Posted by Bill from Ohio on July 16, 2001 at 22:13:26:
I just quit a job with one of the largest MLS’s in the country (NORMLS in Cleveland). Usually, the MLS is only available to the members of the MLS and local Realtor Boards and no one else. Our requirement was that a Real Estate license was required, along with a Broker affiliation. There may be some MLS’s that allow others to access the system, but none of the larger ones do. Call your local county Realtor Board and find out which MLS (could be more than one) that their members typically belong to. Then call the MLS and see if they allow non-Realtor access (I doubt you will find them). Second issue: if your agent cannot pull other lists then there is a major problem with the agent or the MLS system itself. Being in Raleigh, I would guarantee that the population base would require a pretty sophisticated MLS system, therefore capable of pulling different lists with different criteria. They will not have foreclosures in their system, as they are normally not listed with a Realtor until the bank aquires the title and lists it with a local agent (which then just looks like a regular listing until you ask the agent why the house is being sold). Normally, MLS systems will include an ‘agent remarks’ field that includes info about “fixer uppers, needs TLC, or handyman specials” that will all return results from a simple query. Finally, there are national aggregators of MLS systems from around the country. These aggregators, such as Realtor.com(which is owned by NAR, the top dog that everyone answers to); Homeseekers.com, and eRealty.com, buy the MLS listings from the local MLS’s and relist them on their site. At NORMLS, we sold all of our listings to Realtor.com and others. Problem with this, as far as you are concerned, is that the national aggregators do not provide you (as an investor) with nearly enough info to make adequate decisions. They are designed for an average homebuyer, and are designed to drive you to the agents who also buy into Realtor.com to display thier listings in a more customized format.
My advice, get an agent who will do comps and searches for you that knows the MLS system. The large MLS’s are all switching to Internet based systems(used to be that proprietary software had to be loaded) that the agent can access from your home!! Look for an Internet savvy agent that actually has a ‘team’ that works for them. That way, when the agent is unavailable, you can call thier personal assistant(s) to do the work for you. Point is to make them do the work for their commission. Good luck.