Previous ParagonÔ Hot Tips

 

May 2008

 

Listing Reminder: Please remember to update information such as assessments, taxes, stage of completion for new construction, and age if your listing has been on the market awhile.  Also, if you include time-specific information in the remarks (such as no showings until a certain date), please remove that information once the situation no longer applies. 

 

Updates to Paragon History Program & Report:  The history program and report received a few upgrades/bug fixes last week.  For a long time now we have been struggling with history entries that appear out of date order.  This problem has been fixed.  Another issue we have struggled with is not being able to run a history on a specific unit within a condo project.  This functionality has been added.   In addition, the map on the history report was upgraded to a Virtual Earth Map which allows you to right click to zoom in and out and switch to an aerial view, and the photo box was upgraded to include a slide show.  Simply click the photo to open a slide show box. 

 

If your office has not picked up their new iBoxes from the MLS, please do so asap.  It is essential that all old grey AEII lockboxes are replaced with new blue iBoxes before new keycards are distributed in early June, as the new keycards cannot open the old lockboxes.  To keep the cost of this new system down, we negotiated a significant credit against the cost of the new iBoxes for each old AEII lockbox turned in by May 15.  Offices will be assessed a fee of $35 for each old lockbox still outstanding after May 15.   

April 2008

Lot Size Expansion:  The selection of Over 20 Acres under Single Family Lot Size has been expanded.  The new choices are Over 20-40 Acres, Over 40-80 Acres, and Over 80 Acres.  The updated Single Family Profile Sheet can be found here.  We have updated all current active and pending listings that had the actual acreage listed under the Lot Size free form field.  If you have a listing that is over 20 acres, and do not have the actual acreage listed under the Lot Size field, your listing was defaulted to Over 20-40 Acres.  Please check your listings that are over 40 acres to be sure they are correctly labeled.   If you currently have single family saved searches that contain the selection for Over 20 Acres, this will be changed to Over 20-40 Acres.  Please make adjustments if your buyer is looking for listings over 40 acres. 

Adding Virtual Tours:  Included in one of the recent Paragon upgrades was the ability for agents to add virtual tours to their listings.  Although most agents do not have the security level needed to add and maintain listings, they do have the ability to add photos, associated documents, and virtual tours to their listings, as well as change the map location for their listings.  These functions are located under Listings and Maintain from the Paragon Main Menu.   Now that agents have the ability to add their own tours, starting May 1, the MLS will no longer be accepting tours directly from providers on behalf of agents.   Please direct your tour provider to send your virtual tour to you for inclusion on the MLS instead of directly to the MLS.  As virtual tours are becoming more popular, we are finding that without hiring additional MLS staff, we no longer have the time needed on a daily basis to load tours for agents.   This does not mean we are not available to help you load your tours if you need help.  We are always happy to help you with Paragon.  Please keep in mind that the MLS does not allow tours that are branded with the agent name or agent/company information.  The name of the company is allowed.  Often times tour providers send both branded and unbranded tours.  Please make sure the unbranded tour is the one that is added to listings on MLS.

Customizing the Paragon Spreadsheet - Adding # of Acres:  The spreadsheet that displays after doing a search in Paragon is customizable for each agent. To add a field such as Lot Size/Acres to your spreadsheet, click on Customize on the tool bar directly above the spreadsheet.  A box will pop up showing two lists of fields.  The list on the right contains fields already on your spreadsheet, and the list on the left contains fields that can be added.  Please note that the list on the left is alphabetical.  Find the field you want to add, click on it, and then click the Add button between the two boxes.  The new field will be added to the bottom of the list on the right.  You may need to scroll down to see it.  You can also remove fields by moving them from the right box to the left box.   There are also move up and move down buttons in between the two boxes that will allow you to set the order of display.   Click the Save & Close button at the bottom when you are done.  This new format will be your default.  If you want to switch back or if you make a mistake, there is a Revert to Default button next to the Save & Close.   

March 2008

 

New Lockboxes:  New infrared lockboxes will begin showing up on listings over the next few weeks. Click here for a picture of the new box.  To open this new box, press the same buttons on your DisplayKey, but instead of placing the key in the box, point the infrared panel at the top of your DisplayKey towards the infrared panel on the lockbox.  The new boxes do not automatically drop the key compartment like the old boxes.  Your DisplayKey will tell you to "press the key container", at which point you should push up on the bottom center of the box to release the key container.

Farm Saved Search BUG:  We have verified that some farm saved searches did not convert entirely.  Please double check the saved searches for your prospects looking for farms.  You may need to re-enter acreage requirements. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. 

 

-Recent Changes:  The MLS database has been modified as follows:  Farm listings have been merged with Residential, a new feature group has been added for Environmentally Friendly Features, a new School District field has been added, and the class Residential has been renamed Single Family & Residential Income has been renamed Multi Family.  Click here for detailed information.  

