How RPR Helped Me Build a More Accurate CMA Beyond the MLS
When I prepare a comparative market analysis, I want to understand what similar properties actually sold for. That means looking beyond the sales reported in my MLS.
One of the most useful features I’ve found in REALTORS® Property Resource—RPR—is access to recorded sales that may never have appeared in the MLS. In my own work, those additional sales helped me develop a more complete CMA and a better-supported estimate of probable selling price.
What My MLS Search Was Missing
The MLS provides valuable information about listed properties, including photos, descriptions, marketing history, and transaction details. But a property can sell without ever being listed there.
Builder sales, for-sale-by-owner transactions, and other off-market sales may appear in public records even when they are missing from an MLS search.
When I used RPR to expand my research, I could evaluate additional sold properties alongside the MLS results. For that analysis, the broader information gave me a more accurate picture of the market than the MLS results alone.
More Sales to Consider, Better Support for My CMA
The benefit wasn’t simply having a longer list of sales. It was having additional properties to consider when deciding which sales best represented the subject property.
A nearby sale is not automatically a good comparable. Location, size, age, condition, property features, and the circumstances of the transaction still matter.
RPR helped me broaden the research. My job as the broker was to evaluate those records, select appropriate comparables, and explain how they supported my pricing conclusion.
That combination helped me provide a more informed estimate of probable selling price and a clearer explanation of the reasoning behind it.
Why I Say “Probable Selling Price”
In North Carolina, a broker’s CMA estimates a property’s probable selling price. It should not be presented as an appraisal or an estimate of the property’s market value.
That distinction matters when we explain our work to clients. My CMA provides pricing guidance based on comparable properties and market conditions. It does not replace an appraisal.
Nationwide Research Is Another Useful Advantage
RPR also allows members to research properties nationwide using available public records and authorized MLS information.
That reach can be especially useful when researching another market. However, access to records does not replace local market knowledge, and data availability varies by location. Brokers still need to understand the market and verify the information used in their analysis.
Learn How to Use RPR Beyond a Basic Property Search
RPR offers much more than an automated property estimate. Its research, CMA, reporting, mobile, and AI tools can help you organize information and communicate it more clearly to buyers and sellers.
In Using RPR to Better Serve Buyers & Sellers, I teach practical ways to research sales beyond your MLS, evaluate potential comparables, and create professional client reports.
Earn 4 hours of North Carolina elective CE in a live Zoom class for $65.00.
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