Real estate agent apps are the future. And the future is now.
Everything, it seems, is moving online—including real estate. According to a National Association of Realtors (NAR) survey, nearly all buyers used at least one online tool as a part of their search process (95%).
When you add to the fact that there are over three million active real estate licensees in the United States, it’s easy to appreciate the intense rivalry real estate agents experience.
So, it’s no wonder there’s a growing number of apps coming to market that can help you streamline your day-to-day operations, saving time and making your agency business a more efficient machine.
Real estate apps offer a wide variety of possibilities ranging from scheduling to CRMs to any number of other labor-saving tasks. These apps also frequently offer a convenient advertising platform for real estate agents looking to build client bases and acquire leads.
But which are the best? And what are the different features each one offers?
To help you out, we’ve put together a list of the top five best real estate agent apps.
Best CMA
Which app creates the best Competitive Market Analysis?
RPR Mobile
Real Property Resource Mobile, or RPR Mobile, is a National Association of Realtors (NAR) subsidiary. This handy app has helped real estate agents parse and access property data for research, showings, and much more.
Pros
Arguably, the app’s most helpful feature is its ability to create a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA).
When real estate agents meet with clients or potential clients for the first time, they almost inevitably get asked: “So, how much is my property worth?” With RPR Mobile, you can do a quick and simple CMA right there and then. All you need is a signal for your smartphone.
RPR Mobile lets you access data in a snap while allowing you to draw custom polygon searches to target even the tiniest micro-neighborhoods. Impress your clients with an almost instant list of three-bedroom homes in a desirable ZIP code.
Cons
While the app quickly produces a CMA, its accuracy can waver. However, if you’re upfront about this fact with your client and offer to provide a more detailed CMA if they’re interested, then it becomes a great addition to your toolbox—and a method to engage in deeper, more meaningful conversations.
Cost
- Free.
Best Demographics
Use this app to learn about the area and new properties.
Trulia
Benefiting both agents and clients, the Trulia app allows the user to view properties and neighborhoods in multiple ways.
First, the app gives you images of the property itself. But it doesn’t stop there; it also gives a wide variety of statistics and information about the surrounding area, such as:
- Places to eat,
- Schools,
- Shopping,
- Commute times,
- Localized crime stats, and
- Local demographic stats.
Trulia’s information about home values is one of the reasons it gets high marks on both the Apple Store (4.8 stars with 800k reviews) and Google Play (4.6 stars with 200k reviews).
More than 80% of Trulia home values were within 20% of the eventual selling price, and half of Trulia home values were within an impressive 5% of the selling price.
If your services include rental units, you can search for apartments with their renter-friendly edition: Find Homes and Trulia Renters.
Pros
- Detailed information about the locale regarding shopping, schools, etc.
- You can receive notifications about new homes that fit your client’s criteria.
- It provides pre-qualified calculators and financing.
- Easy user interface for map interactions.
- Easy linkage to the listing agent for each property.
Cons
- The crime map can be challenging to read.
Cost
- Free but with ads.
Best Organizer
Keep track of and schedule all your appointments with this handy app.
Calendly
A real estate agent has to be organized.
Countless hours are spent interacting with clients both physically and digitally, and there can be dozens of listing appointments to manage. And don’t overlook the scheduling issues coming from the client-side that you’ll need to contend with.
A professional assistant can take care of those issues for you, but that can be very expensive. Calendly offers a number of those higher-priced services for free.
Calendly can send links out to your clients and have them book a time that works with their schedule as well as your own. Very versatile, Calendly is both an app and a web-based program.
Use Calendly with whatever calendar program you currently use, whether Outlook, Apple Calendar, Google Calendar, etc. Options include push notifications to alert you to upcoming appointments that day.
In addition, you have total control of when clients can choose to meet — clients can only select the times you have preselected. Calendly also offers several bonus features, such as adding drive time to client notifications helping them to make more accurate appointments.
Pros
- Interfaces with most calendar platforms.
- Push notifications with drive time added.
- Interactions on app or web-based.
- Affordable organization time-saver.
Cons
- The free account version enables only one calendar option (e.g., 30 or 60 min appointments only, but not both). Consider upgrading to one of their paid subscription plans to access additional features.
Price
- Use the free, limited version. Paid individual plans range between $8 and 12 per month; team plans start at $16 per month. You’ll need to reach out directly for a personalized quote for enterprise rates.
Best Social Media Organizer
Stay on top of socials and pre-schedule your posts with Buffer.
Buffer
Social media offers one of the most effective promotion tools available to real estate agents.
As every agent knows, you’re always on the run.
Spending precious minutes on multiple social media platforms isn’t always an option. But, without engaging with your followers, they could quickly drop off.
Buffer takes care of this for you.
Buffer is an established social scheduling app that looks beyond the basics; not just Facebook and Twitter. Use Buffer to seamlessly schedule posts and stories for all your social platforms, including Pinterest and Instagram, among others.
Their user-friendly dashboard makes it easy to organize everything at a glance. You can repost the best-performing content based on the most effective analytics for maximum impact.
Map out, create, and post all your social media automatically, from a single dashboard. Buffer helps you free up valuable time, allowing you to focus on clients and growing your bottom line.
Pros
- Pre-schedule posts across different accounts.
- Measured performance.
- Respond quickly to comments.
- Analytics available for easy review.
Cons
- The free membership comes with a cap to the number of scheduled posts.
- Not very compatible with posting carousel photos.
Pricing
- Buffer offers a free, limited-use version. Their “Essentials” plan is available for $5 per month.
Best Communication
In these days of remote work, a top-quality communication app will be your best friend.
Zoom
Zoom may very well be the most useful app in a real estate agent’s arsenal.
Real estate professionals across the United States and worldwide rely on this connecting juggernaut every day. Having Zoom on your smartphone is an easy, effective method to schedule meetings, do remote viewing, and stay connected.
Pros
- Connect easily with remote clients.
- Share payment calculations.
- Give property data.
- Enables stronger relationships with face-to-face contact.
- Widely used.
- Easily understood.
Cons
- Does not connect with a scheduling program.
- HD video is not the standard.
Pricing
- Zoom offers a free version with a time limit per meeting. Annual business plans begin at $150.
Real Estate Agent Apps-Conclusion
River City Mortgage maintains a commitment to the home buying process, real estate agents included. We hope real estate agents find these reviews helpful and insightful.
At River City Mortgage, we partner with real estate agents to offer support and create the most efficient strategy to help you close deals.
Are you an agent interested in learning more about River City Mortgage’s real estate agent partnering program?
Reach out to the specialists at River City Mortgage today.
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