Are you interested in learning about the cost to develop an app like Zillow?
App development doesn’t seem easy right? But you need to have detailed guidance to have an app like Zillow. Beginning with the need to have an app to identify an effective monetization strategy, you can have it all.
App development requires investment, so you might be thinking about how much it cost to develop an App Like Zillow.
The average cost of developing a real estate app like Zillow can take $15,000 to $95,000. But before that, you should identify the features and factors that can impact your cost estimation.
Well, for your convenience we have done it all. Here you will find the stats, top features, needs, factors, and monetization strategies to identify the cost to develop an App Like Zillow. So, let’s begin with the journey.
Zillow: The Most Popular Real Estate App in America
Zillow is a real estate app that helps people to get home. They provide services like buying, selling, renting, and financing.
Do you know, that Zillow is not only for home buyers or sellers, they are also for renters and borrowers?
You can also be the one like Zillow. All you need is to identify what makes Zillow so different.
Before that, let’s discuss some market stats about the industry and app. This research can help you understand the current competition and can provide you with a clear picture of the real estate app market.
- The U.S. real estate market is expected to reach a value of $119.80 trillion by the year-end 2024.
- The value of the real estate market can reach $142.88 billion by the year 2028.
- Irrespective of the different segments present in the market, the real estate market volume is projected at $94.39 trillion.
Head on to some Real Estate App and web stats, below.
- Based on the above stats, you can check that Zillow received about 60 million visits followed by Realtor, Trulia, and others.
- Finding homes and commercial property through a mobile or tablet has become a trend among 80% of young people under the age of 42.
- The reason for the growing usage of real estate web and apps has resulted in heavy investment in proptech as in 2021, proptech investment reached 3 billion USD.
Top Features of Apps like Zillow
How to build a real estate app like Zillow? Well, the question requires a discussion with an experienced mobile app development company.
Till you check, we are providing you with some features to develop an app like Zillow, you should be aware of what exactly it contains to attract a wide number of users. Here you can find all the features that make Zillow successful.
User Registration
This is the most basic feature that a real estate app should have and it needs to be simple and accessible. Within the Zillow app, there is a feature for accessing saved listings, saving searches, and posting reviews. While developing an app, you can add this feature via social media authentication, authorization email, and phone verification.
Filters and Categories
An inaccurate filter can impact search results and can also shift your app users to competitors. One of the main parts of having a real estate app is to find the right property when the user needs it the most. Hence, to simplify the property search process, you should provide the users with search options. Add multiple categories to help your users find the right property.
Mortgage Calculators
Create a real estate app like Zillow that contains mortgage calculators. While using Zillow users can find simple mortgage calculators. It enables them to list the services. So that the real estate agents are able to understand the purchasing ability of the efficient buyers. Moreover, the app contains three outstanding mortgage tool calculators. That users don’t find in other house-selling apps.
Automatic Rent Reminders
While using Zillow, users can have automatic rental reminders that help them find and sell different types of real estate properties. And that, too, without even reaching to the dealers and brokers. People like it when they find someone who makes their tasks simple and easy. Thus, you can do this with an app. Add a rental reminder feature that can assist them in not skipping rent payments.
Cost Estimation Feature
Zillow has the most amazing feature named Zestimate. Do you know what it belongs to? It helps to track the value of homes. The feature works upon an algorithm used to crunch data from public property, tax records, and recent home sales. Building a feature like Zestimate is simple. If you partner with a right team.
Do you know if a user can track the value of 110 million homes with the help of Zestimate? Yes, this feature has helped Zillow to increase its market presence.
Listing Service Features
The app provides access to a large database of property listings that comprise homes for sale and apartments for rent along with recently sold properties. It is one of the basic features of a real estate app. Here you have to show the list of available properties that come under the filters implied and detailed mentioned in the app.
Push Notifications
Push notifications are a simple and powerful marketing tool. It is a must-have feature within the real estate app that can help you succeed in the long run. These notifications can assist you in reaching out to prospective users and sending related industry news. This app is also useful for notifying users of the changed prices of properties in the industry.
Schedule Property Visits
Zillow pertains to property visits with scheduled property visits in the app. You can also provide the end user with this facility to find any type of property including single-family homes, townhomes, apartments, and commercial property. This feature provides safety and security to sellers as well as to the buyers to have a risk-free property booking.
Map Search
In the map search feature of the Zillow app, users can narrow the location of the search and adjust the results by using tools to zoom in and zoom out the map. The feature allows the user to change the map type. Here, users can draw their own custom search areas via the drawing tool to research.
Why Develop An App Like Zillow?
Zillow-like app development cost can impact your app development budget. Before understanding its reason. Let’s look forward to why should we require to develop an app like Zillow.
