings. In this communication, we remind you of the CCP’s requirements, discuss the rationale for it, and identify alternative procedures for offices that wish to take “office exclusives.”
Clear Cooperation Policy
CCP (section 302.2 of OneKey’s rules) stipulates that, within one business day of marketing a property to the public, the listing broker must submit the listing to OneKey MLS for cooperation with other MLS participants—the listing must be marked Private-N. 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[MS2]
- Applications available to the general public
Policy rationale
CCP fosters an environment where all potential buyers have equitable access to listing information. It promotes transparency and fairness in the housing market.
Studies and practice show that listings sold off-MLS sell for demonstrably less and take longer to sell. In our current operating environment, where government agencies have drawn into question the transparency and equity of MLSs, it's more important than ever that we adhere to the policies we have adopted to ensure the widest visibility of listings on behalf of sellers and the most access on behalf of buyers.
There are recent reports of companies allowing listing brokerages to share private-listing information outside of the MLS. Our participants are free to take part in such services, but they must still comply with the CCP. The repercussions of marketing only by “private listing networks” include undermining the credibility of real estate professionals, reducing your value to consumers, making the data we rely on less accurate, and corroding trust and transparency within our community.
Office exclusives
Participants in OneKey still have the option to take office exclusives, listings where the seller does not permit submission to MLS or marketing in any of the ways described above. In that case, the listing must have a certification signed by the seller indicating their preference for the listing not to be disseminated. (The listing office must submit their office exclusive seller disclosures within 24 hours to dataentry@onekeymls.com within 24 hours to be registered and on file.) The listing broker must enter it in OneKey MLS, marking it Private-Y, which prevents its distribution to other participants. If the listing brokerage later publicly markets an office exclusive in any of the ways listed above, the listing must be updated to Private-N and made available to all other participants within one business day.
Questions?
If you have any questions about CCP, the rationale for it, or its application, please reference our Corporate Site.