Point2 Agent has changed their pricing model.

Up until today, a “Standard” Point2 NLS membership has been free. Point2 provides a 15 page web site, and membership in their “NLS” (National Listing Service) for no charge.

An email I received this evening states that NLS memberships requested after February 20 will be free for six months, then cost $9.95 per month.

If you already had a Standard level Point2 site prior to February 20th, 2008, you have been granted an exemption. If you wish to remain at the Standard level, your membership will continue to cost you nothing, for as long as you wish to continue using it.

Personally, I think this is a good move. There are tens of thousands of free-level Point2 sites out there. Some (but certainly not all) are abandoned or horribly neglected. I’ve seen listings on free sites that have been expired or sold for months.

Point2’s “Handshake” listing feature is a powerful tool. With Handshake, I can syndicate my listings to other Point2 sites in my area, and other agents can display their listings on my site.

But this means all Point2 users must be diligent about updating their listings, less we wind up with polluted data propagating across the Point2 network.

Charging a minimal usage fee could go a long way toward cleaning up abandoned and neglected sites.

Six months of free use is more than ample time for an agent to decide if the Point2 solution is right for them. And $10/month isn’t too much to ask for after that.

Upgrading to the “Professional” level site for $49.95/month provides a ton of enhanced features and is well worth the cost in my opinion.