MLS Laziness

I am surprised to find how many listings in our MLS lack what buyers are looking for:  information.  I wonder if sellers are even aware that the agent they hired failed to complete the most basic yet necessary data about their property in the MLS.  This information (or lack thereof), is syndicated to numerous websites and that includes the overlooked spelling errors as well.  With the majority of home buyers that go online to find home for sale, this is unacceptable. 

I've noticed missing/blank property descriptions, room measurements, schools for the area, incorrect property tax information, and outdated photos (or no photos).  Agents may not know what type of windows a property has and decide to leave that field in the MLS blank instead of driving over to the house or making a simple phone call to the seller to find out.  Why?  Maybe they think some of the details are insignificant or maybe they are just plain lazy.  I see it even more with distressed properties and short sales, I guess agents just figure the sellers don't care or aren't paying attention.

Property details are important!  If a home has central air and that feature is not listed in the MLS, it may not be considered by buyers who are solely looking for homes that have A/C.  Sellers should request their real estate agent print out the information that is posted in the MLS or that they send over a link to the listing online for their review. They need to thoroughly look over all of the property detail information and inform their agent of any changes or corrections that need to be made.

Agents, please fill out the listing details in the MLS!  Down the road, if an agent is looking for comps in an area and most of the comps are missing necessary information, they will have no idea how the sold property compares to other homes in the neigbhorhood.  Be prepared to receive phone calls from agents asking questions like: "did the property need a lot of work?", "what condition was the property in?", "did the home have any upgrades?"

Patricia Beck – Selling Colorado Springs Homes