Link to new Profile Sheets  
Link to new Farm Associated Document

 

February 2008

 

-The MLS offers a 3-hour advanced Paragon class which covers:  Map Searching, Driving Directions, Customizing your Search, Setting up your E-card, Creating Mailing Labels, Copying and Building Customer Reports, and Q&A.   There is no charge for this class unless you register and do not show.   Click here to register.

-The MLS also offers customized office training.  If you have at least 8 people in your offices who would like instruction on a common feature or features within Paragon, please call Rick at the MLS to schedule a training session for your office.  There is no charge for this customized Paragon office training.

 

-New Report Added -- We have recently created a new report that is a cross between the Agent Full and the Customer Full.  This report does not include the confidential broker-to-broker fields, but does include the listing agent information.  We foresee this report will be used when a listing agent wants to print his/her own listings for use in brochure boxes or for other public distribution.    This report can be found under Available Reports and Details.  It is called Customer w/ Agent. 

-If the electricity has been turned off for a property you have listed, PLEASE indicate this in the broker-to-broker remarks so showing agents know to make appointments earlier in the day.  

 

-It is against MLS rules and copyright law to copy another agent's property photos for use on your listing without permission.  Those submitting photographs with the knowledge that they do not have the right to authorize the MLS to publish the photograph(s) shall be subject to a fine of $25 per photograph in addition to any legal or equitable remedies available to the owner of the photograph(s).

 

January 2008

 

-Certain data fields in the MLS, such as expiration date and commissions, are considered confidential, and therefore available only in broker-to-broker reports.  Reports containing these fields may not be distributed to the public.  As the agent full report in Paragon contains these fields, this report should be used internally by Members of the MLS only, and not given to the public.   We have had recent reports of the Agent Full report being left in brochure boxes.  This is against MLS rules.  Please remove Agent Full reports and replace them with Customer Full reports if you have been including them in brochure boxes.  Thank you for your cooperation.   

 

-When searching in Paragon, you can enter multiple entries for most fields.  If there is no pick list to choose from, you simply include a comma between entries.  Examples of a couple non-pick list fields are Lake/River Name and Subdivision.  If you want to search both Lake Mendota and Lake Monona for example, you would type Mendota, Monona. 

 

- If your office listings do not include the Schedule a Showing icon, and you are interested in allowing agents to set up showings via Paragon and email, you may view a demo of this product here.   If a listing has a Schedule a Showing icon included, please use it when setting up showings. 

 

December 2007

 

-Paragon always remembers the last search you did.  During your current Paragon session, the last search criteria automatically appears.  If you logout and log back in, the search criteria does not automatically appear, but you can reload it by selecting Load Search and then Load Last Search from the buttons directly above the search prompts.    

 

- If you have a listing for which circumstances exist that cause the sale price to be less than market value, please use the MLS remarks to explain those circumstances.

 

-When entering a property that is under construction, you may include a sketch or a photo of a similar model.  If you use a photo of a similar model, please make sure the photo has the words "similar model" included as part of the photo. 

 

-Concern from the appraiser community:  We recently received this email and agree this is an area our members could do better at:
"When sales concessions are involved in a transaction, it is most helpful if they are included on the MLS data sheet.  There is a special area just for this called Points Paid/Seller Credits that is not being used.  As appraisers we have to track down the Realtors® involved in the sale to get the concession amount which is both a bother for the Realtors® and a time burner for the appraiser.  In a market where all details truly matter and where efficiency is critical, I ask that Realtors® kindly take the extra minute to specify the concession amount.  Thank you."

If the seller made concessions, such as paying closing costs or points on behalf of the buyer, please indicate that amount in the Points Paid/Seller Credits field when closing out the listing in Paragon.  

 

November 2007

-When an agent transfers from one company to another, or to a different branch within the same company, the following should be adjusted in Paragon:

·        In the case of a branch-to-branch transfer, be sure to update the company name to reflect the correct branch on each active listing.

·        Email notifications for prospects must be turned back on.
The reason auto-notifications are turned off is because often times the email address of an agent changes when they change offices. Email sent from an inactive email address can cause all Paragon emails to be blacklisted.

·        Under Preferences, update your E-Card if you have it turned on.

·        Under Preferences, update the information in your email Standard Message Body if you use this feature.

·        If you use the E-Card and/or the Standard Message Body for auto-emails, you must update the notification information on each prospect individually.

·        If you blind carbon copy yourself on auto-emails, you must update this on each prospect individually

·        Update company info in saved CMA presentations.

·        Update your company logo if used on your reports.

·        Update your contact information in ShowingAssist.

P4 Hot Tips: 

 

-Before the upgrade I could click on Search and Address/Tax ID/MLS #.  Where did this go?    In P4 click on Search and Multi-Class under Search By Class.


-When looking at your search results, you can gain more horizontal screen space by clicking the "Available Reports" header of the reports options that have loaded from the right.  Click again to reload the reports menu.

-When looking at your search results, save time by moving your most used reports up under Favorites on the Available Reports menu.  Simply click on the report you want and hold down your mouse button while you drag it up to Favorites. 

