Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that the following examples are being conducted with an IDX API key. For private fields and media data, a Private/Broker Back Office API key is required.

Search For an Inactive MLS Member

To search for an inactive Member, you can use multiple fields such as the MemberFullName, MemberEmail, MemberKey or the MemberMlsId. Please note that the MemberKey is a unique identifier for the MLS member. Also note the MemberMlsId is the local, well-known identifier for the member, and this value may not be unique. When attempting to pull an MLS member record, we recommend utilizing the MemberKey.

For this example, we will use the MemberFullName field. Once the member’s full name is acquired, you will need to apply the $filter parameter to search for that particular member. 

Within your ‘New Request’, click on the ‘Params’ tab. You will see a table with columns labeled ‘Key’, ‘Value’ and ‘Description’.

In the ‘Key’ column, enter the ‘$filter’ param and ensure that you have checked the box to the left of the param you entered.

In the next box under the $filter param, repeat the process by entering $select.

Now, in the ‘Value’ column on the right side of the $filter param, enter the following format:
MemberFullName eq ‘Enter_MemberFullName’ and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false)

For this example, we’re searching for MLS member Michael Scott, so my value will look like this: 

MemberFullName eq ‘Michael Scott’ and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false)

Next, you will want to $select the fields you wish to see. 

For this example, we will $select the following fields: 

MemberFullName,MemberStatus,MemberKey,MemberMlsId

Feel free to copy and paste the fields above as a ‘Value’ for the $select param.

If everything was entered correctly, Postman will create the following URL.

“https://replication.sparkapi.com/Reso/OData/Member?$filter=MemberFullName eq ‘Michael Scott’ and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false) &$select=MemberFullName, MemberStatus,MemberKey,MemberMIsid”

The results in your payload should look similar to this.

Search For an Inactive Office by Name.

Similar to researching for members, to search for an inactive office, you can use a variety of fields. For this example, we will use the office name. Once acquired, you will need to apply the $filter parameter to search for that particular office. 

Within your ‘New Request’, click on the ‘Params’ tab. You will see a table with columns labeled ‘Key’, ‘Value’ and ‘Description’.

In the ‘Key’ column, enter the ‘$filter’ param and ensure to check the box to the left of the param you entered.

In the next box under the $filter param, repeat the process by entering $select.

Now, in the ‘Value’ column, to the right of the $filter param, enter the following format:
OfficeName eq ‘Enter_OfficeName’’ and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false)

For this example, we’re searching for inactive office named ‘Dunder Mifflin Office’, so my value will look like this: 

OfficeName eq ‘Dunder Mifflin Office’ and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false)

Next, you will want to $select the fields you wish to see. 

For this example, we will $select the following fields: 

OfficeName,OfficeStatus,OfficeKey,OfficeMlsId

Feel free to copy and paste as a ‘Value’ for the $select param.

Please note that the OfficeKey is a unique identifier for the office. Also note that the OfficeMlsId is the local, well-known identifier for the office, and this value may not be unique. When attempting to pull an MLS office record, we recommend utilizing the OfficeKey.

If everything was entered correctly, Postman will create the following URL.

“https://replication.sparkapi.com/Version/2/Reso/OData/Office?$filter=OfficeName eq ‘Dunder Mifflin Office’ and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false&$select=OfficeName, OfficeStatus,OfficeKey,OfficeMIsId”

The results in your payload should look similar to this.

Below, we wanted to share some of the most common error codes developers might  run into so that you and the developer have an idea of how to troubleshoot them. Keep in mind these codes below are the most likely, but might change depending on the exact error. A full list of error codes and explanations can be found here. 

500 – Your API key has not been properly set up. Please contact API support.  Your key has not been properly set up for the MLS user.

403 – This key is restricted to specific IP addresses and/or User-Agent values

403 – This key is restricted from accessing this endpoint. Please use replication.sparkapi.com

429 – Over rate limit

403 – The Flexmls account associated with this API key is inactive or has their system access turned off. Please contact MLS staff to resolve if you feel this is in error.

