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Every agent knows how to list a property. Fewer know what they are missing before the listing goes live: the performance data that shapes a buyer's daily experience, monthly operating costs, and long-term confidence in a home. This guide walks listing agents through a seven-step process for incorporating Pearl SCORE™ into a standard property listing workflow, from CMA to market launch. Whether the home is a top performer or has room to improve, surfacing that information early, before inspection and before negotiation, is what separates smooth transactions from ones that go sideways at the worst moment. Pearl works in partnership with The Department of Energy (DOE) and ENERGY STAR and has scored every single-family home in the United States. The Pearl SCORE Report is available to agents via the Pearl for Professionals app.
Pearl SCORE often surfaces for agents the same way it does for buyers: late. A client mentions it at an open house, or a buyer asks whether a home has been rated before writing an offer. This guide is here to move that timing earlier, so you are the one bringing it up, not catching up to it.
Pearl SCORE answers the question every buyer eventually asks: what does this home actually do? It is a numeric rating from 1 to 1,000 across five performance dimensions, Safety, Comfort, Operations, Resilience, and Energy, available for every single-family home through the Pearl app.
What Pearl SCORE delivers:
A consistent, comparable rating from 1 to 1,000 across all single-family homes
A pillar-by-pillar breakdown of Safety, Comfort, Operations, Resilience, and Energy
An Operating Cost Comparison showing how a home's estimated monthly costs compare to similar homes
Documentation of which performance features and mitigation systems are present in the home
A basis for comparing this home's performance to similar homes nearby
For listing agents, Pearl SCORE matters at two specific moments: the walkthrough phase, when you are learning what the home delivers so you can represent it honestly, and the listing content phase, when you are deciding what goes in the MLS remarks and the listing package so buyers see the full performance story. Pearl SCORE belongs in both.
The table below maps each of the five pillars to what it measures and why it matters when a property is going to market. Pillar order is fixed: Safety, Comfort, Operations, Resilience, Energy.
| Pillar | What It Measures | Key Performance Features | Why It Matters at Listing Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety | Indoor air quality, radon, carbon monoxide, contaminated water, smoke, and CO detection. | Radon mitigation, whole-home water filtration, fresh-air ventilation, and working detectors. | Buyers are asking about health and air quality. This is where the answer lives. |
| Comfort | Consistent temperatures and humidity, draft control, noise levels, and daylighting. | Consistent temperature delivery, effective humidity control, reduced drafts, acoustic performance, and window quality. | Comfort drives buyer decisions. A home that holds temperatures and controls humidity tells a performance story no photo can. |
| Operations | Efficiency of heating, cooling, water, and baseload energy consumption. | HVAC systems, building envelope, ductwork, energy-efficient appliances, and water-efficient fixtures. NOT solar or batteries. | Operating Cost Comparison gives buyers a monthly cost picture that MLS fields never show. |
| Resilience | Preparedness for storms, power outages, extreme heat, flooding, and other disruptions. | Whole-home generators, storm-rated windows and doors, flood mitigation, and wildfire hardening. | Increasingly decisive in weather-exposed markets, and invisible in standard listings. |
| Energy | Ability to generate, store, and manage energy on-site. | Solar panels, battery storage, EV charging, and smart energy management. NOT HVAC or insulation. | Premium features that command attention, but only when they are actually surfaced in the listing. |
Pearl SCORE runs on an absolute scale: it is not graded on a curve. A score of 500 means the same thing in Austin as it does in Buffalo. Homes at 500 and above are considered high-performing. Homes at 250 to 374 are Typical. The scale gives agents a consistent reference point across every transaction and every market.
Agents can access the Pearl SCORE Report through the Pearl for Professionals app. The Pearl SCORE Report includes:
Individual pillar scores across all five dimensions
An Operating Cost Comparison vs. similar homes
Any Pearl Medallions earned (Silver, Gold, or Platinum)
Merit Badges earned by the home
A shareable link for MLS remarks and listing packets
The comparative market analysis and the Pearl SCORE pull are not sequential tasks. They are parallel ones. Both belong in the same pre-listing research session, for the same reason: performance data should be part of the pricing conversation, not an afterthought that arrives after the list price is already set.
