On September 24, several important updates to the MLS Rules will take effect, reflecting the July revisions from C.A.R.’s model MLS rules. These updates are being made to bring California’s rules into alignment with recent policy changes adopted by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

These revisions are designed to ensure consistency, compliance, and clarity across MLS operations statewide while aligning with national policy.

Changes noted in red.

5.1.4 Book Fees: If applicable, the participant shall be responsible for book fees for each MLS book the participant wishes to lease. The participant may not obtain more MLS books than the total number of subscribers affiliated with the participant.

7.5 Mandatory Submission.
Within 1 business day of marketing or advertising a property to the public or within 2 days after all necessary signatures of the seller(s) have been obtained on the listing or at the beginning date of the listing as specified in the contract, whichever is later, on any exclusive right to sell or seller reserved listing agreement for the sale of one to four unit residential property and vacant lots located within the service area of the MLS, Broker Participants must input the listing to the service for cooperation with other Participants. Public marketing or advertising includes, but is not limited to, conveying or displaying any information about the property or its availability for sale through or on any: windows, signs, public facing websites, social media, brokerage or franchise operated websites (including IDX and VOW), digital communications marketing (ex: email, text or phone blasts, social media messaging), multi-brokerage or franchise listing sharing networks, flyers or written material or on any applications available to the public or through conducting an open house. The public would include anyone outside the broker(s) and agent(s) licensed within a single listing brokerage and their clients, as further described in Section 7.6). Only those listings that are within the service area of the MLS must be input.  Open listings, rental listings or listings of property located outside the MLS’s service area (see Section 7.7) are not required by the service, but may be input at the Broker Participant’s option

7.6 Exempted Listings Multiple Listing Options for Sellers
If the seller refuses to permit the listing to be disseminated by the service on any exclusive right to sell or seller listing agreement for the sale of one to four unit residential property and vacant lots located within the service area of the MLS, the listing broker shall submit to the service within 3 days after all necessary signatures of the seller(s) have been obtained on the listing agreement or at the beginning date of the listing as specified in the contract, whichever is later, a certification signed by the seller stating that the seller instructs listing broker to do no public marketing or advertising (as public marketing or advertising is defined in Section 7.5), that the only scope of permissible promotion of the property will occur internally within the brokerage and consist of direct one-on-one communication between the listing broker and licensees affiliated with the listing broker and their respective clients (i.e. “office exclusive”) and that seller refuses to authorize the listing to be disseminated by the service. C.A.R. Standard Form SELM and/or RLA may be used for this certification, but in any event, said certificate shall include the aforementioned required statements as well as an advisory to seller that, in keeping the listing off the MLS (1) real estate agents and brokers from other real estate offices, and their buyer clients, who have access to the MLS may not be aware seller’s property is for sale; (2) seller’s property will not be included in the MLS’s download to various real estate internet sites that are used by the public to search for property listings; (3) real estate agents, brokers and members of the public may be unaware of the terms and conditions under which seller is marketing the property; and (4) any reduction in exposure of the property may lower the number of offers made negatively impact the sale price. In the event listing broker commences any public marketing or advertising on an exempted listing, submission to the MLS for dissemination is required within (1) one business day thereafter in accordance with Section 7.5.

7.6.1. Office Exclusive.
A seller may choose an “office exclusive” marketing option for any exclusive right to sell or seller reserved listing agreement for the sale of one to four unit residential property and vacant lots located within the service area of the MLS. An “office exclusive” is a listing where the seller has directed the listing broker to not publicly market their property and to not disseminate it through the MLS to other MLS Participants and Subscribers. For “office exclusive” listings, the listing broker shall submit to the service within 1 business day after all necessary signatures of the seller(s) have been obtained on the listing agreement or at the beginning date of the listing as specified in the contract, whichever is later, a certification signed by the seller stating that the seller instructs listing broker to do no public marketing or advertising (as public marketing or advertising is defined in Section 7.5), and that seller refuses to authorize the listing to be disseminated by the service. In the event listing broker commences any public marketing or advertising on an “office exclusive” listing, submission to the MLS for dissemination is required within one (1) business day thereafter in accordance with Section 7.5.