-If you are having problems selecting items from the new drop down menus, remember to move your mouse down and over instead of diagonally.

 

 

October 2007

 

-Paragon Upgrade

As you can see, Paragon has a whole new look and feel.  First of all, don't panic!  The changes are almost all in how the system looks, not in how it functions.  Our trainer Rick put it best when he said, "it is the same house, but with a new paint job".  Buttons are bigger, menus are easier to use, and the number of clicks needed to perform a function is reduced.   You can still click on Search to perform a search, and all the same search options and reports are available.   Below are a few of the changes you can expect. 


-As you can see, the home page looks very different . Quick Search is still on the left and Hot Tips are in the middle, but there is a third pane on the right that contains the Market Monitor and Quick Action Links.  The Market Monitor allows you to go back a set number of days (back to 30) instead of restricting you to 24 hours, 3 days, and 7 days.  The Quick Action Links allow you select which Paragon programs you most often use. 

-When you click on a function such as Search, your options now display larger and in an organized fashion, opposed to just one long pick list.  To select an option move your mouse down and then over...don't move your mouse diagonally.  It seems a bit strange at first, but you will get the hang of it!

-Menus now slide in from the right.  The most noticeable place this happens is on a search results page.  There is no longer a views/reports button.  Your report choices will slide in from the right.  You have the ability to move your favorite reports to the top under favorites. 

-For those that add and maintain listings, you can now maintain listings right from the search results spreadsheet by clicking on a new Maintain button on the top toolbar. 

-Links to virtual tours are included on the Agent Full Report.

-The Criteria Summary from Search has been added to HotSheet Search.

-Clicking on a photo will not only enlarge it, but it will give you the ability to scroll through all the photos for that listing. 

-The email address on the agent full report is now a clickable link. 

 

 

-If a seller is still obligated under the terms of a listing contract, but the property is no longer available to be shown, the property should be moved to a Withdrawn status in the MLS.   If a seller is released from their contract before the actual expiration date, the listing should be Expired.

 

-Virtual Tour Reminder --  MLS rules prohibit the display of virtual tours that include agent information and/or office contact information.  Office name is allowed.  The reason for this restriction is that links to virtual tours on MLS listings in Paragon are included as part of the Customer Full Report.  By design, the listing company is given credit on this report, but there is no agent information or office contact information.  The Customer Full Report is the email default from Paragon to clients/customers.  Before this restriction was in place, some of the tour links on listings emailed from Paragon took the client/customer to a web page that focused on the agent/office, and not the property. 

 

September 2007

 

-The following listing features have been added to Paragon. If you have a listing that has one of these features, please modify your listing to include it.

Residential
8'+ ceiling under the Basement Feature (E)
9'+ ceilings (main level) under Interior Features (P)
High speed internet available under the Interior Features (P)

Condominium
End Unit under the Style Feature (A)
8'+ ceiling under the Basement Feature (D)
9'+ ceilings (main level) under the Interior Features (O)
High speed internet available under the Interior Features (O)

Lots and Acreage
Approved for IZ under the Terms Feature (P)

Farms/Farmettes
Fences under the Farm Features (H)
High speed internet available under the House Features (Q) 

 

-Our MLS covers mainly South Central and Southwest Wisconsin (click here for a map).  Occasionally an agent will list a property located outside of this region.  The location codes used for these listings are Y01 for other parts of Wisconsin, Y02 for Illinois, Y03 for Minnesota, and Y04 for Iowa.   If you are looking for a specific county or municipality outside the South Central/Southwest Wisconsin region, it works best to skip the location box and use the County or Municipality search boxes which are located on the bottom of the Primary Criteria search screen.

 

- We have had increased reports of agents contacting sellers before their listing contract expires with another agent.  This is a violation of both MLS Rules and the Realtor® Code of Ethics. Please take a minute to read the article titled How to Avoid Jumping a Listing.  Click here for a copy.

 

August 2007

 

-Starting with the July statistics, SCWMLS will begin publishing the monthly sales reports following the last day of the month after the statistical reporting month.  This means that the July numbers will be available the beginning of September.  In the past, our statistics have reflected those transactions that were reported to the MLS by the 15th day following the reported month.  This has sometimes proven to be premature, and therefore has resulted in understated figures, as too often agents have not reported all their sales within the fifteen day window.  So that this year is accurately compared to last year, please make every attempt to report your July sales by the end of August, your August sales by the end of September, etc.   Thank you.

 

-The plus (+) key on your keyboard 10-key number pad can be used as a comma in Paragon.  So, if you are keying in several MLS numbers separated by a comma, you can quickly key them in on the 10-key number pad using the plus sign (+) as the comma separator.

 

July 2007

 

-When viewing a listing in Paragon, one of the links at the top is "correction".  If you click on this link, an email box will open.  Use this link to report to the MLS what you believe to be inaccuracies on that listing.

