Mobile apps are getting better at helping consumers find accurate housing information. With photos, maps and property history, these apps make searching for your next home easy.
Luckily for homebuyers, house hunting apps are growing in number and sophistication. As the online real estate marketing industry becomes more competitive, mobile apps are getting better at helping consumers find accurate housing information while offering features to help users narrow down their search.
“My clients often use StreetEasy, Zillow and Redfin,” says Nicole Beauchamp, associate real estate broker of Sotheby’s International Realty in New York. Some apps are also collaborative or have extra features for real estate agents. “I really like to be able to see the history on the property clearly,” she explains, including “past photos, floor plans and closing data if appropriate.”
Read on for some of the most popular and helpful apps to use when searching for your next house. All apps are available on both iOS and Android.
The best apps for house hunting include:
Zillow.
Realtor.com Real Estate.
Redfin Real Estate.
Trulia.
Homes.com
Movoto.
Rocket Homes.
StreetEasy NYC Rentals & Sales.
Xome Real Estate.
Compass Real Estate & Homes.
Zillow
This is the most downloaded real estate app for both Apple and Android phones, and it includes Zillow's signature map and home value estimate tools. Zillow has millions of homes in its database, and homeowners can update property information directly into the database from the app.
Best feature: The app allows you to simultaneously search in more than one location, making it easier to compare homes and prices between neighborhoods or even between two cities across the country.
Pro: Zillow’s next-generation 3D Home tours allow you to tour the home with panoramic images, easy navigation and floor plan views.
Con: It may give you hope for a high sale price on your existing home, but Zillow Zestimate isn’t a guarantee of what your home will sell for.
As the consumer-facing company connected to the National Association of Realtors, users can easily get in touch with Realtors located nearby. Filters on this app's search function allow you to include specific details on your must-have list, such as multiple floors, a fireplace, central air and even community swimming pools or security features.
Best feature: Property profiles include details that matter to you, from the neighborhood noise level to whether it's in a FEMA flood zone.
Pro: Connect your account with a spouse or roommate to make shopping for your next home together easier.
Con: The "key facts," which you may be used to finding after the photos, now only appear after clicking on “show more details” below the property description. This extra step may not be a problem for you, but don't miss it if you're looking for details like whether there's a washer and dryer, information about the house style or whether there are HOA fees.
Redfin Real Estate
Since Redfin utilizes an out-of-the-box business model with agents and professionals specializing in different steps of the homebuying and selling process, the company’s app serves as a way for users and Redfin agents to communicate. The map indicates which properties are listed by Redfin or another broker and also notes homes that have video tours available.
“Redfin does not overcomplicate the process,” says real estate agent Eunice Kim of Coldwell Banker Warburg in Manhattan. “The questions that they ask you to narrow down your preferences are straightforward and easy to navigate.”
Best feature: You can schedule a tour, virtual or in person, with a Redfin agent directly through the app. There’s also Ask Redfin, a new iOS feature that quickly answers questions about a home within the app.
Pro: Climate risk data from First Street Technology and ClimateCheck give you insight on a specific property's risk of major natural disasters, from flood to wildfire to regional drought.
Con: If you don’t live in one of the markets in the U.S. and Canada where Redfin has agents, the app offers local listing information pulled from the multiple listing service, but you won't be able to utilize the features that connect you with Redfin agents. However, this is less likely to be a problem as Redfin is now in more than 100 markets in the two countries.
Trulia’s app gives users a desktop-like experience in a mobile platform, with plenty of neighborhood-focused features to help you geographically narrow your search to meet your needs and wants.
Best feature: Trulia polls its online users who live in specific neighborhoods and includes the results on the app. For example, you might find in one neighborhood that 93% of respondents feel comfortable walking alone at night or that 89% say it’s dog-friendly.
Pros: On each property profile, Trulia lists local legal protections, noting whether there is legislation in the area to protect against discrimination for gender identity or sexual orientation in employment, housing or public accommodations beyond federal law.
Cons: The app is not reliable for listing specific home features due to human error. If the real estate agent or homeowner hasn’t checked off specific features in the list, like a fireplace or pool, the profile of the home will note “no fireplace” or “no pool,” but that’s not always correct. This may not be an issue for amenities that can be easily spotted in the photos, but if the real estate agent considers air conditioning to be a guaranteed feature and forgets to check it off, a homebuyer may see “no cooling” and consider it an immediate deal-breaker.