Run your CMA the way you always do: comps, actives, expireds, normalized for the standard variables.
While that data is loading, open the Pearl for Professionals app and pull the Pearl SCORE for the subject property. Check the claim status while you're there: if the home is unclaimed, you can claim it and add features on the homeowner's behalf right from the app, which completes the home's profile and gives buyers a fuller picture. What you get back is not just a number. It is a pillar-by-pillar breakdown and an Operating Cost Comparison that shows how this home's estimated monthly costs stack up against similar homes in the same market.
That operating cost comparison gives you something concrete to share with buyers: what this home actually costs to run. A home with an Operations score reflecting a high-performing envelope and HVAC carries a lower monthly cost burden than comparable homes, not a price adjustment, but an honest answer to a question every buyer eventually asks. A strong Energy pillar, with owned solar, battery storage, or EV charging, adds information standards comps do not capture: what the home can generate and store on its own.
For your seller client, the payoff is not a higher number. It's a buyer who understands the home before they make an offer, which means fewer surprises and a smoother close.
The pre-listing walkthrough serves two purposes: identifying what needs to be addressed before the home goes to market, and identifying what needs to be showcased. Pearl SCORE makes the second purpose significantly more productive.
Before you walk the property, review the pillar breakdown from Step 2. The SCORE tells you where the home is strong and where it is not. Walk the home through that lens:
A high Resilience pillar score, reflecting performance features like a whole-home generator, storm-rated windows, and backup systems, stands out in any weather-exposed market. These features often are not captured in standard listing fields, which makes them easy for buyers to miss. Pearl gives them a consistent, verifiable place to show up, so buyers can see and compare them.
A strong Operations score reflects a tighter building envelope and more efficient HVAC. That translates directly into the operating cost story buyers increasingly ask about before making an offer.
A high Energy pillar score, reflecting solar, storage, or EV infrastructure, is exactly what buyers increasingly ask about: what the home can generate and store, and how it performs in an outage. Make sure it comes up in the conversation.
This is also where you have the honest seller conversation about performance gaps. A home with a low Safety score, such as one lacking radon mitigation or whole-home ventilation, is a preparation opportunity. Bring it into the conversation now. When performance gaps are part of the seller's own narrative from the start, they become context. When they surface for the first time during inspection, they create pressure at the worst possible moment.
The walkthrough framing shifts from "what does this home look like?" to "what does this home do?" That is a different and more defensible conversation to bring to buyers.
You already know this part: listing agreement signed, title checked, disclosures handled, the seller guided through their own paperwork without you filling it out for them. The addition worth building in now is Pearl as the performance layer running alongside, and the boundary that keeps it in its lane.
One boundary is worth stating clearly: Pearl SCORE is not a disclosure substitute and it is not a home inspection. It documents the presence of performance features and mitigation systems; it does not diagnose defects or assess risk. State-required disclosures are legal obligations that exist independent of what Pearl SCORE shows. Do not conflate them.
If the seller holds a Pearl Medallion at any tier, Silver, Gold, or Platinum, this is the step to gather the documentation. Pearl Medallions require formal review and, at Gold and above, verified data from a qualified third-party professional. That documentation belongs in the listing package, and this is the moment to go get it, before you're chasing it down later.
The listing package is where the performance story reaches the buyer. Standard packages cover photographs, floor plans, and a property summary. A Pearl-informed listing package adds the layer more and more buyers are looking for: how the home actually performs.
Shoot and assemble the standard package the way you always do. Build the performance layer alongside it.
