5 Free Must-Have Android Apps for House Selling and Buying
As I’ve mentioned, we recently bought a new house. When we bought our last house, 10 years ago, people still weren’t entirely embracing technology as a tool. My real estate agent at the time couldn’t quite grasp that I was doing my own online research before she was sending listings our way. There was no Trulia or Zillow back then. Now there are many, many apps available to help with your search and with moving and decorating. Here are a few of my faves with links for Android devices. These house-hunting helper apps are also available for iOS.
Zillow Real Estate (free) – With several options for perusing real estate listings, I prefer Zillow because I like the layout and the information it provides. You can search for houses in a particular town by your own criteria and receive alerts when new houses come on the market. You can collect favorites and track those, as well. I should note that Zillow updates more slowly than some of the other sites out there (and better than others), but I still like the user experience best. I also enjoyed Real Estate & Homes by Trulia. It presents information in a slightly different way.
Houzz Interior Design Ideas – Whether you’re staging your current home for sale, or re-imagining the décor in your dream home, Houzz is full of inspiration. Sure, there are houses with décor that will be well out of your price range, but the overall colors, styles, and layouts from a professional perspective is helpful. There is also a forum where you can ask for design help. I’m certain that once we move, I’ll be posting a request or two up there.
Angie’s List – If you’re anything like us, you’ve been ignoring some general maintenance around your house. Now that you’re moving, your agent insists that it’s time to get it done. Angie’s List is a subscription service that helps you search reviews to find the right provider for all sorts of things, but especially for work around the house. The app is just a way to take Angie’s list on the go with you. They also have a newer app, called SnapFix. I haven’t tried it yet, but it’s designed so that you can take a picture of work you need completed, submit it, and then get a quote from a provider who has received strong ratings.
MagicPlan – Creating a floor plan for your new home for the purposes of decorating can be really helpful, but also time consuming. MagicPlan helps speed up the process by using your device camera to “draw” the floor plan, including an estimate on the length of the walls. It’s hard to get total accuracy since it depends on your own eye and steadiness with your device, but it’s a great starting place, especially if an estimate is good enough. Once you’ve drawn everything out, you can fill it in with furniture and accessories to get a sense of how things will fit.
Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Wireless Lifestyle Bloggers group, I receive free products, as well as occasional travel and special experiences. There is no additional compensation and the opinions contained in this post are my own.
I have found Zillow to be a great resource. My parents are buying a summer home and I let them know about this site. Now it’s one of their favorites, too.