Section 3.1 Participant
Any REALTOR® member of the Richmond Association of REALTORS®, Inc., the Southside Virginia Association of REALTORS® or any other association who is a principal, partner, corporate officer or branch manager acting on behalf of a principal, without further qualification, except as otherwise stipulated herein, shall be eligible to participate in the MLS upon agreeing in writing to conform to the CVR MLS rules and regulations thereof and to pay costs incidental thereto. However, under no circumstances is any individual or firm, regardless of membership status, entitled to Multiple Listing Service “membership” or “participation” unless they hold a current, valid real estate broker’s license and cooperate or are licensed or certified by an appropriate state regulatory agency to engage in the appraisal of real property. Cooperation is the obligation to share information on listed property and to make property available to other brokers for showing to prospective purchasers and tenants when it is in the best interests of their clients. Use of information developed by or published by the MLS is strictly limited to the activities authorized under a Participant’s licensure(s) or certification and unauthorized uses are prohibited.
Mere possession of a broker’s license is not sufficient to qualify for MLS participation. Rather, the requirement that an individual or firm cooperates means that the Participant actively endeavors during the operation of its real estate business to list real property of the type listed on the MLS, shares information on listed property, and makes property available to other brokers for showing to prospective purchasers and tenants when it is in the best interests of their clients, and to cooperate. “Actively” means on a continual and ongoing basis during the operation of the Participant’s real estate business. The “actively” requirement is not intended to preclude MLS participation by a Participant or potential Participant that operates a real estate business on a part-time, seasonal, or similarly time- limited basis or that has its business interrupted by periods of relative inactivity occasioned by market conditions. Similarly, the requirement is not intended to deny MLS participation to a Participant or potential Participant who has not achieved a minimum number of transactions despite good faith efforts. Nor is it intended to permit an MLS to deny participation based on the level of service provided by the Participant or potential Participant as long as the level of service satisfies state law.
The key is that the Participant or potential Participant cooperates with respect to properties of the type that are listed on the MLS in which participation is sought. Cooperation is the obligation to share information on listed property and to make property available to other brokers for showing to prospective purchasers and tenants when it is in the best interests of their client(s). This requirement does not permit an MLS to deny participation to a Participant or potential Participant that operates a “Virtual Office Website” (VOW) (including a VOW that the Participant uses to refer customers to other Participants) if the Participant or potential Participant actively endeavors to cooperate. An MLS may evaluate whether a Participant or potential Participant actively endeavors during the operation of its real estate business to cooperate only if the MLS has a reasonable basis to believe that the Participant or potential Participant is in fact not doing so. The membership requirement shall be applied in a nondiscriminatory manner to all Participants and potential Participants.
Further, none of the foregoing is intended to convey “participation” or “membership” or any right of access to information developed by or published by the MLS where access to such information is prohibited by applicable law. Any person who qualifies for participation in the MLS shall be a Participant. Participant may also be referred to as Broker Participant.
Article 3: PARTICIPATION