Apps have transformed the way people conduct real estate investing as much as the internet has in general.
With apps, entire devices like fax machines can be replaced, 3D models of rooms can be generated, calculations can be made in moments, and homes can be found, bought, and sold instantly.
Here are just some of the best real estate investing apps for 2021.
1. AcreTrader
In under 10 minutes, you can be investing in actual parcels of farmland. Your choices are guided by what you want to get out of investing. You might be investing in everything from California orchards to Midwest row crops. Usually, you have 1 to 3 options to choose from, and you can view maps, photos, documents, and projected financials before investing.
2. ArborCrowd
With ArborCrowd, you can buy and sell multi-family housing, usually apartment complexes. Some markets that ArborCrowd has worked in include Brooklyn, Florida, Miami, and Manhattan. The investment minimum is high, but ArborCrowd does a great job studying the potential risk for every investment.
3. Auction.com
If you don’t have a problem with buying or selling real estate online, then Auction.com is for you. Properties are sorted by date, location, and keyword. You can even see pending foreclosures and study bank-owned properties in great detail! The listings change quickly, however, so you have to act quickly! Although, given that you won’t be seeing the properties in person, you won’t know what you’re getting into.
4. BiggerPockets
BiggerPockets is an indispensable resource for real estate investors. Their app comes packed with blog posts, podcasts, ebooks, guides, etc. It’s a resource that teaches people to be better real estate investors and better homeowners as well!
5. CrowdStreet
CrowdStreet pairs accredited investors with project developers who’ve gone through a thorough screening. You choose which properties to invest into or invest into CrowdStreet’s funds. The minimum buy-in varies, but in most cases is at least $25,000.
6. DealCheck
DealCheck is an app that gives you the important metrics you need to make real estate investment decisions. That includes cap rate, rent to value, cash on cash return, and more from various sources that you can import.
7. DealMachine
DealMachine lets you cold email potential investment opportunities.
8. DocuSign
E-signatures are a real-time saver because you don’t have to hunt down a printer or resort to a fax machine to transfer your paperwork. One of the most popular e-signature tools, DocuSign, lets you sign with any mobile device or computer. There are no limits on how many documents you can sign, and you can both send and receive paperwork anywhere. All these options are free, although paid plans let you use personalized brands, bill people, and much more.
9. DiversyFund
DiversyFund lets you buy a stake in DiversyFund’s DF Growth REIT (real estate investment trust), a public, non-listed REIT. The REIT does not have a high barrier to entry. These types of REITS must register with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and are subject to an annual audit. This gives investors a level of transparency that isn’t found in private REITS or other types of real estate investments. DiversyFund is for investors who are willing to go the long-haul because DiversifyFund reinvests all its dividends, which means you won’t see any profit until properties are sold.
10. FarmTogether
FarmTogether lets you invest in farmland and agribusiness like orchards and crops. It lacks a mobile app, but its website has a calculator that will estimate your net returns depending on how much you invest. There are strict investor income minimums: $200,000 yearly for an individual or $300,000 per household. Your net worth must also be $1 million at a minimum, and you must be committed to maintaining this income and net worth for the next few years.
11. Free Rental Agreement Templates
Using free rental agreement templates, you can customize your lease agreement to fit all your needs. You can institute smoking bans, put together a questionnaire to allow and disallow running businesses out of your rental property, specify the conditions for early lease termination, and more!
12. Fundrise
Fundrise lets accredited and non-accredited investors get into crowdfunding real estate and REITs. Fundrise’s minimum investment is $500, which is a low barrier to entry. The app is an opportunity for people investing in single-family homes or multi-family homes to invest in different types of commercial real estate or invest in markets far from home.
13. GroundFloor
GroundFloor lets both accredited, and non-accredited investors make fractional investments in venture loans to real estate entrepreneurs that GroundFloor originates and maintains. The return on typical loans is 10% annually on a 6 to 12-month term. Every loan on GroundFloor is rigorously screened based on the borrower’s experience, credit history, and business plan. You also get to find out the value of the property both as-is and after rehab.
14. HomeSnap
HomeSnap lets visitors visualize your investment property as their home by using staging that more reflects their personal style. They can also more easily see property lines. HomeSnap connects to both Apple TV and Apple Watch, has in-app messaging, and you can take pictures of the property to get all the data and records.
15. Rental Returns Tax Calculator
Using this free Rental Property Return Calculator from Mynd, you can get an idea of your expected returns and cash flow and see how your returns change based on your financing choices and what your returns look like after taxes.
16. Houzz
Get access to the interior and exterior design inspiration, listings of local professionals, real estate agent listings, and the option to decorate your room in 3D.
17. LoopNet
LoopNet is ideal for investors who are strictly interested in commercial real estate. Users get in-depth reports that include pictures, street views, videos, investment details from brokers, and neighborhood stats. You can filter your searches using many categories and set alerts for properties you want to keep an eye on. LoopNet was started in 1995, so it’s weathered the test of time.
