If you want to maximize your membership in RESO, the first thing you should do is sign up for at least one workgroup. The time commitment is highly manageable, as workgroups meet just once a month via a conference call except the two months of the year when we have face-to-face workgroup meetings at the RESO Spring and Fall Conferences.
Here’s a brief overview of each of our current RESO workgroups to give you an idea of what they are about and to help you determine the fit that is best for you, your business and the interest of your clients.
Research & Development
If you think of the data standards process as a giant funnel, then it’s our Research & Development (R&D) Workgroup that is at the top of the funnel. The purpose of the R&D Workgroup is to solicit and review submitted business cases from the real estate community and to identify how RESO can contribute to the benefit of that business process. R&D is where the great idea starts and helps RESO decide where to focus its attention and energy. If you’re new to RESO, the R&D Workgroup is one of the best groups to join to become an immediate contributor.
Data Dictionary
This workgroup has two purposes. The first is to serve as a guideline for a national standard for the fields and lookups (aka enumerations) in the MLS. The second is as a common center for all expressions of fields and enumerations in the RESO Web API standard. The workgroup maintains and develops the Data Dictionary, which serves as the “Rosetta Stone” for real estate data standards, making sure systems can “talk” to one another without the need of a translator.
Broker Advisory
The RESO Broker Advisory Workgroup identifies issues facing brokers of all sizes and makes recommendations for new and evolving standards. Some objectives have included the creation of the wildly successful Working with Real Estate Data – Business (RED-B) online course and designation, adding fields to the Data Dictionary that consolidate agent biographical information at the MLS level in order to avoid duplication across systems and creating an informational resource that documents the processes and differences for gaining access to MLS data across the industry.
Internet Tracking
Internet Tracking data is a key component for any modern day data set. No longer is having the data secure and readily available enough. True analytics now show that value is now expected and commonplace in the software industry. This workgroup has created a recommended standard for inclusion the RESO Data Dictionary for tracking listing and client activity across the Internet, including the MLS listing.
Interoperability
The RESO Interoperability Workgroup’s purpose is to identify challenges and propose solutions for real estate practitioners where technology systems do not efficiently interoperate. The group’s scope extends beyond the traditional MLS server to data consumer challenges, as it can identify issues in all professional real estate technologies.
Universal Parcel Identifier (UPI)
The Universal Parcel Identifier (UPI) Workgroup develops a model to apply a distinct identifier to any real property, allowing consumers of property records to more accurately store, track and utilize real estate data. The group leverages existing models from public records and other data standards organizations to build an efficient standard for the real estate industry. The benefits of a UPI include easier parcel identification across market boundaries, the unification of public records from multiple sources in one display and faster updates to physical property characteristics records.
Transport
The Transport Workgroup creates standards that define how data can be accessed by data consumers from the systems of data producers. The group is primarily focused on the RESO Web API interface between outside applications and MLS servers. The goal of the group is to define a standard for accessing MLS data via a RESTful (REpresentational State Transfer) architecture. Ultimately, this API should provide real-time retrieval of MLS data via standard search methods and in the format designed in the RESO Data Dictionary, enable developers to more rapidly develop applications (web, mobile or other) using widely adopted technology standards and methods, and offer a standard approach that technology partners can adhere to for consistency across markets while enabling technology partners to extend the standard with their own unique approaches.
The variety of RESO workgroups offers something for all members. Joining is the best way to get a seat at the table, to help shape the future of real estate standards and to maximize your RESO membership.
