Cellphone Apps For The Real Estate Investor

[Troy Ross]

Technology has advanced much throughout the years and cellphone technology is not a stranger to advancement. As a result, cellphones – or smartphones, as they are more commonly called today – have evolved into little mini-computers. You can work with your office documents on them, watch videos, chat, surf the web and much, much more. But when it comes to tools that investors can use, the cellphone should be used for much more than those tasks or simply making phone calls to prospects. There are many applications available for real estate investors to use in their business. Those covered here do not cost you one cent to download or install. The steps involved with the installation of such applications are beyond the scope of this article and will not be addressed. Furthermore, I will not cover the technical side of these applications as it pertains to battery use, bandwidth and so on. That too is beyond the scope of this article.

Some of the applications that I will discuss in this article may not work in your area or on your particular phone. Many variables come into play when installing and using these applications. For instance, your carrier may charge extra for any data transfer while an application is in use; your phone may not accept the installation of such applications and/or an application may not work with certain databases (such as the MLS) in your particular area. My phone is a Samsung Fascinate which has the Android OS installed and I am on the Verizon 3G network in the metro Richmond, Virginia area. So far, each of these applications have worked 100% of the time in my area. Most of these applications require the GPS to be turned ‘on’ to obtain the most accurate information. Also, please note that the information provided by these applications should not be considered 100% accurate or up-to-date. Follow up with additional research as necessary.

To locate and install these applications, you can visit the ‘Market’ application on your phone. Once in the Market, you can search for these applications by name.

Application #1 – Craigsnotifica

This application, also known as the Craigslist Notification Application, will notify you when something new has been posted on Craigslist in your area. You enter certain keywords into the application and when new posts containing such keywords are listed, the application will notify you and listed them by category for you to view on your phone. You can set the application to check for updates by certain time increments – from every 10 minutes on up to once per 24 hours.

With Craigsnotifica, you can then touch each category in order to view the most recent posts containing your specific keywords (as pictured above).

From there, you can touch each particular post within the list (above) to view it (below). The application contains a nice email feature. If the ad has a email address associated with it (anonymous or otherwise), you can contact the person that posted the ad immediately from your phone – or simply call if a number is provided. You can even create an email template so you don’t have to re-type the same message over and over again to prospects. In addition, you can pull the property up on a map on your phone (if an address is listed in the ad). If you have GPS turned ‘on’ and a map application on your phone, you can follow the directions and drive to the property.

The purpose for having Craigsnotifica on your phone is to obtain immediate information. You can act on the info as it is provided to you or follow up at a later time. It’s a nice tool that can assist you in your marketing efforts as well.

Application #2 – Homes.com

The well known homes.com website now has it’s own application for cellphone use. The basic search tasks are available.

The application will first attempt to obtain a GPS location so it will know what area to search for homes for sale or places nearby for rent. If GPS is not turned ‘on’, then it will use your last known GPS location. You can even search by MLS number. Listings with agent info will appear on your phone (pictured below), the closest home to you first.

Application #3 – Smarter Agent

Next to Craigsnotifica, I think the Smarter Agent application is probably my most favorite one to use. It’s a versatile program that accesses the MLS. The data appears to be updated and accurate with 24 hours of last update (for the ‘active listings’ database). I have found that the ‘sold’ listings usually are only as recent as one but typically two months ago or older (up to three years ago). That said, the information provided is still very valuable.

Once you touch the ‘Homes for Sale’ button, another menu appears asking if you want to map the closest homes or list them. You can complete an advanced search by listing number, address or zip code. You can even save searches in your favorites. The application will show single family homes, condos, townhouses and more.

Touch any one of the house icons pictured on the map and get instant access to listed properties. Information included in each listing is typical of what you would find online on your computer (address, taxes, estimated mortgage, square feet, lot size, year built, listing number and agent, property description, interior/exterior features, neighborhood and school, similar recently sold, etc). Photos are included (pictured below).

Another nice feature of Smarter Agent is you can pull up recently sold properties and there are a number of ways to do so (pictured below). As I said earlier, I have found that the ‘sold’ listings usually are only as recent as one but typically two months ago or older (up to three years ago).

Having such an application would be very valuable out in the field. For example, let’s say that I am at a house in which I am looking to wholesale to another investor. The seller is present and I have not placed it under contract yet but it looks like a practical and profitable deal with the little bit of work involved and the asking price – I just need to know the comps. In other words, I’d like to know what homes have sold for recently. This application would give me a fair idea about price on the spot and I could make an offer immediately (and maybe get a contract signed). This could help eliminate missed opportunities and allow you to act immediately with reasonable information.

Application #4 â€" US HUD

US HUD is a great application which provides information on foreclosures and nationwide HUD homes for sale including Fannie Mae foreclosures, bank REOs and more.

Similar to the other applications, you have the opportunity to pull up a list of properties at your fingertips.

And, of course you can view individual listings for detailed information (pictured below).

With the individual listing, you can visit the site that currently lists the property and see how many days it has been on the market.

Application #5 – Realtor.com

Yet another application with which to pull up valuable property info is the one provided by Realtor.com. Not only can you obtain info on current MLS listings, but you can locate info on rentals and obtain comparable information on rents for the area.

You also get a decent listings page with which you can touch and view properties of your choice.

Honorable Mentions

Rentals.com application – this application allows you to pull up rent comps which are close to your current location.

Zillow application – utilizes a map showing your current location to display properties that are currently for sale and for rent. If you pull up a particular property, it will also show you very current comps.

Zip Realty application – another ‘show me what’s for sale/sold’ application. In my opinion, it’s not all that thorough as the other applications and offers nothing extra.

Hotpads.com application – another ‘show me what’s for rent/sale’ application.

Conclusion

Surely there are other applications out there that real estate investors can use on a daily basis. The ones I mentioned are only a handful. So I’d like to hear from you. Please share with me the names of the applications that you use and what functions they provide. Please leave a comment with such information below. I appreciate your input! If you found this article helpful, please share it with a fellow real estate investor.

About the Author – Troy Ross is a real estate investor located in Henrico, Virginia. Formerly a police officer, he left law enforcement to pursue his goals and dreams in real estate. His experience includes wholesaling, rehabbing and building new homes.