Solicitation Of Property Entered Into The Service
Participants shall not solicit a listing on a property entered into the Service if doing so is inconsistent with exclusive representation or exclusive brokerage relationship agreements that other Participants have with clients, or with applicable state law, or with these rules.
(a) MLS Participants shall not use information obtained from listing brokers through offers to cooperate made through multiple listing services or through other offers of cooperation to refer listing brokers’ clients to other brokers or to create buyer/tenant relationships with listing brokers’ clients, unless such use is authorized by listing brokers.
(b) When MLS Participants are contacted by the client of another MLS Participant regarding the creation of an exclusive relationship to provide the same type of service, and MLS Participants have not directly or indirectly initiated such discussions, they may discuss the terms upon which they might enter into a future agreement or, alternatively, may enter into an agreement which becomes effective upon expiration of any existing exclusive agreement.
(c) MLS Participants are not precluded from making general announcements to prospects describing their services and the terms of their availability, even though some recipients may have entered into agency agreements or other exclusive relationships with another MLS Participant. A general telephone canvass, general mailing, or distribution addressed to all prospects in a given geographical area or in a given profession, business, club, or organization, or other classification or group is deemed general for purposes of this rule.
(d) The following types of solicitations are prohibited: Telephone or personal solicitations of property owners who have been identified by a real estate sign, multiple listing compilation or other information service as having exclusively listed their property with another MLS Participant; and mail or other forms of written solicitations of prospects whose properties are exclusively listed with another MLS Participant when such solicitations are not part of a general mailing but are directed specifically to property owners identified through compilations of current listings, for sale or for rent signs, or other sources of information intended to foster cooperation with MLS Participants.
(e) MLS Participants are not precluded from contacting the client of another broker for the purpose of offering to provide, or entering into a contract to provide, a different type of real estate service unrelated to the type of service currently being provided (e.g., property management as opposed to brokerage) or from offering the same type of service for property not subject to other broker’s exclusive agreements. However, information received through a Multiple Listing Service or any other offer of cooperation may not be used to target clients of other MLS Participants to who such offers to provide services may be made.