Mobile
apps can be used for just about anything these days. From remotely
starting a car to filming and editing entire feature-length films using a
smartphone, there are even apps out there to help buy, sell or renovate
a home.
With spring officially arriving on Monday, the busiest
time of year for the real estate industry is now here. According to the
Canadian Real Estate Association, the majority of deals to buy or sell a
home will occur in the next few months. To help buyers and sellers stay
on top of their own efforts without having to stay on top of their home
computer, Financial Post technology reporter Jameson Berkow found some
of the more useful real estate apps for Canadian househunters.
REAL ESTATE DICTIONARY
Hypothecate
is when someone offers their property as collateral when taking on a
debt, such as a mortgage, but the average person would never know that.
Particularly useful for those looking to buy or sell a home without
using a real estate agent, there are a number of dictionary apps
available on every smartphone platform to help users make sense of all
the industry jargon. The Glossary of Real Estate Terms, complete with
700 key definitions, is available for the Google Android platform at a
cost of $2 and the Dictionary of Real Estate Terms is available on the
Apple iOS platform also for about $2. Anyone who has ever been
confounded by the term "estoppel" will find one of these apps to be well
worth the price.
REALTOR.CA
The official mobile app
of the Canadian Real Estate Association, this free app gives users
access to an average of 350,000 Canadian properties for sale on the
Realtor.ca website. Using a smartphone's built-in GPS feature, the app
lets users search for houses available near their current location or a
specific address, providing them with photos, listing details and
contact information to get in touch with the agent. It launched on
Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Phone 7 platform last November and a version
compatible with Apple Inc.'s iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices was
released in late December; with other versions for Research in Motion
Ltd.'s BlackBerry OS and Google Inc.'s Android expected in the next few
months. More than 100,000 people have already downloaded this
well-designed app.
ZOOCASA
This free app, currently
available only on the iPhone platform, is similar to Realtor.ca but even
more intuitive. For those Apple device users who don't mind using
something other than the "official" industry app, Zoocasa will also let
users search for properties based on their current location, even
displaying full descriptions of properties that would appear on the
Zoocasa website. There is also a unique social function built in,
allowing users to email listings from directly within the app.