Top 10 Useful Apps for Estate Agents
A typical day for any Estate Agent involves spending large amounts of the day out and about at property viewings, so working on the road has made mobile devices like smartphones and handheld tablets a necessity to keep in touch.
There are not many industries that haven’t been affected by the development of innovative business apps and there are more tools than ever before that can make the life of an estate or letting agent that much easier.
Here’s just a selection of useful apps that can help make you more productive. Don’t leave home (or sell/rent one) without them!
1. Google Maps
Google Maps is a must-have for every real estate agent. When clients are ready to visit a list of potential properties, Google Maps is an indispensable tool in your pocket, guiding you to the next address.
Available on: Web, Android, iOS, Windows Phone
Price: Free
2. DocuSign
More than 50,000 letting and estate professionals use DocuSign to sign and send millions of documents, from residential to commercial real estate, property management, mortgage and more. DocuSign allows you to digitally sign legal documents on the go including contracts and tenancy agreements . Once subscribed to Real Estate, your DocuSign has the ability to access account features, send, track, and securely sign documents, and capture the GPS location at the time of signing.
Available on: Web, Android, iOS, Windows Phone
Price: Although the app is free, you need to sign up for a subscription to the Real Estate edition. Prices start from £14 per user per month
3. Dropbox
Dropbox is a great way to store your documents in the cloud – it’s the best way to bring all your docs, videos, and photos with you, wherever you go. With 2GB of free storage, you have enough space to test it out and allow your account to grow as your business grows. Create unlimited folders for your company: listings, buyers, potential clients, forms, buyer and seller presentations, etc. Access them from any computer (via the Dropbox website) or from your smartphone or tablet and share documents and folders with the click of a button. Save files directly from your email on your computer, smartphone or tablet to your Dropbox for easy interface.
Available on: Web, iOS, Android, and Windows Phone
Price: Free up to 2GB, Dropbox for Business is priced at £11 per user per month
4. Hootsuite
Hootsuite lets you manage your social networking platforms – Facebook profile, Facebook pages, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Foursquare – all from one place. You can schedule updates in advance, respond to posts and tweets, and keep track of everything from one place. Manage up to 5 profiles with the free account, or upgrade to Pro for £7.99 a month for upgraded analytics, custom URL shortener, and more great features. Keep your social networking at your fingertips – never miss a client’s tweet or the opportunity to promote your latest blog post!
Available on: Web, Android, iOS
Price: Manage up to 5 profiles with the free account, or upgrade to Pro from £7.99 a month
5. Cam Scanner
Cam Scanner enables you to scan documents directly from your mobile device – and makes them look like real scans! Instead of rushing to the office to send out documents, you can now get this done on the go. It’s perfect for scanning contracts, documents and even expense receipts. Simply just take a photo, and CamScanner take care of the rest. Cloud back up space is free up to 200MB. Also manage and share documents with collaborators and auto upload docs to Box, Google Drive, Dropbox and Evernote with the Premium Account.
Available on: Web, Android, iOS, Windows Phone
Price: Free, Premium Account available from $4.99 per month
6. Cell Phone Coverage Map
According to a recent article, lack of a decent mobile phone signal can be enough of a reason for people to move house, so why not provide preempt the discussions at property viewings by using the Cell Phone Coverage Map app. You can view easy-to-use maps showing millions of mobile performance test results to get insights down to street level, where you can test a network’s call performance and data speeds so you can arm your prospective tenants and buyers with the information they need.
Available on: iOS
Price: Free
7. AroundMe
Again why not assist your potential tenants and buyers by having local surroundings information at your fingertips. Be able to provide information on the closest petrol station, bank, hospital, doctor’s surgery and supermarket AroundMe also gives an area overview and has listings and reviews of restaurants and hotels.
Available on: iOS, Android
Price: Free
8. Zoopla and Rightmove
When people start their searches for a new home to rent or buy then the two biggest websites are Rightmove and Zoopla. Zoopla and Rightmove are the must-have apps that offer comprehensive listings, as well as local information and property history. There are additional benefits for agents; if you are a Rightmove member then your property listings will always be accessible to home-hunters, even when they are on the move, via Rightmove’s mobile platforms, so by using the Rightmove real time feed (managed through your software supplier) this will allow you to harness the latest technology to market your properties online straight away.
Available on: iOS, Android
Price: Free
9. Plan Up, formerly known as The Mobile Agent (Floor Plans)
Designed to be used by non-technical people, Plan Up is simplicity itself. It allows you to draw, edit and save your floor plans from any machine in your office and is targeted for estate agents and energy assessors. and is used by over 6,000 customers to draw 2D and 3D floor plans. Most of the major estate agency software vendors can pull our plans and descriptions straight into their systems
Available on: Web, iPad
Price: 14 day Free Trial, thereafter Priced at £39.99 + VAT per office per month, or £7.49 + VAT pay-as-you-go
10. TouchRight Software (Property Reports)
And last but not least (and of course we’re a bit biased with this one), you’ll need a great property report app to allow you to create property reports on the go with ease. Inventories, check outs and mid-term reports are a must-have for any landlord (and therefore letting agent) and that’s what TouchRight aims to provide. With both a web and mobile app, it allows you to use a variety of different property templates that are fully customisable to create various types of property reports. The app allows to you add photos and text to the report before converting to a pdf document to share with landlords and tenants.
Available on: iOS, Android
Price: App is Free, with a Free 5 property trial. Thereafter monthly packages start from £25 per month + VAT for up to 50 properties, and you can create as many reports as you require for each one of those properties
Technology is assisting estate and letting agents more than ever before to have information at their fingertips and be more productive with their time. It all helps with our carbon footprint and in many cases saves on using paper. Why not make the most of the technology around you?
We’d love to find out more about other apps you are finding useful for your business. Also if you need any assistance with purchasing suitable tablet devices for business, please don’t hesitate to get in contact with TouchRight Software on 01904 390109 or via email info@touchrightsoftware.com.
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