401- The request was made by a disabled OAuth client

• The MLS admin home screen now features an expanded “todo” section, serving as a centralized list of outstanding items in need of MLS action. The section displays up to three key categories:
  • Data Plan Subscriptions Awaiting MLS Approval
  • Licensees Awaiting MLS Approval
  • Past Due Licensee Updates

• The Subscription page now includes a filter to only show data plan subscriptions with pending licensees that haven’t been fully approved, allowing MLS admins to easily see where follow-ups or MLS approvals are needed.

• Finally, the Manage Licensees page is now ordered to show all pending licensees at the top of the page, rather than presenting them in the order in which they were reported.

By default, our APIs only return active members and offices—similar to RETS. You may have gotten questions from developers about this—something along the lines of, “I’m trying to pull John Doe’s record via the API, but it’s not returning. Why?” This is likely because John is set to “Inactive” or “Not in List” in Flexmls. This behavior is expected, as Flexmls allows the MLS to mark a member as “Not in List”—preventing those members from being returned by default. If a vendor would like inactive members and offices to be returned, they must include “(Visible eq true or Visible eq false)” in their query. When they include this, they can retrieve inactive or “Not in List” records.

Example query:

https://replication.sparkapi.com/Reso/OData/Member?$filter=MemberFullName eq 'John Doe' and (Visible eq true or Visible eq false)

The Spark Datamart now allows you to upload PDF documents to data plan subscriptions and reported licensees, helping you conveniently keep track of relevant agreements. Learn More

Sometimes, vendors might contact you saying they can’t see the longitude/latitude information for a listing in their IDX feed.

Here’s why: The latitude and longitude values are not manually entered by the listing agent. Instead, they are automatically generated based on the property’s location through a map or geocoding service. The licensing terms with our geocoding provider prevent us from sharing these values for listings where the location was automatically determined by the geocoding service. As a result, these values will be hidden for some listings based on those rules.

To make the latitude and longitude data visible, the listing agent can manually adjust the property’s location in Flexmls. This can be done by either manually setting the property’s location or slightly moving the location pin. When the agent does this, the latitude and longitude will be directly tied to the agent’s input, bypassing the restriction from the geocoding service and ensuring the data shows up in all feeds.

IP whitelisting is a feature that restricts API access to specific IP addresses. This means that the API credentials will only work when requests come from these approved IP addresses.

To view or manage the IP whitelist for an API key, go to the Credential Manager and look for the “IP Address Restrictions” section.

As a standard practice, we don’t automatically whitelist API feeds unless the MLS specifically requests it. Please note that if a vendor’s IP address changes and they have a whitelist in place, they will no longer be able to access the data until the whitelist is updated with the new IP address.

This month, we’re sharing information about how your vendors can replicate data if they have any questions. Replication allows developers to create a local copy of data and keep it up-to-date through periodic API calls as the data changes.

By default, API requests return 10 records at a time. For example, if an API user needs to pull 55 listings, they would need to make six separate API calls (five calls that return 10 listings each, and one final call for the remaining 5). For developers that are wanting to replicate a lot of data, we have simplified this process by offering a specific API endpoint and a replication role. The replication role increases the limit, allowing users to retrieve up to 1000 listings, office, or member records in a single call. This won’t cause any technical issues because we have a dedicated API endpoint for replication, and all API keys issued via API data plans will automatically include the replication role.

Please note: Even with the replication role, vendors will need to use the appropriate parameter (`$top=1000`) to increase the number of returned records. Here’s an example of a full request that retrieves 1000 records:

https://replication.sparkapi.com/Reso/OData/Property?$top=1000

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that the following examples are being conducted with an IDX API key. For private fields and media data, a Private/Broker Back Office API key is required.

Search for a Member by Name

To search for a Member, you can use multiple fields such as the MemberEmail, MemberKey or the MemberMlsId. For this example we will use the MemberFullName field. Once the member’s full name is acquired, you will need to apply the $filter parameter to search for that particular member. 