Here are some of the reasons that you can consider for developing an app like Zillow.
1. Increased User Experience
A well-built real estate app is used to improve user experience by providing intuitive navigation, and high-quality visuals along with the interactive property. Finding properties has never been an easy task. Hence, the need arises to provide a remote experience to the user to have properties without any hassle.
2. Creates Awareness About Properties
With the help of instant notifications and updates, you can spread awareness about the properties. This can help real estate app users to be informed about new listings, changes in prices, and other relevant updates. Real estate apps are built to offer a convenient platform to search for properties from anywhere and anytime.
3. Promote Paperless Transactions
Developing a mobile app helps improve sustainability by promoting paperless transaction options. Online transactions promote digital payments that reduce the hassle of on-paper or cash payments. Digital documentation and electronic signatures promote cloud storage usage that ultimately reduces the scope of environmental harm.
4. Improves Customer Relationship Management
At the time when offline real estate businesses work, they need to tie or hire brokers in different cities to help their customers and to build relations. The post-digitalization era has provided a way for these businesses to connect with the customers directly via the best real estate CRM. Real estate applications are built to provide the best solution to customers via search engines.
5. Integration With Different Devices
The Zillow app has a platform compatibility feature. Likewise, app development can help you connect with the end user over different platforms. Make sure your app is integrated with GPS, camera, and contacts that can enable the user to take pictures of the property and share location using the app.
6. Use of Advanced Technology
Real estate app development comprises the use of advanced technology to help users buy, sell, and rend properties in simple clicks. Here you can help the app user to use advanced technology in order to find their dream property. The mobile app technology including virtual reality and augmented reality, offers an immersive property experience.
Based on statistical reports, approximately 29% of proptech investors invest in architecture, engineering, and construction. It makes proptech a vast industry to invest in the coming years.
Cost to Develop an App Like Zillow
Now that you have a detailed idea of the features and reasons, here we proceed with the cost of developing a real estate app like Zillow.
We know very well that you must be waiting for this section to have a cost estimate to develop a real estate app.
The cost to develop Zillow clone can range from $15,000 to $95,000. Here you can have a breakdown structure.
| Development Stage/Component | Estimated Cost Range |
| 1. Research and Planning | $1,500 – $5,000 |
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| 2. Design | $3,000 – $15,000 |
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| 3. Frontend Development | $6,000 – $30,000 |
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| 4. Backend Development | $6,000 – $30,000 |
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| 5. Features and Functionality | $5,000 – $25,000 |
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| 6. Testing and Quality Assurance | $2,000 – $10,000 |
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| 7. Deployment and Launch | $1,500 – $5,000 |
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| 8. Post-launch Maintenance | $2,000 – $10,000 per month |
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| Total Estimated Cost Range | $15,000 – $95,000 |
In the above table, you can find the process of how much an app like Zillow or Trulia costs. You can also hire mobile app developers to get a cost estimate of your real estate app.
Factors That Affect Zillow Like App Development Cost
Examining an approximate figure that can help you to make an app can be difficult. Have you ever thought about how Zillow was able to manage it?
Well, the answer is with the help of an effective app development company. You can also be a part of an app development team.
You just have to select the right team for your app development. We will discuss it all in the factors as selecting a team is also an important factor impacting the cost to develop an app like Zillow.
After understanding Zillow like app development cost. Let’s move forward with the factors impacting it. There can be multiple factors that have an impact on cost, a list of them will clear it all.
► Complexity
First, understand what can be if your app development is complex. A more complex feature can help you to sustain competition in the market. Majorly it all depends on how you see it. You just need to have a complex feature to make your user research simple and hassle-free.
“Point to note- A more complex app requires a high investment”. Zillow app development costs are impacted by the complexity factors, let’s study how.
| Complexity Level | Description | Estimated Cost Range |
| Basic | A simple app with essential features such as property listings, search filters, and basic user accounts. | $15,000 – $25,000 |
| Intermediate | Additional features and functionalities like advanced search filters, saved searches/favorites, and user notifications. | $25,000 – $50,000 |
| Advanced | High levels of complexity include features like mortgage calculators, real-time updates, and 3D home tours. | $50,000 – $75,000 |
| Custom/Enterprise | Customized solutions tailored to specific requirements, integration with third-party services, and scalability for enterprise use. | $75,000 – $95,000 |
► Platform
Do you know if the Zillow app is functional on iOS and Android platforms?
Yes, it is. Now it depends on how many customers you want to approach and also on your target customer market. In this scenario, you can hire Android app developers and iOS app developers to learn more.
