The Garden State Multiple Listing Service (GSMLS) is the system all real estate agents in this area use to promote properties for sale and rent. GSMLS  periodically updates terms within its system as the market changes. This enhances seller communication to potential buyers. It also helps buyers understand what’s happening as they contemplate if a particular property is something they want to tour in person.

Here are 2 new Real Estate terms you should know when buying or selling real estate in and around towns like Bloomfield, Glen Ridge,  Maplewood, Millburn/Short Hills, Montclair, South Orange and West Orange.

1.     (US) Under Contract, Continue to Show. This new status broadens the option to sellers when their home goes Under Contract.As stated by GSMLS: a property is considered to be Under Contract (UC) when Attorney Review has been completed per the attorneys involved. To clarify the issue of whether or not agents may continue to show the property, the new US status has been added, which indicates that the property may be shown even though under contract. Another significant difference between UC and US is that designating a property as UC means that it will no longer be included on third party sites, such as Realtor.com, GSMLS.com, and IDX. Listing a property as US will assure that the property continues to be included on those third party sites.

Homeowners may want to continue to show their home when, for example, there is a contingency like a home sale contingency, where the buyers’ ability to purchase the house is dependent on their house selling to someone else. Or when the sellers want to show a commitment to the buyers but continue to take back up offers.

2.       Lender Approval Required. GSMLS states this new term indicates whether or not Lender Approval is required for the contractual Commission Split or Sales Price. The listing real estate agent is required to have a notation in this field; either Yes, No, or Undetermined.

This new term in GSMLS indicates the proliferation of Short Sales in the marketplace today compared to 18 months ago when it was an anomaly. A Short Sale is a sale where the homeowner owes more on the home than he/she can get selling the home in today’s market. To complete a home sale the homeowner must obtain approval from the bank(s), unless the seller has enough money to bring to the closing table that covers the gap between the sale price and the mortgage owed. It’s important for the buyer to know this before submitting a contract because Short Sales have a strong chance of taking longer than a regular sale. Also, the sales price might not be approved by the bank(s) and many of these types of properties are sold “as is”. This gives the buyer a chance from the outset to determine if this is a house to consider with these conditions.

It’s important wherever you are searching for your new home, have your REALTOR® explain how these terms affect your plans.

REALTORS® are still getting adjusted to this new term. The key for sellers is this may allow a home to continue to be shown but real estate agents are not yet accustomed to searching for this US option in addition to just searching all the Active homes for sale. This means your home may have the option to continue to show but no one may know about it.