Definition: A Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, is a marketing database set up by a group of cooperating real estate brokers. It's purpose is to provide accurate and structured data about properties for sale. It also is a mechanism for listing brokers to offer compensation to buyer brokers who bring a buyer for their listed property.
Each MLS has its own rules and procedures. If the membership are all REALTORS®, then the rules are patterned on regulations published by the National Association of Realtors®. By using rigid data criteria and providing rules for the offer of compensation to other brokers, the MLS has been the primary vehicle for the vast majority of real estate transactions over the years.
