Michael Wurzer FBS and Giant Steps Advisors have been spearheading revival of a non-profit initiative called Source MLS, which CMLS originated back in 2013. I wrote here and here about why now is an important time for the industry to bring that program forward again. Over the last year, Dan Woolley from Giant Steps Advisors (and Cloud CMA fame) has been building the technology for Source MLS and now I’m pleased to announce that FBS is the first to implement Source MLS in our Spark Platform for the benefit of our customers.
The Source MLS website does a great job of explaining the benefits of the program:
Source MLS is a non-profit organization that provides MLSs a common trademark badge and tracking technology to clearly identify everywhere listings are being displayed.
- The badge tells the world the data can be trusted.
- The tracking technology enables participating MLSs to provide invaluable analytics to brokers, agents, and sellers about where their listings are being displayed.
Together, they show the world the value of your MLS.
As the Source MLS web site also explains, there are three key parties and steps needed to implement the badge and tracking technology:
- MLSs opt-in to the program by signing up at SourceMLS.org,
- Data distribution systems like the Spark Platform add the tamper-proof Source MLS URLs to every listing; and
- Data licensees display the Source MLS logo and trigger display tracking using the secure Source MLS URLs included with each listing.
The result is that the badge displays wherever your MLS listings are displayed and your MLS gets detailed analytics about where and how often listings are displayed. Below is an example of how the badge might be displayed on a listing.
Call to Action for All MLSs: Sign Up at SourceMLS.org today!
We encourage all MLSs to create an account at SourceMLS.org and you can then forward your key and developer documentation to your data distribution partner (e..g, MLS Grid, Trestle, Bridge, etc.) so that you can work together to implement the Source MLS URLs for your data feeds.
Importantly, though FBS has spearheaded this effort and is the first to implement it in the Spark Platform, FBS will have no role in the on-going management of the non-profit organization and the Source MLS program is open and free for all Data Distribution Systems to implement on behalf of their MLS customers. At the recent MLS Reset conference, Dan had the opportunity to speak with representatives from other Data Distribution Systems interested in implementing and the industry goal is broad adoption by as many MLSs and vendors as possible to help all MLSs show their value to the world.
In considering whether to sign up, please read the MLS Member Agreement, which outlines the startup costs (a one-time fee of $0.10 per member) and how the non-profit is to be governed exclusively by and for MLSs. As you’ll see, the on-going costs of the non-profit will be paid by each MLS paying their pro rate share of those costs based on the number of listing views tracked by the system. Because the MLSs with the most views will be paying the most, the Board will consist of representatives from the top 3 MLS with the most views. In this way, the organization is to be governed exclusively by and for MLSs.
For FBS’s Customers Using Spark
FBS’s MLS customers using Spark can find a timeline and action items here.
FBS will be sending notice to all developers on March 12, 2026, of the change coming April 15, 2026, so they can be ready. With all that in place, on April 15th, you will start seeing analytics flowing into your Source MLS dashboard showing when, where, and how often listings are being displayed. You’ll also be able to access the analytics by downloading a CSV file and via an API Dan is working on now. Dan will be posting more details about that functionality on the SourceMLS.org web site, which is another reason to sign up for an account today.
Please join us in this exciting program to continue to make the market work!