As we approach the Summer market, please keep the following in mind:
Showing Instructions: Read and follow showing instructions carefully. If someone is going to a showing instead of you or in your place, be sure to notify the listing agent before the showing occurs.
Appointment Confirmation: If an appointment is required, make sure you receive written authorization and confirmation before showing a property. You may only access the property during the approved date and time.
Coming Soon: Coming Soon listings must be changed to Active before showings can occur.
Delayed Showings: All Delayed Showing instructions must be cleared from a listing before showings can occur.
Listing Submission: Listings must be submitted into the MLS within three (3) days of the Seller’s ratification of the listing agreement or within one (1) business day of public marketing, whichever comes first.
Delayed Listing: If a listing’s entry into the MLS is being delayed you must submit the Owner’s Listing Opt-Out Authorization Form within three (3) days of the seller’s ratification of the listing agreement.
Seller Acceptance: Sellers can accept an offer at any point, even if their property is In the Coming Soon status.
Lockboxes: Keep track of your Lockbox inventory. This includes retrieving lockboxes from listings that have been closed, expired, or released.
Seller Marketing Strategies: When discussing marketing strategies with seller clients, the value of the MLS and broad market exposure cannot be overstated. With some listings, privacy might be a consideration; but it should always be the seller, not the agent, who initiates the discussion of an off MLS listing. REALTORS® have an affirmative duty under both the REALTOR® Code of Ethics and Virginia agency law to promote and protect the interests of their clients. The decision of whether or not to withhold a listing from the MLS should be made voluntarily, by a fully informed seller.