Real Estate Brokerages Prepare for Big Changes in 2016

MORRISVILLE, NC--(Marketwired - May 11, 2015) - The real estate industry is embarking on a welcomed and significant change that will completely alter the way real estate brokers and agents use MLS data in all their software applications as the industry rolls out its mandated "RESO Data Dictionary" in 2016.

Beginning January 1, the board of the National Association of REALTORS^® implemented a policy that requires Realtor-affiliated MLSs to comply with the RESO Data Dictionary, a set of standard data fields for property information, ensuring "all MLSs will speak the same language," said Jeremy Crawford, Executive Director of RESO. Most of the nation's estimated 850-plus MLSs are Realtor affiliated. 

"The Data Dictionary has been dubbed our industry's 'Rosetta Stone' as we will move from having 850 different data dialects, if you will, to having one common way to talk to any MLS," Crawford said. "This is a huge breakthrough for any real estate brokerage firm that has to connect to more than one MLS," he added.

According to Crawford, implementation of the RESO Data Dictionary will provide brokers and agents improved MLS data access, including more efficient updates and results, increased consistency, and ease of use in consuming and displaying property information, as the RESO Data Dictionary standardizes all available MLS data fields for software programming.

The WAV Group, a real estate industry research and consulting firm, estimates there are as many as 2,500 software applications today that connect real estate brokers and agents to one or more MLS firms that will need to be updated to take advantage of these new benefits. 

Crawford encourages real estate broker-owners to reach out to their vendors that use MLSs data to make sure they understand the timing and technical details of this new data integration.

Real estate broker support for Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) is growing rapidly as the non-for-profit trade organization recently added Leading Real Estate Companies of the World^®, the largest network of over 500 premier locally-branded firms responsible for more home sales than any other real estate network, to its membership roster.

LeadingRE joins other prominent brokerage industry organizations and corporations, including The Realty Alliance, a network of North America's elite real estate firms, whose members serve most every major market on the continent, Realogy (Better Homes and Gardens^® Real Estate, CENTURY 21^®, Coldwell Banker^®, Coldwell Banker Commercial^®, The Corcoran Group^®, ERA^®, and Sotheby's International Realty^®, and ZipRealty^®), RE/MAX LLC, Michael Saunders and Company and more than a dozen other real estate brokerage firms.

LeadingRE President/CEO Pam O'Connor believes the value of RESO to the brokerage community, including the industry's adoption of its Data Dictionary, will fuel new innovation, create significant efficiencies that will reduce costs and untether the ability for brokerage firms to grow and expand into new markets.

"The RESO Data Dictionary and the other standards being implemented will help all of our members," O'Connor says.

"Collaboration is vital," added Crawford. "While RESO's growth is being immediately fueled by the game-changing launch of Data Dictionary and API standards, our long-term goal remains the same: National data standards and industry collaboration across all aspects of real estate data. Brokers will continue to play a vital role in this effort."

RESO members will convene June 2-4 in Chicago at its Spring Conference, Crawford noted, where a Broker Panel is being featured and broker participation is highly encouraged throughout the conference. The conference is open to members and non-members, with registration information available online at http://www.reso.org/spring-meeting.

About RESO
The Real Estate Standards Organization's (RESO) mission is to create and promote the adoption of standards that drive efficiency throughout the real estate industry. RESO incorporated in November 2011 as an independent, not-for-profit trade organization having functioned previously as a section of the National Association of REALTORS®. The RESO has more than 100 active members including NAR, multiple listing services, real estate associations, brokerages and industry technology providers. For more information, visit www.reso.org.