The following belong in every listing package for a home with Pearl data:
Pearl SCORE Report shareable link
Operating Cost Comparison vs. similar homes
Any Pearl Medallion or Merit Badge documentation
Pearl Medallion credentials at the front of the packet, if earned
The property description deserves special attention here. MLS remarks that describe aesthetics and skip performance leave buyers without information they're increasingly looking for. "Updated kitchen, hardwood floors" is what every listing says. "Estimated operating costs [X]% below similar homes, with upgraded insulation, a tightly sealed home shell, and efficient HVAC throughout" is what Pearl makes possible.
Write what you know. Pillar attributions must be accurate:
HVAC, insulation, building envelope, air sealing, and ductwork belong to the Operations
Solar panels, battery storage, and EV charging belong to the Energy pillar
Attributing one to the other is the most common performance description error agents make, and informed buyers will notice.
MLS entry is where the performance story either reaches buyers or disappears. Most MLS systems include green energy and performance fields, including certification fields, renewable energy fields, and efficiency feature fields, that are not required. Sometimes agents leave them blank. That is a significant omission.
Performance fields syndicate to consumer portals. When MLS data flows to Zillow, Realtor.com, and Redfin, blank performance fields produce blank performance sections on those sites. Buyers searching for homes with solar, backup power, or certifications will not find this listing. Fill every field that applies.
The Pearl SCORE Report shareable link belongs in MLS public remarks where local MLS rules permit. A buyer or buyer's agent who reviews the Pearl SCORE Report before scheduling a showing arrives at that showing informed, which is exactly where you want them.
On timing: once a property is marketed to the public, including via a yard sign, a social media post, or a direct email, the National Association of Realtor’s Clear Cooperation Policy requires MLS entry within one business day. Two options are available:
Standard entry: full MLS listing, publicly syndicated to consumer portals
Delayed Marketing Exempt status: listing is visible internally to MLS participants but not yet syndicated publicly, useful when sellers need preparation time while maintaining early visibility among buyer agents
The listing is live. Now the performance story needs to travel.
Showing software active, marketing live. Before the first showing is scheduled, take a moment to prepare a brief performance summary drawn from the Pearl SCORE pillar breakdown. The following should accompany every showing confirmation:
Pearl SCORE Report shareable link
Pearl Snapshot URL for homes with strong SCOREs or a Pearl Medallion
Three to five performance talking points drawn from the pillar breakdown
Pearl Snapshot is a free public preview of a home's performance data, accessible by address. It covers Pearl SCORE, the five pillar breakdown, Operating Cost Comparison, and any Achievements, including Medallions and Merit Badges. For homes with strong SCOREs or a Pearl Medallion, the Snapshot URL is a low-friction addition to digital marketing, open house materials, and showing packets.
Brief buyer agents directly. A concise email with the SCORE Report link and two or three highlight sentences means their client walks into the showing already understanding the home, not just its finishes. That is a different level of representation, and buyers notice it.
Pillar fluency is what separates a vague "energy-efficient home" claim from a precise, credible listing narrative. The table below maps each pillar to what it includes and what it does not, with buyer-ready talking points and MLS language examples for each.
| Pillar | Includes | Does NOT Include | Buyer Talking Point | MLS Language Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Safety | Radon mitigation, CO detectors, whole-home water filtration, fresh-air ventilation | Structural defects (SCORE documents presence of mitigation features; it does not diagnose defects) | "This home has active radon mitigation and whole-home water filtration, features most buyers do not think to ask about until after closing" | Radon mitigation system installed; whole-home water filtration; fresh-air ventilation |
| Comfort | Temperature consistency, effective humidity control, draft reduction, acoustic performance, daylighting | Insulation and air sealing (Operations pillar; they produce comfort outcomes but are Operations features); HVAC brand or model age in isolation | "Buyers can count on consistent temperatures room-to-room, year-round. This home's envelope and systems work together." | Consistent room-to-room temperatures year-round; humidity control; low-draft performance |
| Operations | HVAC systems, building envelope, ductwork, energy-efficient appliances, water-efficient fixtures | Solar panels, batteries, EV charging (those are Energy pillar) | "Operating costs run below comparable homes. This is the monthly cost story buyers increasingly want to see before they make an offer." | Estimated operating costs [X]% below similar homes per Pearl SCORE Operating Cost Comparison |
| Resilience | Whole-home generator, storm-impact windows and doors, flood mitigation, wildfire hardening, backup power capacity | Standard smoke detectors (Safety pillar) | "This home is ready for what most are not: extended power outages, severe weather events, and more." | Whole-home standby generator; storm-impact windows; [X]-day backup power capacity |
| Energy | Solar panels, battery storage, EV charging, smart energy management systems | HVAC, insulation, ductwork (Operations pillar) | "This home generates its own energy. Buyers can see projected output vs. similar homes before they ever step inside." | Owned solar array + battery storage; Level 2 EV charging; smart energy management system |
Performance data is only as useful as how it is handled. These three errors are the most common and the most avoidable.