 

-The MLS Market area within the Market Monitor (look to the left of this page) is a great place to track activity for a specific geographic market.  By default, the MLS Market is defined as the whole MLS.  You can limit that to just the market you would like to monitor by clicking on the Change Area button within the Market Monitor.  Click Remove All to move all municipalities from the right to the left box, and then move just the municipalities you want to monitor back to the right box.  If you want to include a whole county, click the Sort by Code button to group municipalities by county.

 

June 2007

 

-We are pleased to offer a new class covering advanced features in Paragon.   This class is 3 hours and covers Map Searches, Driving Directions, Customizing your Search and Reports, Setting up your E-card, Creating Mailing Labels, Copying and Building Customer Reports, and Q&A.  Please do not register for this class unless you have taken the Paragon Basic class and/or have been using Paragon for more than 3 months.  There is no charge for this class unless you register and do not show.   Click here to register.

 

-If you right click the map on the Customer Full - Map View you will be given an option to zoom in and zoom out.  In addition, you can switch from Road view to an Aerial view.   After you zoom in or out or switch to another view, this view will hold when you select print.  This is very helpful if you run across a property that shows just one street on the map.  Zooming out will allow you to print a view that is more helpful.

 

 

May 2007

 

-The MLS Remarks section of a listing is searchable.  You will find the Remarks search prompt under the Advanced Criteria section of the search parameters.  When typing in a word or phrase to search for, put a star before and after (*...*) the word or phrase.  For example, if your buyer would like a property that has tray ceilings enter *tray ceiling* and your search results will include properties for which the listing agent has included tray ceiling or ceilings in the remarks. 

 

-Confusion regarding the labeling of the STYLE of a condo, particularly ranch vs. garden style, is creating inaccurate information on the system and therefore inaccurate search results.  Garden style should be selected for a condo that has all living space on one level and has other units above or below.  Garden condos are often in a building that resembles an apartment building.  Ranch style should be selected if the Condo you have listed is in a one floor building with no other condo units above or below.  Townhouse style should be selected if the condo you have listed is a 2+ story unit.  Your help in accurately describing your condo listing will help those looking for it.

 

-Grant County was recently added to Paragon Tax Records.  In addition, we have secured data for Crawford County and will be adding it shortly. 

 

 

April 2007

 

-If you have a browser-enabled hand-held device, such as a WAP-enabled mobile phone (i.e. a Blackberry or a Treo) or a PDA, you can access Paragon Wi-Fi for real-time access to Paragon MLS data.  Paragon Wi-Fi not a substitute for the online Paragon system, but rather a companion product that will allow mobile users the ability to search and retrieve a limited portion of MLS listing data.  If you have access to the Internet from your phone or PDA, there is no additional cost for this service. Simply enter http://scwmls.fnismls.com/paragonwifi and use the same login name and password you use to access Paragon.

 

-Vista Update - Paragon is now fully compatible with Microsoft Vista.

-In response to a really good member suggestion, we have added the listing office address to the agent full report.

 

-From the agent full report you click the little blue-green M link to get the map....how the heck do you print that map?   Place your cursor on the blue border around the map and right click to get an option to print.  Yes, we do have an open work order to add a print button, but we wanted to share the secret work around for you to use for now. 

 

March 2007

 

-Offices now have the option of turning on a free module within ShowingAssist that will automatically send follow-up requests for property feedback after a showing. If this feature is turned on, feedback requests are emailed automatically to the showing agent the evening of the day in which a showing appointment was scheduled via ShowingAssist. The email identifies the property, and includes the listing agent's contact information along with a text box for freeform comments. When the showing agent responds to the email, the listing agent will get an email to let them know feedback has been received. This email will include a link to view the feedback.

If your office would like to try this new feature, the setup must be done by someone with administrative access to Paragon. Once logged in with administrative access, click on Preferences, User, Integrated Products Tab, and then select ShowingAssist. On the Office Setup Tab, place a check mark in the "Enable the sending of feedback requests to showing agent's" box at the bottom of the screen. Once an office is activated to receive feedback, individual agents can be turned off under the Agent Setup tab if needed. 

- Would you like to attract more agents to your broker opens?   The ability to mark your listing for an all agent property tour, and the ability to search for properties you can tour can be done within Paragon. The fields to enter broker open date, time and comments (munchies available?) can be found under the VTour/Open House section of the Maintain Listing program (available to those with administrative access).  The search field for Broker Open Date can be found within the Advanced Search Criteria section under Search.  Once you have a list of the broker opens you are interested in, access information about the tour by selecting the Tours/Broker Open report listed under Multi-Up Views/Reports.  For a sample of the Tours/Broker Open report click here.

-To better identify properties being offered at auction, a new feature has been added under the Terms Feature.   Each listing flagged with the new Auction feature is also flagged with an AUC directly following the price.  To help convey necessary information about the auction process to potential selling agents, all auction properties must include the SCWMLS Information Form for Properties being Sold at Auction as an associated document.  This form can be found under the Forms section on our member website at www.scwmls.com. 