Within your ‘New Request’, click on the ‘Params’ tab. You will see a table with columns labeled ‘Key’, ‘Value’ and ‘Description’.

In the ‘Key’ column, enter the ‘$filter’ param and ensure to check the box to the left of the param you entered.

In the next box under the $filter param, repeat the process by entering $select.

Now, in the ‘Value’ column, to the right of the $filter param, enter the following format:
MemberFullName eq ‘Enter_MemberFullName’

For this example, I’m searching for MLS member Michael Scott, so my value will look like this: 
MemberFullName eq ‘Michael Scott’

Next, you will want to $select the fields you wish to see. 

For this example, we will $select the following fields: 
MemberFullName,MemberStatus,MemberKey,MemberMlsId

Feel free to copy and paste the fields above as a ‘Value’ for the $select param.

If everything was entered correctly, Postman will create the following URL

The results in your payload should look similar to this.

Search for an Office by Name

Similar to researching for members, to search for an office, you can use a variety of fields. For this example we will use the office name. Once acquired, you will need to apply the $filter parameter to search for that particular office. 

Within your ‘New Request’, click on the ‘Params’ tab. You will see a table with columns labeled ‘Key’, ‘Value’ and ‘Description’.

In the ‘Key’ column, enter the ‘$filter’ param and ensure to check the box to the left of the param you entered.

In the next box under the $filter param, repeat the process by entering $select.

Now, in the ‘Value’ column, to the right of the $filter param, enter the following format:
OfficeName eq ‘Enter_OfficeName’’

For this example, I’m searching for office named ‘Dunder Mifflin Office’, so my value will look like this: 
OfficeName eq ‘Dunder Mifflin Office’

Next, you will want to $select the fields you wish to see. 

For this example, we will $select the following fields: 
OfficeName,OfficeStatus,OfficeKey,OfficeMlsId

Feel free to copy and paste as a ‘Value’ for the $select param.

If everything was entered correctly, Postman will create the following URL.

The results in your payload should look similar to this.

Custom Template Creation

Each API key for your MLS has specific rules that determine data access and restrictions based on roles like IDX, VOW, or private. Customized access may be needed when specific data requirements don’t fit one of those three roles. In this case, a custom template can be created and then be applied to either a new or existing API key. In this video we will walk you through how to create a custom API template.

Most API keys are created through the Datamart, however, there are times when a developer asks for a certain type of access that can’t be covered in those plans. In those cases, MLS admins can create an individual key for the developer through the Credential Manager. There are a few things to know about creating API keys this way and in this video, we will walk you through how to do it and what you need to know.

• Our API Support team sent a general announcement to all developers pertaining to the NAR settlement letting them know any information regarding MLS specific fields will be included in RETS notices.
  
• If a data plan is suspended, when viewing the subscription card we have added a tooltip icon next to the Current Status and SUSPENDED labels that the MLS and developer can hover over to view the reason, provided by the MLS, for the suspension.
  
• If API Support steps in to expedite the approval process when the MLS member is having issues, that approval history now shows the plan was approved by FBS API Support, on Behalf of [original approver] instead of the MLS as it previously showed. 

Navigating the approval process when working with developers and data plans can be intimidating. To assist you, our team has created two comprehensive slide decks that guide you through the approval process step-by-step, tailored to each management option we offer. Depending on what your MLS has chosen, you can use the appropriate slide deck to walk through either Licensee Management or Data Plan Management. These slide decks will help answer any questions you may have about your current process or provide additional information if you are considering a switch to a different management option.

Licensee Management Overview        Data Plan Management Overview

When you are viewing data plans in the Datamart you are able to customize how you view those subscriptions. You can sort your view by Status, Data Plan, Developer, Last Active, Final Approval and Licensees, making it quick and easy to find the information you are looking for. 

When viewing licensees, the MLS now has the ability to edit the URL displayed next to the “URL where data is used” section. Simply click “change” next to that section to update the URL. 

We are excited to share that our Admin Academy now includes dedicated pages focusing on API documentation. Topics such as, “How to use Postman” and “Postman Basic Queries” have already been added and we will continue to expand by adding more topics over time.

You can easily find these pages by searching for “API documentation” in the Academy, or by going to the Admin Academy > Spark and looking for the API Documentation tag on the post. We hope this will be a valuable resource for you.

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that the following examples are being conducted with an IDX API key. For private fields and media data, a Private/Broker Back Office API key is required.

Search For A Listing

To search for a listing, you will need the listing’s MLS ID. Once acquired, you will need to apply the $filter parameter to search for that particular listing.

Within your ‘New Request’, click on the ‘Params’ tab. You will see a table with columns labeled ‘Key’, ‘Value’ and ‘Description’.

In the ‘Key’ column, enter the ‘$filter’ param and ensure to check the box to the left of the param you entered.

In the next box under the $filter param, repeat the process by entering $select.

Now, in the ‘Value’ column, to the right of the $filter param, enter the following format:
ListingId eq ‘Insert_Your_ListingId’

For this example, I’m searching for ListingId # 5485355, so my value will look like this: 

ListingId eq ‘5485355’

Next, you will want to $select the fields you wish to see. 

For this example, we will $select the following fields. 

ListingId,UnparsedAddress,PropertyType,MlsStatus,StandardStatus

Feel free to copy and paste as a ‘Value’ for the $select param.

If everything was entered correctly, the results in your payload should look similar to this.

If you would like to pull photos and public documents, you can add the $expand param to the ‘Key’ column and Media as the Value field.

Your payload should display a “Media” field with enumerated values containing data for photos and public documents.

You might be wondering where do I begin? The first step is signing up for a free Postman account. Postman is an API platform for building and using APIs and it is what our API Support team uses when you or your developers/vendors write in with questions related to API queries and returned MLS data.

Head to https://www.postman.com/ and sign up using the ‘Sign Up’ button on the top right corner of the page.

Once signed in, you’ll want to click on the “Workspaces” dropdown menu on the top left of the page, then click on ‘My Workspace’

Within your workspace, click on the “Create Collection” button.

After creating your new collection, you will need to add your API access token.
In the ‘Authorization’ tab, click on the dropdown menu under ‘Auth Type’ and select ‘Bearer Token’.

Enter your access token in the ‘Token’ box.

Make sure to click ‘Save’ on the top right hand corner of the page.

Next, you’ll need to click on ‘Add a request’ to your new collection.

After adding a request, copy and paste the following URL as a new request, then click ‘Save’. This request will allow you to get started with pulling MLS listings.

https://replication.sparkapi.com/Reso/OData/Property

In our ongoing effort to streamline data access for MLS admins, we’d like to highlight two reports: the API Keys Report and Licensee Report. With these reports, MLS admins can easily export a spreadsheet directly from the Spark Platform. These spreadsheets show all API keys and Licensees that can access their MLS data. 

How Do I Access It?
When logged into the Spark Platform, navigate to API > Credential Manager, and click the Export CSV button near the top right corner. Here, you have the option to export either the API Keys Report or the Licensee Report (if opted-in to licensee reporting). 

If you click on the API Keys Report, you’ll see that the pop-up window that appears contains options for which API keys to include in the report, as well as an option to see explanations of the data in each column. Select the options you want using the checkboxes on the left, and click Export CSV. 

Similarly, if you click on the Licensee Report, you’ll see that the pop-up window that appears contains options to include the column explanations as well as the pending and suspended licensees in the report. Select the options you want using the checkboxes on the left, and click Export CSV.

In addition to the two reports mentioned above, we have also recently made the Activity Report available for exporting as a CSV. The Activity Report shows developer activity information (average daily requests, data role, etc…) and is available in the main menu under API > Activity Report.

Back in November, we shared an announcement regarding changes in the API usage fee for developers subscribed to your data plans. While the dust was settling for the past two billing cycles, we have waived any overage fees to provide ample time for developers to make any necessary adjustments. Please note that beginning with March’s billing cycle, which will bill at the beginning of April, the API usage fee will be implemented without the overage fees being waived.

We wanted to share a sample receipt for you to reference should you or your developers have any questions. The receipt has recently been updated to include an Explanation of Services. It clearly shows which MLSs the developers are paying for API access to, as well as any overage charges if they have them.

Questions about new pricing? Full details can be found here.

In the Spark Datamart, when creating MLS data plans or API keys via the Credential Manager, the MLS has the option to elect to pay for those API keys instead of the data consumer. 

There are two ways to issue MLS-paid API keys:

1. Via the Credential Manager, on a one-off basis. On the screen to invite a developer to accept an API key, select the checkbox that says “This is an MLS-paid API key. The MLS, not the accepting developer, will be responsible for all associated charges.”

To learn how to create an MLS-paid API key via the Credential Manager, click here.

2. Offer an MLS-paid data plan. The MLS will pay for each subscription to the data plan. If you’re interested in this, please contact api-support@fbsdata.com, as this can only be set up by FBS.

• Our team has been busy making updates to the approval process:
  • Agents and brokers can now find their pending data plan and licensee approvals by logging into their Spark Dashboard at www.sparkapi.io using their Flexmls credentials.
  • We have added additional explicit guidance about which Flexmls accounts are authorized to approve emails.
  • MLSs will now directly receive broker-level emails when there’s no office email address or set designated broker. The email will have instructions for how to handle these approvals.

We know that when developers are looking for help, they will often reach out to the MLS. Because of this, we are sharing with you a new auto response email which our API Support team is sending to all developer emails that come to the API Support inbox. In the email, we lay out the necessary information needed to provide issue resolution. If you have a developer reach out to the MLS, please ask them to include the information requested in the email below before reaching out to API Support. Without the items listed in the auto response email, our API Support team cannot begin troubleshooting. By including the items listed, we will have everything we need to quickly and easily resolve the issue with minimal back and forth. 

Developer Auto Response Email:

If developers ask, they can find the API FEED ID in their credential email. Note that they should not share the private access token. Here’s that email:

And when attaching screenshots, please have developers paste them directly in email. Due to security reasons, our team is unable to open attachments.

If you have a vendor that is making the switch from RETS to API, the Field Report in the Spark Platform will help them with mapping. The Field Report shows the field name for a given piece of data across systems (Flexmls, RETS, the Spark API, and our RESO Web API) and can be useful when transitioning from a RETS feed to an API feed. The MLS is able to grab this report as well as the developer/vendor (as allowed by your MLS). Of course, our API Support team is always happy to grab this report for you as well.

To access the Field Report login to the Spark Platform and in the left hand menu use the API menu dropdown and select Template Manager. 

Then, pick any template and click “edit”

OR

If you have no templates, create one and save as TEST. Note that you must first save the template before attempting to download this report.

Once in your template, navigate to the Report tab and select Download Results (CSV)

We have added a new MLS Notes section to Datamart Subscriptions where MLS admins can annotate notes for a specific data plan subscription. If you see a text bubble icon next to MLS Notes, that means comments exist. Any notes will display regardless of subscription status. And keep in mind these notes are for the MLS’s convenience and are not visible to developers.

In July, we announced that we are implementing a new developer fee for API keys created with Credential Manager. As of August 2nd, when creating an API key, $50 will be charged every month to the vendor receiving the feed, and you can see that announcement and learn more here. 

We are proud to offer the most feature-rich API in the industry — one that supports developer innovation and streamlines data consumption. These API usage fees are critical to ensuring that FBS has sufficient resources to provide continued support, ongoing API maintenance, new feature development, RESO compliance, and more. 

We wanted to take this month’s Spark Monthly to answer frequently asked questions about the change.

In July, we launched a new Licensee Management feature in the Spark Platform. This feature was highly requested and introduces a data plan option for MLSs that requires vendors to report licensees and associated Flexmls usernames for validation, as well as enabling reporting of multiple licensees on one plan that’s subject to MLS approval and terms which simplifies record-keeping and eliminates the need for new API keys. We’ve provided a quick video tutorial to walk you through the new feature. 

