Does a nationwide MLS exist?

Nope - Realtor.com is the closest to a national MLS.

too bad. thanks for your input.

What do you need Jason?

Jason wants to get involved with some tech angle on real estate data.

Thanks Chris, but I'll answer for myself!

I'm interested in buying in several areas around the country, so I was looking for a catch-all MLS. Realtor.com is the closest I've heard of.

National MLS will never happen. Most states don't have a single MLS database.

Well - if you're interested in the Columbus OH market (which includes several towns/cities/etc. around the city itself) I'd be happy to send you relevant listings if I knew what you were looking for.

Are you planning to flip perhaps, or buy and hold?

thank you Ms. Champion, but I am currently not looking at the Columbus area. I am looking around texas and surrounding states oddly enough.

I just returned from the annual mid-year meeting of the NAR in Washington DC.

One of the things we voted to do was facilitate the creation of a national repository of real property information for real estate professionals.

This will NOT be a national MLS.

There is not one yet but likely will be someday.

How would that be different then realtor.com?

Can you give us some more insight as to what you mean by "a national repository of real property information".... tks.

Jim, are you talking about a data repository? sales, prices, rents, historical data, etc?

"Jim, are you talking about a data repository? sales, prices, rents, historical data, etc?"

Yep, and operated by NAR

"The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS Board of Directors voted
to fund the association's "Second Century Initiative" with a $16 per member national dues increase, the first such increase since 1994.
Dues will be $80 a year beginning in 2008. Among the programs that are part of the initiative:
* A major consumer outreach effort that will allow NAR to
leverage the natural alliances that exist between REALTORS and real property owners;
* Planning for a national property data "gateway," a
repository containing detailed current and historical information on
all real property in the United States;
* A credit union for NAR members;
* Creation of an investment company that would fund technology initiatives to benefit REALTORS."

thanks Jim!

Another site to look at is http://www.point2homes.com. Listings shared by point2 member agents across the US.

IMO, Trulia ( http://www.trulia.com ) is the closest thing besides Realtor.com to a nationwide MSL out there. I have been keeping an eye on Trulia as I believe that they will be setting the standards for MLS's in the near future.

Chris

Real estate is a local business. In order to properly represent your clients you need local market knowlege which goes beyond a database program.

Here is an article about a national MLS that I got this morning.

Is a National MLS the Way to Go?

I have to disagree Chris.

I was at a panel discussion at the NAR mid-year meetings recently and Sami Inkinen, Trulia's Chief Operating Officer was a participant. He said Trulia was mostly a marketing company more closely akin to Zillow than Realtor.com.

Here's a blog I wrote about the panel.

Very nice blog, there are a lot of good points. I agree with what you are saying in general. My thoughts on the matter are that as knowledge of these nationwide sites becomes more and more prevalent, I believe that buyers will more than likely be heading to the Realtor.com and Trulia.com sites first and foremost rather than a Google search for "Salina KS Real Estate".



My thought is that if I can't for what ever reason get them to my site directly, I sure want to at least make sure that my properties are on the nationwide MLS for the chance to be the buyers agent or at least be able to sell my sellers property to whom ever ends up as that particular buyers agent.

I see the national MLS's as an extension of my advertising campaign to sell properties. I don't see them being nearly as beneficial to to a local customer looking to buy elsewhere since, as mentioned above, real estate sales are still a primarily local business.

I will admit that I am a bit biased as our company was born out of and continues to thrive from nationwide (and worldwide) advertising as our base of sales. We sell approximately 70-80% of our properties to people out of the area, state or in some cases out of the country.

Thanks,
Chris