 

February 2007

 

- The Designated Agent Y/N field has been replaced with Multiple Representation Y/N/D (D = Designated Agency).  All listings that were marked as Designated Agent = Y have been changed to Multiple Representation = D.  If you have a situation whereby a seller has consented to multiple representation, but not designated agency, you will need to change your listing from the old Designated Agent = N to Multiple Representation = Y.  For a full explanation of this change see the headlines on our website at www.scwmls.com

 

-The following are recent changes to the wording of current features:

Features

Old

New

Basement Feature

Walkout

Walkout to yard

Fireplace Feature

Wood burning STOVE

Free standing STOVE

Waterfront Feature

Has access rights - No frontage

Deeded access - No frontage

 

 

-To add the date and time to the bottom of Paragon reports:  For Internet Explorer 6 users, click on File at the very top left of the screen and then Page Setup.  For Internet Explorer 7 users, click the print drop down on the top right of the screen and then Page Setup. Find the white box titled Footer. Add &d for date and &t for time. If the computer you are using is your own, you can also add your name and other information you desire. If you are using an office computer used by others, please do not personalize this line. Please note that this information will print on the bottom of printouts from other websites as well. 

 

-2006 Mill Rates are now online!!  Please visit our Member website at www.scwmls.com

 

January 2007

 

-When entering a message on the Message Board, you must scroll down and enter a code as it appears in a black box, before posting your message.  This is a security measure to assure an actual real person is entering the data, and not some computer program trying to scam the system.  Please remember that this message board is for real estate transaction related topics only.

 

-If your Supra keycard is routinely not eSyncing at night, or if you see the constant message "Connecting to Cradle" when you place your keycard on the cradle, you should reset your cradle.  To do this, place the key on the cradle and insert one end of a paper clip (unbent) into the reset opening (next to the telephone ports on the back of the cradle).  This will reset the modem in the cradle.  If you continue to have a problem, contact the MLS office.

 

 

December 2006

 

-The correct placement of your property on maps within Paragon is often dependent on the correct street tag (i.e. St, Ave, Dr).  Please be sure you include the correct street tag when entering a new listing.  Click here for a list of proper Paragon street tag abbreviations. 

 

-Change for Listing Input:  To improve seamless linking between MLS listings and tax records, input checks for correct parcel number formats have been added to Paragon.  For a list of these correct formats, click here.  If a property has not been assigned a parcel number, enter Not Assigned.  If a listing represents multiple parcel numbers, either pick one or enter the word Multiple. 

 

November 2006

-Enhancements were recently added to Paragon.  For a list of these enhancements, click here.  These enhancements included modifications to accommodate Internet Explorer 7.  Paragon now officially supports Internet Explorer 7.   Please make sure other websites you rely on are also compatible with IE 7 before you upgrade.   After upgrading to IE 7,  run the system checker on the login page to configure IE settings for use with Paragon.

-Right click the map on the Customer Full with Map View to zoom in and out....Very cool!!! 

 

October 2006

 

-Properties in our MLS that include instruction to contact the seller for showings are protected from solicitation by REALTORS, just like all other exclusive listings.  Your conversation with the seller should be limited to setting up the showing.  Properties in our MLS that are being sold at auction are also protected from solicitation by REALTORS.  It is against MLS rules and the REALTOR Code of Ethics to solicit these listings prior to their expiration.

 

-If you want to print, email, or view more detail for all the listings on a spreadsheet, the fastest way to select them all is to click the blank gray/tan box at the top left of the spreadsheet....above the sequential number column.  This also works nicely when you want to eliminate just a few from the list.  In this case you would select all by clicking the blank box, and then uncheck the few you do not want. 

 

September 2006

Safety Alert: The MLS  has received a few reports of a man contacting female Realtors (mostly with long hair) stating that he is from out of town and would like to purchase property in the area.  He indicates that he has found them via the Internet and would like to meet, but not at the office.   He uses an email with eagle wolf in it and an 808 phone number.  When testing the phone number given, it is disconnected.  A case (C06-5727)has been opened in Green County (608-328-9400).  Police have encouraged Realtors to call their local police to open a case if they are contacted by a man under similar circumstances.  

-Here are a few tips for marketing township properties: 

Use the “Other Market Area” field.  If you add what you think is the most appropriate bordering city or village as the Other Market Area, your township listing will come up in searches for that city or village on Paragon and on wisconsinhomes.com.   You may want to consider location, school district or mailing address when making this decision. 

Start your remarks with something like “Only 2 miles east of the City of Sun Prairie.”  Most of the public websites, including just recently Realtor.com, include the remarks section of your listing.  

 

If the street number of your rural listing begins with an alpha character, do not move the alpha character to the street direction field.  The W or N before the street number is part of the street number, not a street direction.  This is very important for correct mapping placement.

 

 -If you work within a team and would like your team name to be included on the bottom of the customer full reports, email Jen (jen@wisre.com) with your team name.  After Jen adds your team name to your member record, you can customize the customer reports by clicking on Preferences, Views/Reports, and the Details tab.  Open up the report you would like to change and scroll down to the bottom section in white.  Double click on the white box to display the fields you can include.  Select My Info - Team Name, which is located a little more than half way down.  Highlight this field and click Add. Place a check mark next to the Team Name and next to No Label at the bottom and hit Save & Close.  At this point, the Residential report is done.  You will need to do this for each class of property.  Your personal slogan can also be added in this same fashion. 

