Removing Listings From An IDX Feed

Removing listings from an IDX feed after the home is listed is pretty much impossible.

Why? Because the display of information is something that is authorized when a listing is entered into our MLS system.

The average homeowner and many real estate agents do not understand what IDX (Internet Data eXchange) is.

Because of that, we often get emails from agents or homeowners who wonder why their listing is on our web site. Typically, a homeowner or an agent will be searching for a home address in a Google search, and they will be taken to a page on our website.

Shortly after they discover their home on our website, they fire off an email that reads something like this.

I am the current owner of this residence. Please remove the photos of the inside of the home. Thank you

Of course, not all of the emails are that cordial. None the less, we respond with a link to this web page that you are currently reading.

So, What is IDX?

IDX allows agents and brokers to share real estate listings on IDX enabled websites. There are thousands of Broker/Agent Websites that display ARMLS IDX listings on the Internet.  Those websites display photos of homes after automatically receiving them from an IDX feed.

So you see, not only is your listing displayed on our website, it is also displayed on thousands of sites. They are syndicated locally, and they are automatically sent to national listing sites, as well.

What if I don’t want my listing shown on your website?

Unfortunately, it is too late for that:

In our MLS system (ARMLS), agreeing to display your listings via IDX is a default setting. If people don’t want their listings displayed on other IDX enabled real estate sites, then they would need to opt out at the time the home is originally listed into the MLS system.

For individual listings, an agent or broker can opt out of IDX by UNchecking a box when the listing is entered into the MLS. The screen shot above is from a listing entry page in our MLS system: THIS is the time when someone can uncheck any of the boxes they choose.

See where it says, “IDX Program Sharing”? And under that is a checked box labeled “IDX”? Unless that box is unchecked before the home is listed, that listing, and any photos associated with the home, will be sent out in the IDX data feed to thousands of local and national web sites.

Removing listings from an IDX feed Is Done BEFORE The Listing Is Active:

Unfortunately, I can not remove your listing from my website. The previous listing agent authorized it to be displayed and there is nothing I can do to have it removed from the data feed that put it there.

Please Know: The IDX providers that we utilize on our websites are authorized, approved and fully compliant with all IDX rules and regulations. We can not change their IDX feeds in any way.

Further Clarification:
If you still have questions, please read the following web page and document. ARMLS Web Page on IDX: That page contains a ton of info on how an IDX feed works. Please feel free to contact ARMLS to learn more about IDX if you’d like to know their policy or more about their rules. You can reach them at 480-921-7777. You can read this document about the ARMLS IDX policy, as well.

**Please Note: YOU might be able to remove photos from SOME of the sites your home can be found on. It’s just not something we can do for anyone who is not a client of ours.

Thanks for understanding, and thank you for visiting our website.

Please bookmark this site for future reference. As you can see, our marketing systems work well. Afterall, an online search brought you to this website. We’d love to talk to you about other effective ways to SELL a home!