Perchwell CEO Brendan Fairbanks highlights landmark MLS platform shift

Perchwell CEO Hails Landmark MLS Platform Shift

Perchwell CEO Brendan Fairbanks said Baldwin Realtors is the first MLS in more than 25 years to move its entire membership onto a next-generation MLS platform.

Fairbanks said MLS technology has not changed much in the last 20 years, while software agents use elsewhere keeps evolving. He said the systems that were revolutionary when they arrived are largely the same today, needing modernization for real estate agents.

Fairbanks said Perchwell's saying is that the product demonstrated today is the worst version clients will ever see, and everyone comes to work tomorrow to improve it.

Fairbanks described Perchwell as a fast, professional tool shaped around how agents work now, with a rapid search flow for agents. He said the platform offers modern client collaboration and insights from MLS data for working real estate professionals each day.

With 3,500 agents making the transition, Fairbanks said Baldwin built workflows side by side with agents and logged what they heard during training sessions and office visits.

Three Western MLSs Launch Orion Data Exchange

MetroList, Northern Nevada Regional MLS, and Oregon Data Share announced the Orion Real Estate Data Exchange on September 23, 2026. The platform provides real estate professionals with direct access to real-time listing data across MLS regions in California, Nevada, and Oregon.

The initiative was first announced in early 2025 and aims to deliver a modern, secure, scalable platform that supplements each MLS, while allowing data exchange between them.

ODS founders Tina Grimes, CEO of Southern Oregon MLS, and Casie Conlon, CEO of Cascades East MLS, described the vision. They said Orion reflects a borderless, data-informed real estate ecosystem serving consumer migration across three states in the Western United States.

MetroList President and CEO Dave Howe said Orion breaks down MLS data barriers and promotes collaboration among organizations in different states, creating new opportunities for real estate professionals.

NNRMLS CEO George Pickard said the first phase offers access to listing information across participating markets using Rapattoni-powered tools with a familiar professional user environment for members.

Stellar MLS Expands as Industry Modernizes Further

Stellar MLS announced it is expanding into another Florida county as exclusive MLS provider for West Pasco Hernando Realtors, a new organization formed after a merger.

WPHR CEO Brenda Rabbitt said the partnership reflects a direct commitment to providing advanced resources and expansive market reach for Realtors and consumers across the communities they serve.

Stellar MLS CEO Shayne Fairley said bringing organizations together creates greater opportunities for members and customers through broader inventory access. He said the move enhances technology across a highly connected real estate network for all participants and improves consumer experience.

Census data showed about 129,000 people moved between California, Nevada, and Oregon in 2024, with California accounting for the largest share of movers in the West.

The Orion initiative should help members strengthen referral connections with professionals serving markets where clients are moving across state lines. Fairbanks said agents should expect their MLS to be the best professional tool they use each day, improving constantly and evolving.