7.6.2. Exempt Listing Disclosure.
The filing of an exempt listing with the MLS must be pursuant to a certification, signed by the seller, obtained by the listing broker which includes:(i) disclosure about the professional relationship between the Participant and the seller; (ii) acknowledgement that the seller understands the MLS benefits they are waiving with the exempt listing, such as broad and immediate exposure of their listing through the MLS; and (iii) confirmation of the seller’s decision that their listing not be publicly marketed and disseminated by the MLS to other MLS Participants and Subscribers as an office exclusive listing. C.A.R. Standard Form MLSA and/or RLA may be used for this disclosure.

7.21 Auction Listings. 
Only auction listings which comply with these MLS Rules and Regulations, including, but not limited to Sections 7.12 and 7.13,  may be submitted to the service. Auction listings entered into the MLS system shall have listing contracts as required under these rules, be clearly labeled as auction listings, and provide all the terms and conditions of the auction. Reserve auctions (i.e., auctions where sellers have a secret minimum price they do not disclose to the bidders and where the sellers reserve the right to accept or reject the highest bid) are not permitted on the MLS. Auction listings shall further specify the following:

(a)          The list price, which shall be seller’s minimum acceptable bid price;
(b)          The date, time and place of the auction;
(c)          All required procedures for Participants/Subscribers to register their representation of a potential bidder;
(d)          The amount of the buyer’s premium charged by the auction and any additional fees, if any;, to be placed in the public remarks;
(e)          The time or manner in which potential bidders may inspect the listed property;
(f)           Whether or not the seller will accept a purchase offer prior to the scheduled auction; and
(g)          Any other material rules or procedures for the auction.
(h)          Unless otherwise noted, the above information must be specified in confidential remarks and/or associated documents.

Subsections (b) through (g) above shall not appear in a listing’s public remarks.

7.12 No Compensation Specified on MLS Listings.
Participants, Subscribers, and their sellers are prohibited from making offers of compensation to buyer brokers and other buyer representatives in the MLS. Participants and Subscribers are prohibited from disclosing in the MLS, in any way, the total commission negotiated between the seller and the listing broker, or total broker compensation (i.e. combined compensation to both listing brokers and buyer brokers). The MLS reserves the right to remove a listing from the MLS database that does not conform to the requirements of this section. This rule does not prevent sellers from offering buyer concessions on the MLS so long as such concessions are not limited to or conditioned on the retention of or payment to a Buyer Broker or other buyer representative. 

12.16 Use of Listing Information on Internet.
(n) Co-Mingling. A Broker Participant or R.E. Subscriber may co-mingle listings through IDX from this MLS with listings from other MLS sources on its IDX display, provided all such displays are consistent with these IDX rules, and the MLS Participant (or MLS subscriber) holds participatory rights in those MLSs. Co-mingling is the ability for a visitor to the website to execute a single property search of multiple IDX feeds resulting in the display of IDX information from each of the MLSs on a single search results page; and that Participants may display listings from each IDX feed on a single webpage or display. Listings obtained from other MLSs must display the source from which each such listing was obtained. Displays of minimum information (e.g. a oneline or thumbnail search result, text messages, “tweets”, etc of two hundred (200) characters or less) are exempt from this requirement but only when linked directly to a display that includes all required disclosures. Audio delivery of listing content is exempt from this disclosure requirement only when all required disclosures are subsequently delivered electronically to the registered consumer performing the property search or linked to through the device’s application.

12.19 Virtual Office Websites.
12.19.22: A Participant shall cause any listing displayed on his or her VOW that is obtained from other sources, including from another MLS or from a broker not participating in the MLS, to identify the source of the listing.

12.19.23: A Participant shall cause any listing displayed on his or her VOW obtained from other sources, including from another MLS or from a broker not participating in the MLS, to be searched separately from listings in the MLS.