If you find yourself in a situation where you feel it is necessary to utilize the new TOM Status, be sure to follow the steps outlined below:

1) If your broker/brokerage policy permits the classification of the listing in a TOM status, make sure your seller understands the impact of excluding their property from public exposure.

2) Have your Seller complete the Change of Status to Temporarily Off-Market (TOM) form and submit it to the BSCMLS by emailing it to info@gallatinrealtors.com

3) Once your seller acknowledges that showings are to be suspended until the listing is back in an Active status, you may then change it to Temporarily Off-Market.

4) MARK YOUR CALENDAR! A TOM listing will AUTOMATICALLY expire on the Expiration Date.

If you have a question about the Temporarily Off-Market status that isn’t addressed here, please call the MLS Staff at 406-585-0033

In certain situations when working with a seller, it may be necessary to temporarily remove a property from the market. Examples might include: the seller is unable or unwilling to allow showings; issues concerning the title of the property; property has been damaged and undergoing repairs; home improvements; or privacy concerns.

The BSCMLS rules define the TOM status as:

Listings of real property in which the Seller has requested the Participant to temporarily suspend all showings AND public marketing.

Listings of real property in which the Seller has requested the Participant to:

a)   …temporarily suspend all showings,

The showing appointment prohibition applies to ALL MLS Participants and Subscribers, including those affiliated with the listing brokerage or firm. This prohibition also extends to the Seller. If a Temporarily Off-Market listing is shown by anyone, to anyone, the TOM status may not be applied to the listing, and the listing broker must change the status back to Active within 1 weekday.

b)   …AND public marketing.

All pre-existing public marketing prior to the status change may continue. Your yard sign does not need to be removed. However, no new public marketing may occur. Public marketing includes, but is not limited to, flyers displayed in windows, additional yard signs, digital marketing on public-facing websites, social media, blogs and forums, brokerage website displays, digital communications marketing (email blasts), and applications available to the general public.

• The TOM status is not the equivalent of an Office Exclusive listing agreement. Office Exclusive listings are held off the MLS from the beginning of the listing term. Once the property is entered on the MLS, it cannot be removed in an effort to exclusively offer the property for sale within the brokerage or firm again. When a property is entered on the MLS for sale, it is exposed to the general public and open to cooperation and compensation among competing brokerages. This cannot be undone.
• TOM was designed as a TEMPORARY status to accommodate the Seller’s request to suspend showings and additional marketing. The request to change the status to TOM should only be initiated by the Seller. This is not something the listing agent or broker can unilaterally decide.
• Once a listing is placed into a TOM status, regardless of how long it remains there, Matrix will not allow the listing agent or broker to change the status to TOM again during the remainder of the listing term.
• There is no limit to how long a listing may remain in a TOM status, and during the period in which the listing is in a TOM status, days on market will not accrue.
• When the status of a listing is changed to TOM, it will be removed from all syndication to the internet. The only location the listing will be found is in the MLS. The status of these listings will be prominently displayed at the top of detailed reports in Matrix, outlined in red: