The best real estate apps get millions of monthly visits thanks to the convenience they create with on-the-go searches and making the real estate process more efficient by providing comprehensive detail and real-time information.
The real estate industry is constantly evolving, and the advent of mobile technology has revolutionized the way we buy, sell, or rent property. And as the last few years of a global pandemic have pushed more of our lives online, the house-hunting experience has shifted. More buyers are doing their research on their phones or tablets, and even in some cases buying homes they’ve only ever seen on a screen.
As a result, real estate apps have had to step up their game to keep up with newcomers.
5 Of The Best Real Estate Apps For Customers
Redfin
Redfin launched in 2006 and is an actual real estate brokerage firm that created an app to take them to a national scale and revolutionize the buying and selling processes. Users can search for houses, condos, and townhouses for sale. The app also lists open houses in case you want to tour in person.
For sellers, the platform allows you to list your property for sale, and it charges a listing fee of 1.5% or 1.0% if sellers buy and sell with Redfin, which is lower than standard listing broker fees. It also pays a commission rebate to the buyer if the buyer uses a Redfin agent. That potential figure is shown in the app listing.
Redfin’s app interface is simple and easy to use. You can review some neighborhood details and set up notifications to alert you to every available house that meets your criteria. And you can book a home tour within the app.
Redfin earns its revenue through listing fees, commissions, and advertising fees, so the app is free to use
Zillow
Founded in 2005 by two former Microsoft executives, Zillow is one of the leading apps in the real estate market.
It is noted for keeping up to date with fast-paced real estate markets. For example, when a realtor or seller changes a property status from “for sale” to “pending and under contract,” you’ll see that change in the app within 24 hours. Property listings come from one or more of the multiple listing services, as well as from individuals posting their own homes for sale, auctions, foreclosures, and other properties.
Zillow offers the option to list apartments for sale, rent, lease, and prospective homebuyers can virtually tour properties and receive update notifications about selected properties from the app. Zillow is free for buyers and sellers because its primary revenue source comes from advertising and lead generation costs from realtors.
Realtor
Realtor.com was founded in 1996 and is owned by Move, Inc., a branch of News Corporation (NWS). It is also associated with the National Association of Realtors.
The Realtor app is the best for rental unit owners because it shows when the rental listing was last updated, which is helpful when users are looking for up-to-date information. It provides surrounding area information on schools and noise — another primary interest.
Realtor’s app is free for everyone and mainly earns revenue through advertising. The app caters to the rental market, and landlords can list their properties and accept applications without paying fees. Like similar apps, users can search listings using filters, and properties are viewed through pictures and video tours, making it easy for a rental property owner to highlight their home’s best features.
Xome Auctions
The Xome Auctions app is available on both Android and Apple app stores and hosts one of the largest collections of exclusive properties. Xome delivers transparent bidding and fast closing. Users can also use Xome’s pre-auction feature to bid on properties early.
You can search for residential or commercial auctions by location, status, and auction asset type, such as bank-owned, short sale, or newly foreclosed. You can also sort properties by price, beds, baths, square feet, auctions starting soon, or by auctions ending soon. The app includes a walk, commute, and bike score along with listing and sales history so you can see the historical value of the property over time.
The listings on the app come from multiple listing services as well as from exclusive Xome sources. Details like financing, property and neighborhood statistics, alerts when someone else bids on a property you are watching, and property price history all keep the bidder well-informed. Xome Auctions further exceeds its competitors with an efficient e-signing capability for contracts.
LoopNet
Founded in 1995 and owned by the CoStar Group, LoopNet is solely for commercial property investors.
The app allows you to search by location and whether you want a property to buy or lease. You can filter by price, size, year built, and capitalization rate. There are 12 property types to search, such as retail, healthcare, office, restaurant, and multifamily apartment buildings.
LoopNet’s app efficiently connects app users to commercial listing brokers so investors and listing brokers can swiftly exchange information and schedule tours from within the app. Since timing can be a critical factor when closing on an investment property, the app’s notifications, convenient communication, and streamlined listing inventory are essential assets.
The platform earns its revenue through commissions, listing fees, and advertising fees.
5 Of The Best Real Estate Apps For Real Estate Agents
Connecteam
Connecteam is arguably the best real estate app for agents, and it doesn’t weigh anything!
From simplifying, speeding up, and automating your daily operations, to communications such as form-filling, signature-gathering, employee time tracking, and schedule making, Connecteam has absolutely everything you could ever want and need to run your business as smoothly and profit-mindedly as possible.
Here are some of its features:
- Easy scheduling creation (drag and drop, save existing schedules as templates, automatically see scheduling conflicts and deploy updates in real-time),
- The ability to automate your daily processes and operations with digital forms, task management, and more
- 100% accurate employee time tracking with GPS geofenced location setting, GPS tracking (while clocked in), and seamless integration to QuickBooks Online and Gusto payroll
- Push notifications, social-style updates, 1:1 chat and group chat, and online training for new and existing employees. Also send updates and track who has read them, then send an automatic reminder to those who haven’t managed to read it yet.
BombBomb
BombBomb makes it easy for real estate agents to build relationships through email, text, and social media. The app helps real estate agents accelerate their sales cycle by sending personalized video messages. It allows recording and sending personal “video emails” to build better business relationships with customers and prospects.
The idea is that personal video messages instead of plain text emails, (that are so easy to ignore or forget) should help agents get more replies. This should also help set more appointments and close more opportunities. It’s not designed specifically for real estate agents, but it could help you in perfecting your approach for those all-important real estate Facebook ads.
CINC
CINC is helpful for real estate agents because it allows them to monitor incoming leads and acts as a personal concierge. This can be important to help get more customer reviews. It can also get them on the phone, qualify them, and then connect them straight to the phone without all the email or text messaging back and forth.
This saves a whole lot of time for more important tasks, so can actually help increase your conversion rate.
CINC has a good-looking interface where you can quickly view, prioritize, and manage your pipeline. This helps you focus your efforts on the hottest leads. It also has task management with automated reminders.
Note that CINC has no contract or fixed commitment, but rather it’s commission-based.
LionDesk
LionDesk is a dedicated CRM system for real estate agents.
This customer relationship management platform combines bulk mailing & texting features for recording and embedding videos into emails and texts to bring properties to life. You can also make a phone call from the system & record notes during the call.
Everything is in one place, easily visible, and easy to use.
Dotloop
Dotloop is a dedicated transaction management solution for real estate agents that allows them to exchange a big amount of paperwork for a digital, mobile format.
The app is targeted at real estate brokers, agents, and teams. Its aim is for them to be able to edit forms, eSign, collaborate, and automate compliance within a mobile platform. As the website cleverly puts it: for real estate agents this app “means more time driving growth, not chasing paper.”
As with the other best real estate apps on this list, Dotloop is great for one thing only. If, for example, you need more than just document management (maybe you also offer property management solutions), then you can definitely get much more for your money (and your business), for cheaper.
What to look for in the best real estate apps for agents
There are some key features and capabilities to look out for when choosing your ideal real estate app of choice. These include:
- Who the app is designed for: Do you need a real estate app that benefits mainly real estate agents? Or do you need an app that is best suited for customers? Or maybe you need an app for both.
- User onboarding: Every user should be able to get up and running fairly quickly, through login authorization and learning how to use each feature.
- All-in-one capabilities: Instead of using multiple apps to perform individual functions, your app should allow you to manage every aspect of your day-to-day more effectively.
- Time-saving features: Your app should help make important areas of business such as payroll, internal communication, and scheduling less time-consuming. It should be simple and not complicated to use.
- User profiles and communication features: Every user should have a profile that distinguishes them from other users and makes them easier to contact. You should also be able to message or call other users directly from the app.
- Push notifications: You should have settings that ensure the most relevant news, updates, and messages appear instantly as notifications on your mobile device.
Recommended Articles
- How to Convert PowerPoint to Google Slides: Step-By-Step Guide
- BEST RING DOORBELL CAMERA: Top Ring Doorbell Camera 2023
- BEST ASTROLOGY APP: Top 7+ Best Astrology Apps in 2023
- Best Rent App: Top 11 Rental Apps for Finding Your Next Apartment
- TOP 11+ BEST FANTASY FOOTBALL APPS IN 2023
- TOP 11+ BEST FREE AUDIOBOOK APPS FOR ANDROID AND IPHONE 2023
References