HVAC systems, insulation, building envelope, air sealing, and ductwork are Operations pillar features. They affect operating costs and comfort, not renewable energy generation or storage. Solar panels, battery storage, and EV charging are Energy pillar features.
Conflating the two is the highest-risk pillar error in listing descriptions. Informed buyers and green-designated agents will catch it immediately, and it undermines credibility on every other claim in the listing.
Quick reference:
Operations: HVAC, insulation, building envelope, air sealing, ductwork, energy-efficient appliances, water-efficient fixtures
Energy: solar panels, battery storage, EV charging, smart energy management systems
Pearl SCORE surfaces information. It does not guarantee outcomes. Using Pearl SCORE data to imply that a home will sell for more, or positioning it as leverage in price negotiations, overstates what the SCORE delivers and creates legal and reputational risk.
A Pearl Medallion marks a home's performance against a verified standard. It does not set its market value. The honest frame is simpler and more durable: Pearl SCORE gives buyers information they did not have before. Better-informed buyers make better decisions, and that benefits both sides of the transaction.
This is the most consequential timing error. By the time an inspector surfaces a performance issue, such as an outdated HVAC system, inadequate insulation, or no radon mitigation, the deal is under emotional and financial pressure. The same information, surfaced before the offer via Pearl SCORE, is context. After the offer, it is a threat.
Pearl emphasizes the principle: Surface It Early. Bring performance data into the conversation:
Before the listing goes live
Before showings begin
Before any offer is on the table
That sequencing converts performance information from a liability into a strength.
An agent who pulls Pearl SCORE at the start of the listing workflow, not the end, runs a different kind of transaction:
Performance information surfaces early
Buyers understand what they are purchasing
Sellers showcase what their home actually offers
The inspection becomes a confirmation of what was already communicated, not a source of last-minute surprises
The Pearl for Professionals app is where this workflow begins. Agents can look up any U.S. single-family address, pull the Pearl SCORE Report, and access the shareable link for listing packets and MLS remarks. Pearl is also building the Pearl Agent Playbook, a comprehensive guide to performance-based listing strategy, currently available through the Pearl Recognized Program for agents and brokers who want to help shape the tools and be first to use them.
Resources:
Pearl. Pearl SCORE methodology white paper (Version 251106.02). https://asset.pearlscore.com/production/files/reports/Pearl-Score-Methodology_White-Paper_V251106.02.pdf?v=1762460057
Pearl. Real estate agents and brokers. https://pearlscore.com/industries/real-estate-agents-brokers
Pearl. SCORE report. https://pearlscore.com/industries/real-estate-agents-brokers/score-report
Pearl. Pearl SCORE. https://pearlscore.com/pearl-score
Pearl. Pearl for Professionals App. https://pearlscore.com/industries/real-estate-agents-brokers/pearl-app-for-professionals
National Association of REALTORS®. Clear Cooperation Policy. NAR. https://www.nar.realtor/handbook-on-multiple-listing-policy/participants-rights-section-17-clear-cooperation-policy-statement-8-00
