Ever get any help on this??
Getting pretty frustrated with this myself as it’s far from intuitive and yet explains away the lack of ANY documentation as it’s not needed(!)
Sigh…
I can create basic listings, but cannot add images or edit the listing after it’s been created. Anyone getting this to work with 3.4.1 or should I just give up and try a different plugin?
I gave up. After finding that “free” MLS included meant paying $45 a month plus the MLS access fees, it just wasn’t worth my time. Additionally, this uses YOUR information to feed THEIR database and create leads and content for THEIR site.
I’m working on developing a custom plug-in that will take care of everything on its own and I’ll use a different plug-in to handle the MLS side of things on my site.
Thanks for the response Craig-
Seems like such a simple thing I’m trying to accomplish – although I think you and I both realize it never is!
I’ll probably check out a couple other plugins-let you know if anything works…
Just went ahead and used “Estate” from WooThemes. Simple to use (had it up and running in a couple of minutes instead of wasting a few hours with this one) and if we ever need MLS, there are a few different plugins to try out for that-.
The WooThemes ‘Estate’ theme just lets you create listings on your website, which is fine if that is all you want to do.
Most agents I have worked with definitely want to showcase their own listings, but they also want to list all properties in their MLS that they have any interest in selling. Access to the data service that MLS’s provide is not free, and not consistent between MLS’s. Often the MLS charges a monthly fee, for example $50. If this plugin provides access to that data and allows you to present it in a standardized way, it is worth $45 a month or even that plus some small fee to the MLS. Most likely if they get enough users, they will be able to negotiate away the MLS fees, so you will end up paying only the plugin’s monthly service fee.
Using this plugin, agents do not have to enter their own properties if they sign up for MLS service, but they can still easily highlight them. There are lots of other great features this plugin provides and, coupled with one of their themes, you can get a pretty nice site up and running without any coding.
The plugin’s maker also seems committed to continually improving their products so I recommend contacting them if you have issues.
Hi Craig, rockytt,
To create a listing you login to your WordPress installation, select the ‘Placester’ menu, ‘Add Listing’ and fill in the property details. You can add images when creating the listing, or later by editing the listing under the ‘Listings’ menu item.
There was a bug that caused issues when creating a new listing or adding images to a listing that could occur under certain circumstances. That has been resolved, so please let us know if you are still experiencing any problems.
The $45 a month fee that we charge covers use of our listing service, which provides access to all listings in your MLS. Many individual MLS boards charge a fee for each agent that accesses their data service, which can be $100’s per month. Unfortunately we have no control of that cost and typically it is paid directly to the board by the real estate agent. However, we are working hard with MLS boards to negotiate that fee down to a minimal amount, preferably free, at which point the only monthly cost for an agent will be the Placester service.
It should be noted that each MLS board has their own way of storing and providing access to their database of listings. They do not provide an easy way to get that data onto your website and they continually change the type of information they store for each listing and even the format of that information, so accessing listing data and manipulating it into a format that can be displayed on a website is a challenge that requires constant tweaking.
Placester has done the heavy lifting of building a service that provides access to that data in a standard way, so that all you have to do is install our plugin and listings can be displayed on your WordPress site.
To highlight some of the features this plugin provides:
– Included as part of the plugin functionality and free to all users:
Create property listings on your site, display them in an SEO friendly way and easily create widgets to highlight properties and allow users to search for them.
– With a monthly subscription to Placester:
Display listings selected by city, zip, etc, or all listings from your MLS on your website, without the need to manually enter any listings.
Optionally save on hosting fees by hosting your real estate site with us for free.
Pick a website design from our growing library of WordPress themes to get a professional looking web presence without the cost, and in days rather than weeks.
