The Bahamas Real Estate Association (BREA) is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, but it was not until 1995 that persons who were in the business of selling, leasing or appraising real estate were required to have a real estate license. Members of BREA, from its inception, were required to abide by a strict code of ethics, maintain a separate escrow account and meet set academic standards, but you did not need to be a member of BREA to hang up a shingle and declare yourself a real estate agent in The Bahamas. This of course all changed with the Real Estate Broker’s and Salesman’s Act 1995.
It was not until February 2008 that the Bahamas Multiple Listing Service (MLS) was established. Prior to 2008 the majority of listings were “Open Listings.” In other words property owners would list their properties for sale with more than one agent. This many times resulted in a great deal of confusion with properties listed at different prices and owners having to deal with multiple agents. Without the security of a signed “Exclusive Listing” agents were reluctant to spend much time or money marketing these properties. The introduction of the Bahamas MLS and the requirement that all listings submitted to the MLS must be listed exclusively with one agent has been a win-win for everyone. Property owners now need only deal with an agent that they know and trust and the listing agents have the security of being able to actively and effectively market the property without being concerned that the property will be sold without their direct involvement. The added benefit is that we now have a database from which agents can easily prepare comparative market analysis reports which were not possible before the MLS.
The Bahamas MLS is proving to be a great success with over 130 members and more than 900 properties.
Visit our web site at BahamasRealty.bs and/or contact me at lroberts@bahamasreslty.bs and let me “Guide You Home 2” properties in The Bahamas.
Posted By: 
Larry Roberts
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