How to get MLS approval for IDX (and avoid delays)

IDX lets you show other brokers’ MLS listings on your own website. Before a single listing appears, though, your MLS has to approve the feed. For most agents this is the slowest step of the whole project, and it is almost always slow for the same reason: paperwork waiting on someone’s desk.

This guide explains what approval is, who signs, where the costs come from, and how the process works when you sign up for IDX Broker through a developer such as Sleek Web Designs. If you are new to the terms, start with what IDX is and how it differs from VOW and the RESO Web API.

What MLS IDX approval actually is

IDX is a policy, not a product. The National Association of REALTORS describes it as a way for MLS participants to authorize limited electronic display of their listings by other participants. Your MLS enforces that policy locally through its own rules and its own data license.

So “approval” means your MLS has confirmed three things:

• You are an active member in good standing, under a participating broker.
• Your broker has authorized the IDX display.
• The company that will receive and display the data (the IDX vendor) has a valid agreement with the MLS.

Because the license runs through the broker, the request is not something an agent can usually complete alone.

Who signs

The exact signers vary by MLS, but the pattern is consistent:

• The agent (subscriber) who wants the website, when the site is for an individual agent or team.
• The managing or designated broker, who authorizes the use of MLS data under the brokerage’s participation.
• The IDX vendor, which signs its own data feed agreement with the MLS.

Published MLS documents show the pattern. MLSListings in California lists a participant broker agreement for brokerages using an approved vendor, plus a separate broker authorization form for an agent or broker who wants IDX through one of its approved vendors. realMLS in Florida states that its data requires a licensing agreement between the vendor, the broker and the MLS. The Indiana Regional MLS handbook includes a combined participant (managing broker) and agent signature page, a separate vendor contract, and a requirement that vendors confirm the brokers and agents they serve remain active and affiliated.

If you are a broker launching a company site, you are both the participant and the requester, which simplifies things. If you are an agent, plan for your broker’s signature from the start. Our brokerage page covers office-wide setups.

What the paperwork usually includes

Forms differ, but most IDX packets contain some combination of:

• An IDX license or data agreement between the MLS and the participant broker.
• A broker authorization naming the agent, the website address and the vendor.
• A vendor or developer agreement, either already on file with the MLS or signed for your account.
• Site details: the domain where listings will appear and, sometimes, the name on the account.
• Display rules: the MLS’s IDX display guidelines and logo requirements, which the vendor and broker agree to follow.

The vendor agreement is the piece people forget. IDX Broker already holds agreements with many MLSs, and its WordPress plugin listing says IDX, LLC manages the necessary MLS paperwork. Your job is mainly to complete and return the agent and broker portions it sends you.

Some MLSs also want to see a working integration before they sign off. IDX Broker documents this case: set up a wrapper page, add an IDX search to the site (for WordPress, the Omnibar widget from the IMPress plugin), then reply to the MLS approval email so its MLS team can take the next step.

Where fees come from

There is no national IDX fee. Costs come from up to three places:

1. Your MLS. Some MLSs charge an IDX or data license fee; others include IDX with membership. One example that is published: realMLS lists a fee of $72 per year for its IDX data license on its data products page. Do not assume your MLS matches it.
2. The IDX vendor. Your IDX Broker subscription and any setup fee. These are separate from MLS charges.
3. Your website build. Design, wrapper setup and configuration by your developer.

Our MLS directory collects what individual MLSs publish about IDX. When an MLS does not post its fee, the vendor’s MLS team or the MLS help desk is the right place to ask.

How the IDX Broker sign-up flow works

When you sign up for IDX Broker through a developer link, the process runs in this order. These details come from how IDX Broker describes its developer sign-up to us as a partner.

1. You create the account using the developer’s sign-up link, choosing your MLS.
2. IDX Broker emails MLS approval instructions to the account holder. These tell you exactly which forms your MLS needs and where to send them.
3. You and your broker complete the paperwork and return it as instructed.
4. The MLS reviews and approves the request. IDX Broker’s own GoDaddy guide describes this same stage: its MLS coordinators email instructions, the MLS reviews the request, and the account is activated once the paperwork is approved.
5. The feed goes live on your site.

Two points matter for your budget and timeline:

• Billing starts when the account is created, not when the MLS approves it. Approval can be pending while the subscription is already running.
• Returning paperwork promptly is the most common factor in delays. IDX Broker cannot speed up an MLS review that has not started because a signature is missing.

The practical takeaway: do not sign up and then go on vacation. Sign up when you and your broker are both available to sign within a day or two.

What can be built while approval is pending

Waiting on the MLS does not mean waiting on the website. IDX Broker gives the developer access to live MLS data on the client’s pages through a non-transferable access code. That access is for building, and it is tied to that account.

While the paperwork moves, your developer can:

• Create the dynamic wrapper so IDX pages match the site design.
• Build saved links for neighborhoods, price bands and property types, which later power showcases and carousels.
• Configure lead registration settings, such as when to request or require sign-up. See IDX lead capture settings for how to choose them.
• Place search, showcase and lead widgets on WordPress pages. Our guide to IDX on WordPress walks through each one.

When approval lands, the site is ready rather than just starting. You can see what a finished build looks like on our live demos.

Common causes of delay

• The broker has not signed. The most frequent hold-up, and the easiest to prevent with a heads-up before sign-up.
• Wrong website address on the forms. IDX Broker treats the website URL, company name and primary client name as fields that require MLS coordinator approval to change, because they usually need updated MLS paperwork. Decide the domain before you submit.
• Membership or affiliation issues. MLS IDX contracts generally assume the agent and broker are active and affiliated, so a lapsed membership or an unconfirmed office change can hold things up.
• The MLS wants a working integration first. If so, the wrapper and a search widget need to be live before approval.
• Changing brokerages mid-process. A new broker means new authorization.

Step-by-step checklist

Use this before, during and after sign-up.

Before you sign up

• Confirm your MLS membership is active and dues are current.
• Tell your managing broker an IDX authorization is coming and ask how they prefer to sign.
• Pick the final domain for the website and the IDX subdomain.
• Look up your MLS’s IDX page for published fees and rules, or check our MLS directory.
• Budget for billing to start at account creation.

During approval

• Sign up through your developer’s IDX Broker link and choose the correct MLS.
• Watch for the MLS approval instructions email from IDX Broker, including your spam folder.
• Complete your portion and get your broker’s signature the same week.
• Return the forms exactly where the instructions say.
• If your MLS requires a working integration, confirm with your developer that the wrapper and search are live, then reply to the approval email.
• Meanwhile, let your developer build saved links, widgets and lead settings.

After approval

• Check that MLS disclaimers and attribution display correctly on results and detail pages.
• Test a lead signup end to end.
• Set up the custom subdomain if it is not already in place.
• If you change brokerages later, tell IDX Broker; company name changes require updated MLS paperwork.

Getting help

If you already have an IDX site that is underperforming, our free IDX audit looks at setup, search pages and lead capture. If you are starting from scratch, get started here, or read how we work with agents and agencies.

Frequently asked questions