As the replacement for Homesnap, the Homes.com app provides access to homes for sale and rent as well as the listing agent’s information. The app also has additional features, including a directory to find qualified buyer agents, a mortgage calculator, home value estimates from several sources, historical photos and collaboration tools.
Best feature: A signature feature allows users to collaborate and co-shop with friends, family and your agent.
Pro: You can easily browse homes for sale across the U.S., including foreclosures and new construction, sourced directly from multiple listing services and their data providers. You can also estimate your monthly payment with built-in mortgage calculators for a better understanding of what you can afford.
Con: Homes.com also has features available to real estate agents, but agents say the Homes.com app is not a good replacement for Homesnap. A common complaint is that it often crashes and it sometimes requires you to log back in after you close the app.
Movoto
The Movoto Real Estate app provides detailed property searches and listing details. While buying and selling are a key part of the app, it also encourages existing homeowners to keep track of maintenance, monitor home equity and get real-time neighborhood insights on the app.
Best feature: Property profiles include one-year and five-year market statistics for the neighborhood, ZIP code and city. The property’s asking price is also marked to show where it falls in comparison.
Pro: Information about the neighborhood is in-depth, from the closest coffee shop to whether people in the area consider it kid-friendly or a good spot for foodies.
Con: It’s a small detail, but linked information appears as a dark red color. It helps to distinguish that you can learn more about the county or call the agent directly compared to the regular text, but it also makes the home value estimate look like it’s on the decline, when the color is irrelevant to the value.
From mortgage lender Rocket Mortgage, the Rocket Homes app allows you to search for homes on the market while also preparing for the mortgage application and home purchase process. Using the Rocket Homes app is especially helpful if you’re planning to use Rocket Mortgage as your lender, but it’s certainly not required.
Best feature: Helping you to prepare for the financing process, the Rocket Homes app includes a free credit monitoring feature that won’t impact your score. You can also secure financing within the same app.
Pro: As you search for homes on the map, new listings are marked in purple to help you navigate a hot market.
Con: While there is plenty of property information and information on local schools, the neighborhood data is limited compared with other apps.
If you’re moving to New York City, StreetEasy is one of the most widely used apps New Yorkers use to find a home in the city. You can search for listings, buildings and open houses, and use the filter to narrow your search by neighborhood, amenities, virtual tours or no-fee.
Best feature: Kim says the best feature of the app is that it’s user-friendly. “In NYC, the market moves fast, and StreetEasy has the most timely updates, which is important in a fast-paced homebuying market,” she says.
Pro: StreetEasy provides helpful information regarding monthly maintenance, taxes and general mortgage costs. “All the information is already plugged in, and all the consumer has to do is input how much money they want to put down,” Kim says. “This is very helpful for understanding your expected monthly payments.” For co-ops, it also shows you the minimum you can finance, as co-ops typically have strict financial requirements.
Con: Kim says StreetEasy sometimes lacks information, and it can be confusing to get in contact with the agent since the app connects you with a StreetEasy expert and not necessarily the listing agent. “This can confuse the consumer since they may be unsure who exactly the seller's agent is,” she says.
While best known for its information and search feature for homes being sold through auction, Xome’s app provides detailed information for plenty of homes on the market through traditional sale.
Best feature: The Xome Zoom feature allows you to point the camera on your phone at a property, and information will pop up on the app to tell you about the home.
Pro: When zooming in on a street or neighborhood, you can filter to see properties not currently on the market with Xome-estimated home values and public record information.
Con: While Xome’s database of auction properties is easy to browse on a desktop computer, you cannot filter to view auction properties on the main app. If you’re interested in auction properties, you have to download the separate Xome Real Estate Auctions app.
This app from national real estate brokerage Compass provides information on any properties listed in the area where you’re looking. It’s easy to get in touch with a Compass agent near you through the app as well.
Best feature: If you allow the app to have Bluetooth access on your phone, it will connect to Compass smart listing signs for information about nearby properties for sale by Compass agents.
Pro: If you’re most interested in properties that allow you to take a careful look at the home before an in-person visit, listings with virtual tours included are noted in the map search feature with a light blue play button icon.
Con: The app resolves the long list of property details and stats that other apps still have by condensing the list into a menu, allowing you to jump to the specific information you’re looking for. However, the menu is a bit repetitive, with descriptions that simply echo the menu item: The “Key Details” tab is described as “key details” right below, and “Taxes and Assessment” information is described as “taxes and assessment."
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