The video will cover:
– Available options
– Our recommended setup
– Advantages of implementation

As always, if you have any questions our API Support team is available to help.

There are tools available in the Spark Platform that allow you to easily manage your API feeds. In addition to viewing licensing information, you can also cancel or suspend a feed, review developer information, and view terms of use. Below, we’ll show you were to find it all in the Datamart Dashboard.

1. Under Current Status, you can use the Change Status tool to temporarily suspend or permanently cancel a feed. Here, you are also able to give a reason as to why the feed was canceled or suspended that will be shared with the developer.

2. Under Devloper, clicking on the developer’s name reveals their contact information.

3. Scroll over Subscribption Purpose, and you will see the reasoning, provided by the developer, for needing access to the data feed.

To assist developers transitioning from RETS to our APIs, we’re adding a new downloadable report for developers that shows field names across Flexmls, RETS, the Spark API, and our RESO Web API. Developers consuming RETS feeds will be able to see the API fields that correspond to the RETS feeds they use, making the mapping process and transition to API that much easier. If you would like to opt your MLS out of offering this report, email our API support team.

Getting Familiar with Field Manager

Within the Spark Platform, the Field Manager is the best way to review what fields are available via the APIs. Here you can:

• Filter for fields contained in each role 
• Update fields permissions
  • Field permissions are inherited, to the maximum extent possible, from the field permissions set in Flexmls, and the Field Manager is for further additional permissions tweaks beyond that.

You can change permissions for any field that contains a blue clickable link. Clicking on the link opens a popup allowing you to set that field’s specific role permissions. Updating a field is easy. Simply toggle which roles should have access to the selected field and save your changes. 

Terms in the left-most “MLS Label” column generally correspond to the Spark API, while the middle “Dictionary Field” corresponds to the RESO Web API. Please be aware it is possible to create discrepancies between what’s available via the RESO Web API and the Spark API for the same role if both the “MLS Label” and “Dictionary Field” terms are clickable and you set different permissions on each. We recommend keeping permissions for associated terms in sync as much as possible.

Also be aware that if you update a field’s permission via this Field Manager interface, it will disable that field’s permission sync from Flexmls.

If you see a discrepancy between the MLS Label and Dictionary Label(RESO DD) fields please reach out to us directly at api-support@fbsdata.com to ensure any mapping changes are made correctly. We also do not recommend mapping RESO DD fields yourself and ask that you reach out to us to assist. 

Our API Support team is top notch, and they work hard to answer your questions quickly. But sometimes before they are able to answer a question, they have to ask a few of their own. In order to get you an answer as quickly as possible and cut down on back and forth communication, we have detailed out some information that our API Support team will need from you based on common scenarios. If you (the MLS) don’t know the answer to these questions, feel free to pass them along to the vendor or whoever is asking the technical questions. Coming to the conversation with the following information will help get your issue resolved as quickly and efficiently as possible!

1. For any technical questions about data being returned in an API feed,  please provide the following:

• The unique identifier (“API Feed ID”) for your API key. Having the API key helps us dig into the specific data feed configuration.
  • Note: please do not provide your API key’s access token. The access token is all that’s needed to make authenticated API requests, so emailing it is a security concern. The unique identifier (“API Feed ID”) is the most secure and efficient way to identify the API key you’re using

Example Credential Email:

• The full request URL being used to pull the MLSs data. Will start with either:
  • https://replication.sparkapi.com/v1/
    • OR
  • https://replication.sparkapi.com/Version/2/Reso/OData/

2. If a subscriber is receiving an error when making an API request, please provide the full error being returned. Copy/Pasting the error into an email  works great.
3. If you have screenshots to share on an issue, please paste those directly in email. Due to security reasons, our team is not able to open attachments.
4. When you have questions about an agent or office record please provide the Flexmls username for these inquiries.

