What is the Multiple Listings Service (MLS)?
MLS stands for Multiple Listing Service. It is a generic name for the database of property listings created and maintained collectively by real estate brokers (companies) serving a particular area. There are hundreds of different MLSs around the country. In our home area, Washington, D.C., the MLS is called MRIS. It covers all of Maryland, the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia, and parts of West Virginia and Southern Pennsylvania. In fact, it’s the largest MLS in the country. Agents create an entry in the MLS database when they list a property for sale. That entry includes hundreds of pieces of information about the property and the listing. Much of this information is available to buyers (address, description, list price, pictures, etc.); some is only visible to other brokers or agents (like lockbox codes or owners’ phone numbers). These entries are updated as the selling process goes along. When something changes, the listing agent updates the entry in the MLS database—price ch
