Greater Rochester Association of REALTORS�
MLS & Technology e-Newsletter
January 19, 2016

RPRMLS Rules Updated as of January 1, 2016
Several rules have been updated as of the first of the year, some mandated by NAR and others by NYSAMLS's.  See Links below for more details:

JANINSTANETCompliance With Rules Enforcement Changes
As mentioned in the Summary of rules changes above, please note that  Section 7.1, Compliance with Rules-Authority to Impose Discipline has changed slightly as follows. Upon notification to the MLS of any infraction of the MLS Rules and Policies, the MLS Staff will do the following:

1.    Contact the listing agent or manager or Designated REALTOR� of the firm to resolve the infraction. 
2.    If the infraction is not corrected within forty-eight (48) hours, the appropriate sanction will be imposed on the Designated REALTOR�. 
3.    NEW: The first notification of a rule violation is used to educate the agent of the infraction and the Listing Agent is given 48 hours to correct or the applicable fine will be assessed. The second notification for same rule violation (for any listing) to the same agent sets grounds for an immediate first offense fine to the agent and DR�.  The third notification for same rule violation (for any listing) sets grounds for an immediate second offense fine to DR� (refer to Appendix A), etc.

NEWLOOKTOOLSNew Look for Some of Our Tools
MLS Portal
Beginning on Wednesday, January 20, the MLS Portal will have a new look. In an effort to me more contemporary and mobile friendly, our vendor has updated the look and feel of the portal. In addition, GRAR will have a new notification feature that we can use to target certain pockets of members whether it be Brokers, Salespeople, Appraisers or Office Staff with information they may need to be aware of.

Instanet Solutions

Instanet is also going to be having an upgrade beginning on January 26. This will be phased in over a 3 stage approach. For Stage 1, you will be able to see the new version and even switch back and forth between the new and current.  Stage 2 will take you directly to the new version but you can still toggle back to current version. Stage 3 will be the new version only.  This upgrade has been tested by several tech committee and other members in this area since fall and has been well received. The main point is to also be more modern and work well across all devices.  Watch for more details when you log into Instanet.

Next MLS System: Matrix Update

Our team has started to work on our MLS upgrade to Matrix in anticipation of delivering a new MLS system in early 2016.  Matrix, from CoreLogic, has been very well received in many large MLS's, is known to be extremely fast and works with virtually all computer operating systems, web browsers, and mobile devices. Stay tuned for more details as we know more!

SURFACEPROAccess MLS With Microsoft Surface Pro Tablets
Microsoft Surface Pro or Surface tablets are getting more popular. They are actually more like a PC but look like a tablet. They run on Windows 8  or Windows 10 so they can absolutely be used to access MLS.  The only thing to remember is just like any Windows 10 PC, they cannot access MLS through the new Edge browser. They need to use Internet Explorer if they want MLXchange or can use Firefox, Chrome or Safari if they want to just use Fusion (and soon Matrix).  

TECHTUESTech Tuesdays:
GRAR's Technology Committee sponsors Tech Tuesdays on the first Tuesday of each month! Join us for an informal session about various topics to help you get a better handle on some of our Technology benefits and other Tech topics.

The February 2 session will focus on the Instanet Upgrade Phasing in Late January
Register now as seating is limited.

Tech Tuesday
February topic:
Instructor:  Christine Whites and Mike O'Connor
CE Credit: 0 hrs
Cost: FREE (GRAR members only) 

CEUpcoming Tech CE, Training & Tech Tuesdays
Tech Tuesday
TUE | Feb. 2 | 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Topic: Tour the Instanet Upgrade
Instructor: Christine Whites and Mike O'Connor
CE Credit: 0 hrs
Cost: FREE (GRAR members only)

FUSION TWO- Maple City Inn Hornell
TUE | Jan. 19 | 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Instructor: Bill Roesser
CE Credit: 3 hrs
Cost: $35 (GRAR members only)

Instanet Forms Overview: iPad
THU | Jan. 29 | 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

Instructor: Mike O'Connor
CE Credit: 0 hrs
Cost: $25 (GRAR members only)
 


For more information on all GRAR courses, go to: www.GRAR.org