 

August 2006

-The South Central WI MLS and the Southwest Wisconsin MLS have recently signed a reciprocal agreement that allows Members of the SCWMLS to view the Southwest Wisconsin listing database, and allows Members of Southwest Wisconsin to view the SCWMLS listing database.  This reciprocal is similar to the Metro Milwaukee and Central Wisconsin reciprocal agreements in that the offer of compensation shown in the MLS listings will be considered made to all Members of the SCWMLS and Southwest Wisconsin.   There is no additional cost for this access.  The ability to enter listings is not included.  The Southwest Wisconsin MLS covers mainly Crawford, Grant, Iowa, LaFayette, and Richland counties.  If your office would like reciprocal access to the Southwest Wisconsin MLS database, contact Jen (jen@wisre.com) 608-240-2800 for registration information. 

 

-You can search for upcoming open houses under the Search Program in Paragon.  Click on Search, Property, and select the property class.  Open up the Advanced Criteria section at the bottom to find the Open House Date search prompt. 

 

July 2006

New Profile Sheets:  Copies of the new profile sheets can be found under the MLS Docs on Paragon.


A new required Designated Agent Y/N checkbox is included.  A Yes here indicates to others in your firm that you have permission from the seller to act as a Designated Agent.  With the consent of the seller-client, a Designated Agent can provide full services, information, and advice to the seller-client, while another licensee acting as a Designated Agent, within the same firm, with the consent of the buyer-client, can provide full services, information, and advice to the buyer-client, all in the same transaction.  A Yes or No has no relevance to agents outside your firm.  An individual licensee cannot act as a Designated Agent for both the buyer and the seller in the same transaction.  For more information on agency disclosure requirements, contact the WRA Legal Hotline (608.242.2296 or 800.279.1972)

 
The choice for Over 5 Acres under Lot Size for Residential has been broken down as: Over 5 to 10 Acres; Over 10 to 20 Acres; Over 20 Acres.  All listings have been converted to Over 5 to 10 Acres.  If you have a current listing or a recent sold that is over 10 acres, it is important that you make the proper modification within Paragon.

  

The choice for 1-100 feet of water frontage has been broken down to 1-50 feet and 51-100 feet.  All listings have been converted to 1-50 feet.  If you have a current waterfront listing, or a recent sold, that has 51-100 feet of frontage, it is important that you make the proper modification within Paragon.   

 

-Open house date and time as entered in Paragon is now included on the Agent Full Report.  If you have access to add and change listings, you can find fields for open house date and time under the V Tour/Open House tab under Maintain Listings.  When the open house date is past, Paragon automatically deletes the date and time.  Open house date and time also displays on www.wisconsinhomes.com. 

 

-Good News --- MLS Remarks are now automatically being displayed within listing ads on Realtor.com.  In the past, Realtor.com built set remarks from listing features, and the only way to get the MLS Remarks section to display was to purchase an upgrade package. 

 

June 2006

 

-The map on views/reports (i.e. customer full with map) can be adjusted to display a preferred zoom level.  If you have access to add and change listings, you can find this adjustment under Listings, Maintain and Change GeoCode.  Once you adjust the zoom level and save it, the map on views/reports will hold that zoom level. 

 

-The plus (+) key on your keyboard 10-key number pad can be used as a comma in Paragon.  So, if you are keying in several MLS numbers separated by a comma, you can quickly key them in on the number pad using the plus sign (+) sign as the comma separator.

 

-Two new listing features have been added to Paragon.  Rental Allowed is now listed as an option under Terms/Misc for Condo listings, and Office with Exterior Entry is now listed under Interior Features for Residential Listings.  If you have an active listing that includes either of these features, please edit your listing to include them.

 

May 2006

-The Supra DisplayKey lease renewal is June 1st of each year.  With the next monthly billing, offices will be assessed $100 for each agent currently leasing a Supra DisplayKey.  If you are no longer using your keycard, and would like to cancel your lease to avoid the $100 charge, please return your keycard and cradle/charging base to the MLS prior to June 9th.  

 

Paragon Wi-Fi is Here --  Paragon Wi-Fi is an interface that allows real-time access to Paragon MLS data from any browser-enabled device, such as a WAP-enabled mobile phone (i.e. a Blackberry or a Treo) or a PDA.  Paragon Wi-Fi is not a substitute for the online Paragon system, but rather a companion product that allows mobile users the ability to search and retrieve a limited portion of MLS listing data.  If you have access to the Internet from your phone or PDA, there is no additional cost for this service.  Simply go to http://scwmls.fnismls.com/paragonwifi and use the same login name and password you use to access Paragon.

