MLS Newsletter Articles
Updated:8/13/08
« Why Are Some Photos Not Loading - updated 8/13/08
« Photo Reminder - Copying Photos - updated 8/13/08
« ActiveKEY Upgrade to Increase Battery Life - updated 8/13/08
« Condos and Single Family - updated 7/16/08
« Keeping the Battery Charged on Your New Supra ActiveKEY - updated 7/16/08
«Updated MLS Madison Area/Subarea Map - updated 7/16/08
« New Fields Added To Paragon June 23 - updated 6/16/08
« MLS To Allow Up To 25 Photos - updated 6/16/08
« What is Off Market Date? - updated 5/8/08
« Moving from One Company to Another - updated 11/15/07
« June 2008 MLS Stats by Price Range(PDF Format) - updated 8/1/08
« June 2008 and YTD MLS Stats(PDF Format) - updated 8/1/08
« Why Are Some Photos Not Loading
On June 23, we increased the number of photos allowed per listing from 9 to 25. Because most listings do not have 25 photos, the "Photo not Available" place holder was printing each time a photo was not included for one of the 25 spots. We received many complaints that this place holder was a waste of toner, and frankly that was a good point. So, we eliminated the place holder. Now if a listing does not have a photo, a blank space will appear where the photo should be. If you would like to double check to be sure the listing does not have photos, the first column on the default spreadsheet is titled Picture, and represents the number of pictures for each listing. As a side note, 20% of the current 14,300 active single family and condo listings already have more than 9 photos.
« Photo Reminder - Copying Photos
It is against MLS rules and copyright law to copy another agent's property photos for use on your listing without permission. Unfortunately we have been receiving an increasing number of complaints that agents are using photos from past listings without the permission of the past listing agent. 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).
« ActiveKEY Upgrade to Increase Battery Life
During the last week of July, your ActiveKey should have received an automatic upgrade which will better manage network communications to prevent unnecessary battery usage. In addition, the battery status display has been changed to bars rather than numbers and words. The new battery meter will display four bars for a full charge. When the battery is nearly drained, the key will display "Low Battery" when it is turned ON, and the battery meter will show no bars. If you are not seeing the new battery meter bars, please call Marian or Kristine at the MLS (608-240-2800 or 800-422-8831) for instructions on manually receiving this upgrade.
« Condos and Single Family
Q: When can you list a condo under the single family class in Paragon? When can you list a single family dwelling as a condo?
A: A single-family residential property can only be entered as a condo if it has condo documents, a shared wall, or a monthly maintenance fee associated with the property.
A condo can only be entered under the single family class if it is stand-alone or a half-duplex.
« Keeping the Battery Charged on your New Supra ActiveKEY
You can leave your ActiveKEY plugged in to the power cord when you are not using it. You cannot overcharge your key. We recommend charging your ActiveKEY nightly. To conserve your ActiveKEY battery, you can turn the radio signal off when not using the key. First, turn your key ON by pressing the On/Off button. Then press and hold the On/Off button for 10 seconds, until the key says RADIO IS TURNED OFF. The next time you turn on your ActiveKEY, you can then press 1 (and release) to turn the radio back on (your key will remind you the radio is off and tell you how to turn it back on). Your ActiveKEY will not update with the radio off. Another option for power is a car charger - Available at the MLS office for $21.05 (incl. tax).
« Updated MLS Madison/Subarea Map
The 2008 version of the MLS Madison Area/Subarea Wall Map is now available. Each MLS office and branch office is entitled to one free copy of this map. There were no Area/Subarea reassignments for this update, but streets added within the City of Madison since the last printing (2006) have been added. If you would like an updated copy of this map, please stop by the MLS office Monday-Friday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. The cost for additional maps is $15 each.
« New Fields/Features added to Paragon on June 23
On Monday, June 23, the following field/features will be added to Paragon. These new options will be included on the next revision of MLS Profile Sheets which is scheduled for the Fall.
- Showing Instructions: On the last tab during the add/maintain listing process, a new 512 character field will be added for Showing Instructions. These instructions will be automatically loaded to the ShowingAssist program and will be added to the Showing Set Up Report.
-Additional choices under the Waterfront feature will be added for No Motor Lake, No Wake Lake, and Water Ski Lake. Please modify your current waterfront listings as appropriate.
-Additional choices under the Terms feature will be added for Short Sale and Bank Owned. Please modify your current listings if appropriate.
« MLS to Allow Up to 25 Photos
On Monday, June 23, the Paragon system will be adjusted to accept 25 photos per listing. All 25 photos will be accessible via the photo spinner on each listing. The current Customer Full All Photo Report will be expanded d to two pages to accommodate all photos in a print format.
« 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.
« What is Off Market Date?
The primary search screen in Paragon includes a field called Off Market Date. The Off Market Date is not the same thing as the Closing Date. The Off Market Date is the accepted offer date for sold and pending properties, the expiration date for expired properties, and the withdrawn date for withdrawn properties. It is the date the listing left the status of Active and was thus "Off Market". If you are searching Sold listings in order to calculate statistics, you should use the Closing Date which is located on the secondary search screen. The Off Market Date is helpful when searching for a combination of statuses, such as sold and expired in the same search.
« 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, 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.
« Statistical Reports
The MLS produces several pre-defined statistical reports on a monthly, year-to-date, and annual basis. These reports can be found by clicking on the Statistics button located on the menu bar to your left.
« Repeating Searches in Paragon
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.
« Labeling Bathrooms Correctly
Please use the following guidelines when identifying bathrooms in the MLS:
-A Quarter Bath includes a stool.
-A Half Bath includes a stool and a sink.
-A Three-Quarter Bath includes a stool, a sink, and a shower stall.
-A Full Bath includes a stool, a sink, and a bathtub (a shower may also be included)
.
If you don’t have a stool, you don’t have a bathroom
« Moving from One Company to Another
When an agent transfers from one company to another, or to a different branch within the same company, please make sure the MLS has been notified of phone number and email address changes. In addition, please note the following that will need to 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.
« Virtual Tour Restrictions
Just a reminder that 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 containing agent and office information along with a tour of the property. On some of these web pages the focus was on the agent/office, and not the property.
