MLS Europe - The European Standard for Collaborative

An Independent and Nonprofit Body

MLS Europe is an independent, nonprofit standards body. Our member organizations include, on one hand, locals and nationals associations of real estate agents & brokers, and on another hand, MLS solutions providers and technology partners serving the real estate professionals and industry.

A Certification Program

MLS Europe was formed to create, promote and develop a certification program for labeling the various organizations involved in the operation of the MLSs, in order to create transparency and efficiencies for all participants in real estate transactions, for the major benefit of professionals, as well as their clients buyers and sellers.

Our Mission

MLS Europe’s mission is to promote and operate a collaborative standard that drives efficiency throughout the European Real Estate Industry.‌

Our Vision

Our vision is that of an industry that has embraced the collaborative model as a fundamental element of added value for their clients, based on common collaborative rules, and a streamlined real estate technology industry.

Context of the Industry

A Challenged Industry

The real estate industry represents on average about 15% of the GDP of the different countries. Within this industry, the transaction sector is strategically located, both upstream and downstream of all real estate projects. It is therefore an extremely coveted activity by the various market players.

The development of NICTs has recently favored the emergence of new players, and has considerably impacted the organization of the industry by creating new challenges for the professionals of the sector:

Questioning their added value
Capture of part of this added valueby NICT players
Emergence of disruptive businessmodels
Multiplication of services to individuals
Loss of data control
Lack of control over regulatory changes

MLS As A Major Value-Added Element

In this context, the added value of a regulated collaborative approach by real estate agents within MLS-type organizations represents a structuring, determining and non-reducible element on which real estate agents must be able to rely in order to maintain a major role in the industry, and guarantee an optimum quality of service to their clients.

At the European level, the rational development of local MLS organizations therefore represents a major challenge for the fluidity of the real estate transaction market, the organization of industry professionals, and the recognition of their added value by their clients.

Why An Independent & Non-Profit Organization ?

MLS-type organizations or initiatives have been developed in a differentiated and uncoordinated manner within the different European countries and regions, depending on the following:

However, to date, there is no international standard reference framework that lists the fundamental principles and structuring elements of the development and operation of MLSs, a reference framework on which local organizations could rely to optimize their operation, better control their market, and better legitimize their positioning and their actions vis-à-vis the various market players and public authorities.

Therefore, the choice to create a non-profit and independent organization appeared obvious to the promoters of MLS Europe, in order to guarantee the relevance and the neutrality of the proposed standards.