The International Multiple Listing Service (IMLS) is now here. Regardless of your love for real estate agents, or lack of it, there is no question that this is something that has been needed for a long time and does have many potential benefits for real estate investing.
With foreign buyer’s interest in US property surging and perhaps making up the healthiest part of our market today, having a way to get your real estate investing company’s deals in front of them is critical.
The International MLS has been set up to make marketing real estate across borders a breeze. It now connects agents and properties across the globe in countless countries and has kicked off with around 150,000 listings, which is sure the be booming by the minute. Until now real estate investing companies wanting to reach overseas buyers have had to put in a lot of time and money to create really effective funnels and get their properties noticed. Some have been able to develop large international affiliate networks, though setting them up and maintaining them isn’t always cheap. Now the IMLS offers another option.
The great news is that the IMLS is free. Well, that is at least for searching for properties and for listing properties if you are already a Realtor and your properties are in the local MLS. If you don’t have your real estate license then carefully weigh your options and the costs of the different means of marketing your real estate investing deals.
Of course you will always want to continue to build your brand and online presence but in terms of direct marketing for individual properties does it pay for you to have them listed on the MLS if you can get international visibility? Take into consideration the percentage of properties which are sold via the MLS, how much it costs you to sell a property outside of it, which offers more speed and the time value of money and figure out your best option in terms of ROI.
