Office Exclusive
The Office Exclusive function offers the option for a period of exclusivity while also complying with the NAR Clear Cooperation Policy. The Office Exclusive field in Flexmls is a Yes/No setting that allows brokers and agents to determine who can see their listings. The field name “Office Exclusive” simply describes the function of the setting–but the MLS can name the field anything they want. When an agent marks a listing as “Yes” in the Office Exclusive field, the listing is only visible and shareable to other members of their same office or company, as well to clients, but not to other agents—allowing agents to manage listings that are kept private until they are ready for wider exposure.
The Office Exclusive function is customizable to your MLS. Below are recommended best practices for using the Office Exclusive function.
Private Listings Before Public Exposure: When an agent sets a listing as “Yes” for the Office Exclusive field, that listing is kept private within the office or company. Agents can still share the listing with their clients, but it will not be visible to other agents or the broader MLS.
Transitioning to Public Visibility: When the agent is ready to list the property publicly, they can easily change the Office Exclusive setting to “No”. This transition automatically:
Makes the listing searchable by all MLS members
Triggers the listing to appear on the Hot Sheet as a new listing
Updates the Days on Market (DOM) for the listing
Records the change in the listing history, including updating the begin date to the current date
No Impact on Inactive Listings: If a listing is not active, changing the Office Exclusive setting does not affect its status or visibility.
Automatic Public Access Upon Sale: Once an Office Exclusive listing is sold, it automatically becomes visible to all MLS members, ensuring that final sale data remains transparent.
For more information about MLS Settings, refer to the MLS Settings document.
To enable the Office Exclusive setting for your MLS, contact Customer Success (cpr@flexmls.com).