MLS data access approvals are reviewed by people, not by software. A complete application on a fast board can be approved within two days. An incomplete one can sit for weeks with no message explaining why.
Nothing on the MLSImport side speeds this up. What you can control is submitting an application that has nothing missing, and knowing which question to ask when it stalls.
What is actually being reviewed
- Your membership standing. Whether your account is current and entitled to a data feed.
- The agreement. The data licence covering what you may display and for how long, which often needs more than one signature.
- Your broker’s participation. On most boards the designated broker signs or enables the access.
- The domain. The site the data will be displayed on, recorded in the application.
- The dataset request on the platform. A separate step from the agreement, made in Bridge, Trestle, or whichever platform your MLS uses.
People miss the last one most often. Signing the agreement and registering on the platform are not the same as requesting access to the dataset itself, and an account with no dataset request returns no data.
Submit the application with the live domain, even if the site is not built yet. Approvals are recorded against a domain, and changing it later can mean a new review rather than an edit.
Where applications commonly stall
- The broker has not acted. The single most common cause. The request cannot proceed until they log in and sign or enable it.
- The wrong agreement type was chosen. Boards offer several, including separate member and third party vendor routes. A member who picked the vendor route is often waiting in the wrong queue.
- The intended use description is blank or vague. Several MLSs require it and return the application without it.
- The dataset shows Pending, not Approved. This is on the MLS side. The platform is waiting for them.
- Missing broker or domain details. An application can be accepted and then sit unreviewed because a required field was left incomplete.
What to ask when it has been too long
Contact your MLS rather than the platform first, because most of these decisions are theirs. Ask three specific questions instead of asking for a status.
- What is the current status of my Web API application?
- Is anything missing, in particular broker or domain details?
- When will credentials be issued, and is anything waiting on me?
If the platform account exists and the dataset shows Pending there, say so in the message. It tells them exactly which step you are stuck on.
If your trial is running out while you wait for an approval, tell us before it lapses. We can extend the trial or help you cancel and restart when the credentials arrive, so you are not paying for a connection you cannot make yet.
What to do with the waiting time
The MLS connection is the last step of a build, not the first. Everything else can be done while the application sits.
- Install WordPress and the theme you will use, and install MLSImport. Neither needs credentials.
- Build the pages that are not listings: home, about, contact, area pages.
- Decide your import scope. Which cities, which price range, which statuses. This decides how many import tasks you need.
- Check your hosting limits, particularly memory and maximum execution time, so the first real import is not the moment you discover them.
When the credentials arrive, connecting and running a test import takes minutes on a site that is already built.
Frequently asked questions
How long does approval usually take?
It varies by board more than by anything else. Some boards approve a complete member application in a couple of days, and others review in batches and take weeks. Ask your MLS for their expected turnaround when you apply, so you know when it is genuinely late.
Can MLSImport chase the MLS for me?
No. We have no visibility into your application and no standing to ask about it. What we can do is tell you which platform and credentials your MLS uses, so your message to them is specific.
Should I subscribe before my access is approved?
Only if you want the site built in the meantime, and tell us if the trial is going to expire before your credentials arrive. There is no advantage to holding an active subscription against an unapproved application.
My application was rejected. What now?
Ask the MLS for the reason in writing. Rejections are usually procedural, such as the wrong agreement type, a missing broker signature, or a domain that does not match the brokerage. All of those can be corrected and resubmitted.
Related
- Who needs to hold the credentials
- Bridge Interactive credentials
- CoreLogic Trestle credentials
- Requirements before you buy
If your application has stalled and you are not sure which step it is on, send us what you have and we will tell you who to ask.