Property Listed with Broker, but not on MLS

[oldtrader]

The general MLS listing rules around the country, are the listing must go on the MLS. However they allow an agent and owner to make a listing that does not go on the MLS.

Some Reasons:

1: It is a one party listing. A seller gives an agent a listing only involving one potential buyer. The owner agrees that for the short period of such a listing, it will not be offered for sale by any other office. An agent, may have someone that is interested in the property, and this listing is made so if that buyer is presented the property and buys it, the agent will get paid. Mostly happens in commercial real estate and land sales.

2: The seller does not want it known his property is for sale. He finds an agent that he/she trusts to try to sell the property without putting it out around the area the property is even for sale. The agent discretely approaches a few good potential buyers offering them the property on the QT. Again more often done for commercial/farms & ranches/very high priced property. An example, a well known movie star that is short of money and does not want people to know things are not going well for them, and wants to sell a property and raise cash.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by 495neighbor

My hunch, good to hear an expert confirm it.

It happens from time to time. Of course, there's no need for the sign but the agent puts it out front for lead capture purposes and also so that people see his name out there.

I will say though that there is one agent in town who usually has listings that are not on MLS. My understanding is that she puts her sign out front, does some minimal advertising, and if it sells during the non-MLS period then she charges the seller a lower commission rate. Of course, the assumption is that she'll be a dual agent in this situation since most agents around here tend to only search on MLS.

[HV_Mom]

Another reason here, the house we bought was not listed on the regular MLS because the agent who listed it was friend doing a favor and normally does not work in this county. In fact we found it quite odd when we saw her office is almost an hour away until we found out she was willing to do it because she lives nearby. (Apparently few in her office even knew she had the listing as when my husband called the person who answered the phone was more than willing to jump on showing it until they saw the address and didn't even know where that town is as we're in a more rural area.) I only happened to find it because it did show up on a Zillow search.

I know this probably doesn't apply to the original listing being questioned here but it is a another reason that wasn't mentioned.