In a Realty Times exclusive, Home Exposure®, an Internet MLS Vendor, is announcing the launch of the first ever national MLS Portal website free to any MLS organization. The product is called MLS-USA, and it is advertised as a full-featured, Realtors-only, Internet-based MLS system for real estate boards that allows agents to search, view and print out listings; print full-color hot sheets, feature sheets & flyers, generate CMA's, send automated emails to prospects, as well as upload and update their listings.

Based on the portal business model (free content supported by advertising,) Home Exposure plans to explode the MLS vendor business by eliminating the need for MLS and their members to purchase proprietary hardware and software and manage their listings, historical listing data and public records, reducing costs to the boards by as much as 100 percent.

Basic MLS services will be provided for free. The boards will use the MLS-USA to upload their system information and manage their data. The question is how is Home Exposure going to do it?

"This is a national portal site for Realtors only, not to be confused with public portals such as HomeAdvisor.com or Realtor.com," explains Richard Robarts, Home Exposure's general manager. "what we have here is an industry initiative to take the proven business model of Internet portals and commerce and apply them to the real estate industry."

"This will keep the Realtor at the center of the transaction," says Robarts. MLS-USA will be open to Realtors and authorized service providers only; the system will be password protected.

"We don't see the MLS vending industry as it exists today being around much longer. There is a downward pressure in pricing for what an MLS vendor would charge to a board, and then technology has made it possible to provide these types of services on a national scale, rather than an individual board scale," replies Robarts. "This will lead to a coast to coast MLS with no geographic boundaries."

The benefit for Realtors, according to Robarts, is that they will gain additional services and add value to their serivce by taking advantage of the free MLS system.

"There is downward pricing pressure on Realtors as well. Now they can access a national database, access any listings from anywhere with easy-to-use Web standard browser software. In addition they can take advantage of fully integrated public records data including historical data in most major urban areas wherever it is available. We also include GIS mapping to provide more value for their services," adds Robarts.

If MLS-USA can deliver on public records and historical data, that in itself will be a coup against the current MLS system vendors. Moore Data has announced that rolling over historical data will not be standard in future installations, but will be available as an option. Because of Internet technology, about 90 percent MSA coverage (major service areas) in 45 states is available online and more is being added everyday. This is the equivalent of 80 million housing records including historical data as well as historical data as provided by the MLS systems.

With HomeSeekers' launch of MLS2000, a Web-based Intranet MLS system, and its appropriation of key top executives in the MLS information industry, Home Exposure could be outgunned in the name recognition department within the national arena, despite its free services. More is to come in subsequent announcements, promises Robarts.

"We are now bringing on industry partners who wish to play a part in rolling out MLS-USA. As a third generation Realtor myself, I look forward to working with organized real estate in using technology to keep the Realtor at the center of the transaction," says Robarts.

"We're marketing directly to the boards," concludes Robarts. "The service is free - the boards have nothing to lose by trying it. We have been watching the market, we saw the timing was right to get it out there."

For more Information visit: http://www.homexposure.com/

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Published: May 26, 1999

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