18. Magic Plan App
Magic Plan App truly feels magical. Step into any room, start scanning with your phone, and immediately you can generate 3D models, save measurements, and create floor plans. You have access to over 1,000 objects to place and move around your 3D space. Then share your creations with anyone you like or save them to the cloud.
19. Path by Origin
Path by Origin screens REITS that meet its strict criteria, which effectively means your investment benefits from the experience and active involvement of real estate professionals. A brief questionnaire about your net worth, risk tolerance, and personal information is all it takes to get started. Then you can track your balance using the app.
20. Personal Capital
Previously, Personal Capital was primarily used to track your income, cash flow, and net worth. Now the app can be linked to your real estate investments using Zillow’s Zestimate.
21. Property Fixer
If you want to flip properties, then Property Fixer is for you. It lets you put in property info and then estimates the cost of rehabbing it. The app also gives you a robust report about the neighborhood the property is in and nearby properties so you can see if it’s worth the effort to rehab. Finally, the app will tell you what sort of mortgage you’d need to cover the cost of the purchase and repair and how much you’d have to pay monthly.
22. Real Estate Dictionary App
There’s a lot to learn when it comes to real estate investment–that’s why the Mynd Management Real Estate Knowledge Center is so vast. Real Estate Dictionary App lets you have a glossary of investing terms at your fingertips. It covers everything from closing costs to legal real estate entities.
23. DealMachine
Find the best deals, keep up to date with the latest buildings to go on the market, and manage your team with DealMachine. The Driving for Dollars feature tracks members of your real estate investment team as they drive around, hunting for deals, exploring open houses, performing self-showings, and more so that each place is only paid a single visit.
You can also get reports on the properties that got viewed, which includes their price listings and comparable properties. At the end of your calendar year, the app will produce a full report using a spreadsheet that shows how many miles were racked up by each driver. This can help you make a mileage deduction for your business.
24. Realtor.com
With Realtor.com, you can search for investment properties using various metrics like price, type, and time spent on the market. Each property comes with interior and exterior photos, house details, and information on the locale. The listings, however, are based on their current market value as opposed to whether or not the property is undervalued, which is information that would be particularly useful for an investor.
25. Rentometer
Rentometer compares the rent of similar properties in your neighborhood so that you can more effectively set a competitive rent. All you need to use the app is the number of bedrooms and the rental property address. The premium version of the app lets you view those comparable properties. Just don’t forget about the average or hidden costs of rental property maintenance.
26. Rent Collection Apps
Rent collection apps remove mail service from the rent collection equation, which means tenants can pay without fear of checks being delayed or lost. Additionally, rent can be broken up into smaller pieces or paid on more convenient days of the month. Is a tenant consistently late with rent? Maybe they won’t be if the due date is moved or the amount is broken up into more manageable pieces.
Rent collections apps may also be just a part of large suites that let you manage communication, delegate responsibilities to contractors, make announcements, etc. They’re becoming very commonplace, so not using one may make you seem like an investor that’s out of touch.
27. Scanner Pro
Like DocuSign, Scanner Pro eliminates the need for technology, in this case, scanners and, yet again, fax machines. It’s a tool that detects the border of whatever you’re photographing so that you only have the document to work with (and not its surroundings). Once the photo is on your phone, it gets converted to a PDF and can be saved to Google Drive, Dropbox, etc. Scanner Pro is sophisticated enough that you can copy and paste text from the document!
28. USHUD Foreclosure Home Search
With the USHUD app, you can look for all sorts of foreclosed or bank-owned homes, ranging from luxury to middle class to condos and more. Along similar lines, ViewHUD Foreclosures Database is a great way to access that information. Since this information comes from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development itself, it’s more accurate.
29. Yieldstreet
Yieldstreet is an opportunity to invest in real estate, marine projects, art, and more. Yieldstreet also provides loans so that you can make a variety of different investments. The app provides details on each asset, including the maximum and minimum that you can invest, plus how long you’ll need to keep your money invested and the expected return. Yieldstreet also provides an FDIC-insured Wallet to save your money for future investments and allows users to open up a traditional or Roth Yieldstreet IRA. Some of the app’s options are only available to accredited investors.
30. Xome
Xome is another marketplace that lets you browse auctions, the difference being that some homes are exclusively auctioned on Xome. There are bank-owned properties, foreclosed, short-sale, and standard home listings on Xome that are available nowhere else.
31. Zillow
With the Zillow app, all you need to do is type in the address of your prospective investment, and you’ll receive a report that includes the number of bathrooms and bedrooms, the square footage, the lot size, and the last time the property was sold. You can also narrow your search based on your investment priorities and by zip code.
Bottom Line
With these apps at your disposal, not only can you conduct your real estate investing from a well-informed position, but you can also do it in an instant.
The playing field has been leveled, and now investing in real estate and conducting business is accessible to more people than ever before!
The post The Best Tools and Apps for Real Estate Investors appeared first on HomeUnion.