Handling e-sign agreements can be a tedious task when managing and licensing data feeds. The Spark Datamart is set up to replace those electronic agreements by making licensing terms and conditions available within the platform instead of having to be executed outside of the system. Once you upload your licensing information it’s easy to access for any data plan. Let’s recap where you can review accepted Terms of Use for Datamart subscriptions if you are looking for a more detailed view for your records.

Navigate to Datamart Subscriptions. There you can click the “Terms of Use” link. This will open up a detailed page where you can view the history of who accepted, when they accepted, and the exact licensing terms that were accepted.

Curious who has agreed to the Terms of Use for each data plan? Simply navigate to the subscription in question by going to the Datamart Dashboard, and look under Approval History. Hover over the information icon to see a quick summary of who approved, when they approved, and the email address where the approval was sent.

We’ve been listening to your feedback, and we’re happy to share new improvements we’ve made to the approval process when working with data plans in the Spark Datamart.  These enhancements will simplify your experience, making it faster and easier to get approvals and get your data plan over the finish line. Check out some of the new updates below!

Combined Agent/Broker Data Plan Approval 

• If the agent is the broker for their office, the approvals are now combined and only one approval is required. Previously, when a data plan subscription required both agent and broker approval,  two separate emails were sent, requiring approval at both the broker and agent level, even when the approving agent was the broker.

Broker-Level Data Plan Email Approvals

• If an office’s designated broker is set in Flexmls, approval emails will go to both the office email and the designated broker’s email. Previously, those emails were only sent to the email address set for the office.

Office-Level Approval can be Given at the Member Account Level

• Previously, broker-level approval for data plans could only be accomplished if logged into Flexmls as the office account itself. Now, if a user is set as the designated broker, this approval can be submitted if the user is logged in as the office OR or their own member account.

Not all data feeds are created equal. In the Spark Platform, the Role Manager allows you to manage the common listing data is displayed (or not displayed) in VOX, IDX, and Private feeds (Portal and Public feeds are not used). Under each role tab, there are two sub-tabs: General Rules and Data Display Rules. Today, we’ll focus on Data Display Rules, where you’ll find controls for some common pieces of  listing data each role has access to. The Field Manager allows you to set granular permissions for almost every listing field, but the Role Manager highlights some important ones in a simpler way.

To support faster and easier workflows during the approval process in the Spark Datamart, we have made the following enhancements:

1. For pending Datamart subscriptions, while superusing as the MLS, MLS admins can now manually specify any email address when resending an approval email. 

2.  While superusing as the MLS, MLS admins now have the ability to reject a data plan at any level during the approval process from the Datamart Dashboard.

If your MLS has a data plan(s) setup, you might occasionally get questions from agents/brokers about the process for approving data plan requests from vendors or developers. Today, we’re going to share some helpful tips, FAQs, and a quick video that runs through the approval process. Feel free to copy and paste all, or parts, of this email, to send to your brokers and agents who have questions about this  process. 

In this video, we’ll walk through two scenarios for agents and brokers to approve data plan requests.

– Open the approval request in an incognito window (What’s an incognito window?) so that other open Flexmls sessions do not impact the approval process.

– Brokers have two access points into Flexmls: one as an agent and one as a broker (brokerage/office), meaning brokers have two sets of Flexmls login credentials.

– If you are a broker and do not know your Flexmls username for the office you oversee, please reach out to your MLS to assist you.

Welcome to Spark Monthly, where each month we will be sharing information on all things Spark API, including information about data plans (tips and FAQs), the approval process, credential, field and role managers, and lots of other helpful information to make sure you have resources you need to successfully license and manage data feeds for IDX websites, back-office software products, and more. Each month, depending on what we have to share, you can expect FAQs, information about product enhancements, quick tips, and training videos. We’ll kick this month off with an overview of the Spark Datamart.

The Spark Datamart let’s you:

• Automate API access requests and approvals
• Review who has access to your data
• Suspend and cancel API access
• Collect data licensing fees
• Set licensing terms and review who’s accepted what when