 

 

April 2006

 

-New Listing Feature Added:  If your vacant land listing is located adjacent to a park or greenway, you may now select this as a feature under Lot Description. 



March 2006

 

-If a seller is still obligated under the terms of a listing contract, but the property is no longer available to be shown, the property should be moved to a Withdrawn status in the MLS.   If a seller is released from their contract before the actual expiration date, the listing should be Expired.

-Tax Mill Rates for 2005 are now available under Resources at www.scwmls.com (click here for shortcut).  

 

-After composing an email within Paragon, click on the button on the top tool bar that says ABC with a checkmark to spell check before sending.

 

-New Property Tour Report - The ability to mark your listing for an all agent property tour, and the ability to search for properties available for agent tours are now available via Paragon.   The fields to enter broker open date, time and comments can be found under the VTour/Open House section of the Maintain Listing program (available to those with listing add/maintain access).  The search field for Broker Open Date can be found within the Advanced Search Criteria section under Search.  Details about the agent tour (date, time, comments) can be found on the Tours/Broker Open report listed under Multi-Up Views/Reports.

 

February 2006

 

-Updated Profile Sheets (Rev 1/2006) can be found under the MLS Docs button above.  Updates include:
     -The field for Listed Defects has been removed.
     -Laundry Room Dimensions have been added.
     -Floor Number for Condos have been expanded to 1,2,3,4-10, 11+, TH, PH (penthouse).

 

-ShowingAssist is now live.   Offices will need to turn on this feature to allow agents to use it.  Click on Preferences and User to access the ShowingAssist setup tab.  If the office email address listed is blank or needs to be changed, please contact the MLS office.  Click here to view a demo of this new product.  

 

January 2006

 

Agent email address has been added to the agent full report under the listing agent name. 

What are the colorful alphabet boxes on the agent full?  Click on D to open associated documents the listing agent has loaded, H to link to History, M to link to a map, and T to link to the tax record.  If there is no T, the parcel number on the listing is invalid, or the property is located in a county we do not store tax information for. 

 

The Paragon system was recently modified to comply with federal requirements for CAN-SPAM. When you receive an email from Paragon Email Service, you must confirm your email address via this email within 30 days in order to continue emailing from Paragon. Click here for an explanation of how this will affect the e-mail functions within Paragon. 

 

December 2005

 

-During the evening of Wednesday, December 28, several enhancements will be added to Paragon.  A few of these enhancements, as well as future enhancements, will improve the Paragon UI (User Interface).  In order to take advantage of improved UI technology, the mandatory screen resolution for Paragon will be increased to1024x768.  Most of you are already set for 1024x768, but a few may still be running at 800x600.  To prepare for these upcoming enhancements, you may want to check your screen resolution and change it to 1024x768 if it is currently lower than that.  Click here for instructions on checking and changing your screen resolution. 

 

-If you are looking for a quick way to send an email to all your prospects at the same time, click on the Compose button above the blue menu bar on the Paragon home page.  Click on the To link to pull up a list of your prospects. Here you can either move each email address over separately, or click on All to move them all at once.   If you don't want your prospects to see that you have sent your message to many, you can put your own email address in the To field, and use the Bcc field for your prospects. 

 

November 2005

 

-Storage Locker Included and Storage Locker Available have been added as options under "Interior Features" for Condominium listings.   These options have been added to Paragon, but will not be added to the MLS Profile Sheets until the next scheduled reprint in January. 

-To minimize the distortion to your property photos when they are uploaded to Paragon, the original photo should be as close to the following as possible:  The file size should be under 32k and the image size should be as close to 640x480 as possible.  If a photo is over 32k, or larger than 640x480, ParagonÔ will compress the image possibly decreasing the quality.   A free utility is available for all Microsoft XP users that will allow you to easily resize photos.  You can find a link to this utility labeled MS Image Resizer under the Links section on the left of this ParagonÔ home page. 

2 Hot Supra Tips:
-If your Supra keycard is stuck in a searching mode, hold down the Enter key and press the number 1 to clear the card.
-Holding down the Enter button for 2 seconds after your keycard is turned on will illuminate the screen.

October 2005

 

-The plus (+) key on your keyboard 10-key number pad can be used as a comma in Paragon.  So, if you are keying in several MLS numbers separated by a comma, you can quickly key them on the number pad using the plus sign (+) as the comma separator.

 

-Open House Alert:  The MLS office has received a call warning of an individual who allegedly has stolen prescription drugs while attending an open house.  Please alert your sellers to assure that all valuables (money, jewelry, etc) and prescription drugs are out of plain sight and are not readily accessible by visitors to an open house or other showings.  If you suspect a theft has taken place, please contact local police as soon as possible.  A police report has been filed with the City of Madison.  Contact Officer Bernards at 608-266-5938 for more information. 


-Electronic Pet Containment System has been added as an option under "Exterior Features" for Residential listings.   Commercial Condo has been added as an option under "Type" for Commercial listings.  These options have been added to Paragon, but will not be added to the MLS Profile Sheets until the next scheduled reprint in January. 

