How to Create an On-demand Real Estate App like Zillow and Trulia?

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The real estate industry is growing rapidly. With evolving options, the competition in the market is also growing swiftly. Nowadays, promoting your services through traditional methods of advertisements is not as effective as compared to modern methods. Companies are approaching the app development technology even for real estate industrialized entrepreneurs wishful to develop an app like Zillow and Trulia. They are further hiring the Mobile App Development Company in order to make an app like Trulia, and so on.

Are you planning to make your real estate company stand apart from the mainstream realtors in the market? Well, if yes, you need to adopt On-demand app development to develop a real estate app. You will also need to Hire Mobile App Developers to make an app like Zillow. Apart from these, you will also require putting your time and energy into many aspects of Real Estate App Development.

You may also require to opt for a good and trusted mobile app development company to shape your app idea project. They will further appoint a proper team to create a real estate app as per your needs and desires. So, let’s start with the explanation of every crucial factor impacting the real estate app development.

Identify the objective to Develop a Real Estate App like Zillow & Trulia

While developing a real estate app, you should keep various concerns in mind like renting, selling or buying a property. It should help users, property agencies, and real estate agents to have easy access to your app. Moreover, it must-have features like 3D view, price listing or contact details. Also, it must be able to help users know about the properties while sitting at home.

As technology is upgrading itself with every passing day, people are also moving in the direction of digitization. With a real estate app like Zillow or Trulia, users can get a virtual experience of the property, and require information without going out physically at that place. Moreover, this will save their time as well as money.

Features of a Real Estate App like Zillow or Trulia

To start shaping your real estate business mobile application like Zillow or Trulia with hired professional Real Estate Application Development Agency, you need to list out the essential features for your app. These features are supposed to be integrated into the app. Moreover, below-listed are a few of them:

Strong Database: Such apps require strong databases as you will have to store a lot of information in the app. Proper databases collect property-related information from various sources like NAR, MLS, or third-party sources.

Advanced Search Functionality: With this feature, your users will be able to filter their search according to their preferences.

Graphically displayed Listings: In order to increase engagements, you should use graphical visuals instead of using text-based listings. While you create a Real Estate Mobile App, you can use SDKs for graphs or charts. Moreover, this will help you to make things look better.

Well-appointed Maps: To provide a complete idea about the locality of the property, you need to include maps into the app. Moreover, this will help the users to check if there are any hospitals, schools, or markets nearby. Also, it may include more information like the local population, crime rate, etc.

‘Save search’ feature: This feature will allow users to save the results to have a look at it later. Based on saved searches, the app will make more similar recommendations. Save search feature also lets users start browsing from where they stopped last time.

Details of the property: Your app should have detailed information about any property. This can include the price of the property, a small description of it, its address, area, size, etc. Moreover, it may include photos of the property as well.

Two Must-Have Technologies in the Real Estate App: To attract customers towards your app, you need to work on the technology used in the app. The technologies should be influential and informational enough that users go through only your app to get in touch with realtors and upcoming projects.

Big Data: A huge amount of data should be collected about the customers to know their preferences. This will help companies to offer them properties based on the customers’ choices.

Virtual Reality/ Augmented Reality: You can speed up the process of selling by providing a 3D view of the property. Also, using AR/VR, you can provide a virtual experience to the buyers/renters which is time savor.

Additional Features to Real Estate App Development

Direct marketing

Improved coordination among app developers and other members

In-app chat

Geolocation Tracking

Improved customer engagement

Business Model for your Real Estate App Development like Zillow or Trulia

All the efforts you put into the development of your app will be considered fruitful only when it brings some profit to you. It will attract investors only if they find your idea unique and interesting. You need to look for the most possible ways when you are planning to monetize your app.

Moreover, here are a few models, which can be followed to monetize your real estate app. Also, it will not be affecting your users’ experience at all.

Normal Advertising

This is the simplest way to monetize your app. You may simply integrate ads. Using this model, you can generate revenue by keeping your app free to use for the users. However, don’t add many ads as it may annoy the users.

Professional Advertising

This model can be used by estate agents and brokers to promote their services to the converted clients directly for a decided fixed fee. In this way, such ads will not annoy other users and will be visible to only those who are ready to make the transaction.

Freemium Model

In this model, your app will be free to use with some basic features. Moreover, if your users want to have access to additional features, they need to buy the premium version of your app. The premium version of your app should be ad-free for the premium users.

Technology Stack to Develop a Real Estate App like Zillow & Trulia

Apache Tomcat

Flask

Objective-C

Facebook SDK

Spring

RabbitMQ

Amazon S3

Google authorization

Apple push notifications service or APNS

Java

Python

How much does it cost to develop an app like Zillow?

To create a Real Estate Mobile App, the overall development cost depends on several factors. These involve the time required to make an app like Trulia, the number of features to integrate into the app, the platform used, etc. The on-Demand Real Estate Application Development Cost is also pivoted on the below points:

Have you decided to use the updated technology stack which has additional costs?

Will your real estate app require an iOS or Android platform or both of these?

Have you decided to hire a real estate app developer from your native city or another country?

How big or small or complex your real estate application will be?

Will your real estate application have some crucial features only or will it involve some advanced features as well?

When it comes to a team that will develop a Real Estate App Like Zillow & Trulia, it involves:

Application project manager

Back end developer

QA engineer

UX/UI designers

QA engineer

Tester

2-4 android and iOS app developers

System Administrator, etc.

Based on the level of customization and charges per hour, you may get the estimated Real Estate Application Development Cost. On estimation, it would take at least 570 hours to make your app look like Zillow/ Trulia. Also, it will take around 1180 hours for its web development to be done. Apart from that, you should know that the developer charges may vary from location to another. Overall, a real estate app with basic features may cost you around $10,000.

However, the Real Estate Application Development cost will increase with an increase in the number of features. Furthermore, this may reach up to $35,000.

Final words

Before getting deep into the details of technology or platform used, you need to be clear about what you want in your app. For this, you need to take some time, study the market and evaluate existing real estate apps. Also, you should try to integrate some different features in your app that not only attract users but also add value to your app.

So take your time and then start the development with your professional team of developers. Moreover, once you are clear with the above and have everything in place, you can start the execution part of the real estate app. So, build a real estate app like Zillow or Trulia now with the help of qualified and experienced freelancers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sanjay Kidecha

CMO