 

-According to MLS guidelines, for square footage to be considered finished, the space must be heated, have finished walls (painted concrete does not count), have a finished ceiling (no exposed floor joists), and have a finished floor (painted concrete does not count).  If one of these four components is missing, the space can still be considered finished, but disclosure of the missing component must be included in the MLS remarks.

 

 

September 2005

-If you are not currently using the Tax Autofill link when adding a listing, you may want to check it out.  Clicking on the Tax Autofill link at the top of the Add Listing screen will take you to the Tax Search page.  Locate the property you are adding by parcel number, address, or owner name.  Select the tax record, and then click on the Autofill link at the top of the screen.  Information such as address, owner, legal description, assessments, and taxes will be automatically imported into the add-listing screen saving you keystrokes.   If the listing agent has provided information that is different from what is auto-filled, you can simply overwrite the auto-filled information. 

-Office and Agent roster information is accessible to all users via Paragon.  To find an office, agent, or roster of an office, click on Reports from the blue menu bar on the home page of Paragon.  The Member Roster includes a list of agents within an office.  The Agent Roster provides one line of info about each agent.  Within each report there are links to agent and office phone numbers and email addresses.  The search tool included allows you to look for one individual, a list of agents within an office, or even all offices/agents in a specific city. 

-The most current MLS Profile Sheets can be found under MLS Docs located above the blue menu bar on this page, or on www.scwmls.com under the Forms Link.  MLS Profile Sheets can also be found on Zip Forms. 

 

August 2005

 

-Within Paragon, you have the ability to attach documents to your listings.  Quick access to documents such as addendums, the property condition report, floor plans, plat maps, etc. can be very helpful to an agent showing your property, especially during non-office hours.  Agents can attach their own documents as they do photos via the drop down menu in Listing Maintain.  Listings that have documents associated with them can be identified by the Documents field that is located to the right of the list date on the Agent Full reports. For expanded instructions on attaching and viewing documents, click here.

 

-On selected reports in Paragon, you will see colorful boxes labeled H, M, T.  These boxes are quick links to History, Mapping, and the Tax Record.   If your listing does not have a T box, this means the parcel number entered for that listing is incorrect, or is located in a county we do not have tax records for. 

 

-When searching using the bathroom field, please remember that our MLS represents bathrooms as a four-digit number.  The first digit is for full baths, the second digit is for 3/4 baths, the third digit is for half baths, and the fourth digit is for quarter baths.  If you are looking for homes with at least 1 full and 1 3/4 bath, for instance, you would enter 1100 in the minimum bath field. 

 

 

July 2005

 

-Offers of compensation made through the MLS must be based upon a percentage of the gross sale price or a specific dollar amount.  This applies even in a case where seller-paid concessions/credits increase the sale price, or in a case where improvements on existing property, or add-ons to new construction are negotiated.  If it is your intent to pay a commission based on the net sale price (before seller concessions/credits, improvements, or add-ons), the cooperating broker must agree to this in writing. 

 

-The following enhancements have been added to the Paragon Tax Program:   

            -Iowa County data has been added

            -Links to plat maps have been added for Dane County parcels

            -Mailing labels in Dane County now display owner name as first name, last name     

 

 

June 2005

 

- If you would like to view a full list of emails you have sent via Paragon, click on Contacts from the blue menu bar and then on View Sent E-Mail, which will be the last option on the drop down list.  A list of all emails sent (both manual and automatic) for the past 30 days will display.    To view a specific message, click the box to the left of the recipient email address and the message will display on the lower half of your screen.   If you want to view all email sent for a specific prospect, open up the prospect and click on the E-Mail Notification tab.  All emails sent (manual and automatic) for the past 30 days for that specific prospect will display. 

 

- The MLS Market area within the Market Monitor (look to the left of this page) is a great place to track activity for a specific geographic market.  By default, the MLS Market is defined as the whole MLS.  You can limit that to just the market you would like to monitor by clicking on the Change Area button within the Market Monitor.  Click Remove All to move all municipalities from the right to the left box, and then move just the municipalities you want to monitor back to the right box.  If you want to include a whole county, click the Sort by Code button to group municipalities by county.

 

-You can change the fields that display on the spreadsheet list of properties that comes up after a search in Paragon.  Click on the Customize link at the top of the page to display a list of fields that can be added.  The box on the right lists the fields that currently display on your spreadsheet.  If you want to remove a field simply highlight it and click Remove.   If you want to add a field from the left box, click on the field and then on Add.   If you do not see the field you would like to add, click on the Group box at the top to display different types of fields (i.e. Feature Categories).  To make it easier to find a specific field, click on the top of the Name list to alphabetize.  Click on Save and Close to apply your changes.   Your customized spreadsheet will now come up each time you display the spreadsheet. 

 

-Statistics (average, median, volume, days on market) can be calculated via Paragon for any list of properties.  From any view after doing a search, click on the Views/Reports button and then choose Statistical Reports.  The following 4 reports will be listed.  Remember to use the Get All button if y