You can check the given table to understand the platform and its functionality along with the cost it can undertake.
| Development Platform | Description | Estimated Cost Range |
| Native iOS | Development specifically for iOS devices using Swift or Objective-C. Provides optimal performance and access to iOS-specific features. | $30,000 – $50,000 |
| Native Android | Development specifically for Android devices using Java or Kotlin. Offers excellent performance and access to Android-specific features. | $30,000 – $50,000 |
| Hybrid (React Native) | Develop using frameworks like React Native, enabling simultaneous development for both iOS and Android platforms, potentially reducing development time and cost. | $25,000 – $45,000 |
| Cross-Platform (Flutter) | Develop using frameworks like Flutter, allowing for a single codebase to deploy on multiple platforms (iOS, Android, Web), potentially reducing development time and cost. | $25,000 – $45,000 |
| Web Application | Development of a web-based application accessible via web browsers on desktop and mobile devices. Offers broad compatibility but may lack access to native device features. | $20,000 – $40,000 |
| Progressive Web App (PWA) | Development of a web application with progressive enhancements to provide a more app-like experience, including offline functionality and push notifications. |
► Tech Stack
Technology is a continuously changing field. And it’s unable to grasp it until you remain updated.
Along with keeping awareness related to shifts in technology, all you need is a guide for the mobile app tech stack. Looking forward to the table below to know more.
| Technology | Description | Estimated Cost Range |
| Frontend | ||
| JavaScript framework for building cross-platform mobile apps with native-like performance. | $10,000 – $20,000 |
| Flutter is an effective tool that can be useful to make compiled apps for the web, mobile and desktop via a single codebase. | $10,000 – $20,000 |
| Backend | ||
| JavaScript runtime for building scalable network applications. | $5,000 – $15,000 |
| Web application framework for Node.js, providing a robust set of features for web and mobile apps. | $3,000 – $10,000 |
| NoSQL database for storing property listings, user data, and other app-related information. | $2,000 – $8,000 |
| Database | ||
| Managed relational database services by AWS for storing structured data. | $2,000 – $8,000 |
| Fully managed NoSQL database service by AWS for storing JSON documents. | $2,000 – $8,000 |
| Authentication | ||
| Authentication service provided by Google Firebase for secure user authentication. | $1,000 – $5,000 |
| Maps Integration | ||
| Provides mapping and location-based services for integrating maps into the app. | $1,000 – $5,000 |
| Additional Tools & Services | ||
| State management library for managing application state in React Native and Flutter apps. | $1,000 – $5,000 |
| Error tracking and monitoring service to identify and fix issues in the app. | $1,000 – $5,000 |
| Cloud-based image and video management platform for uploading and storing media files. | $1,000 – $5,000 |
| Total Estimated Cost Range | $15,000 – $95,000 |
► App’s UI/UX Design
UI/UX design can be termed as designing the user interface for the web, app, or interactive media. If you need to identify the cost to develop an app like Zillow, you need to finalise the UI/UX interface.
To create a user interface, you need to get an idea about how it is developed. So here we are with a table to give you all the insights.
| UI/UX Design Component | Description | Estimated Cost Range |
| Research & Analysis | ||
| Gathering insights into user needs, behaviors, and preferences through surveys, interviews, etc. | $2,000 – $10,000 |
| Analyzing competitors’ apps to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for differentiation. | $1,500 – $8,000 |
| Wireframing & Prototyping | ||
| Create low-fidelity wireframes to outline app structure, layout, and navigation. | $2,000 – $8,000 |
| Developing interactive prototypes to visualize app functionality and user flow. | $3,000 – $12,000 |
| UI Design | ||
| Designing the visual elements of the app, including colors, typography, icons, and imagery. | $4,000 – $20,000 |
| Creating reusable UI components and design systems to ensure consistency across the app. | $2,000 – $10,000 |
| UX Design | ||
| Mapping out user journeys and interactions within the app to optimize usability and navigation. | $2,000 – $8,000 |
| Organizing app content and structure to ensure intuitive navigation and information hierarchy. | $2,000 – $8,000 |
| Testing & Iteration | ||
| Conducting user testing sessions to gather feedback and identify areas for improvement. | $3,000 – $15,000 |
| Iterating on designs based on user feedback, usability testing results, and stakeholder input. | $3,000 – $15,000 |
| Total Estimated Cost Range | $15,000 – $95,000 |
► Development Team
As we have reached our last factor impacting the cost of creating an app like Zillow, you need to understand that within a development team, there are two factors involved including the location and expertise of app developers. Please check the mentioned table to know more.
| Development Team Role | Description | Asia | Europe | USA |
| Project Manager | Oversees the entire development process, coordinates team members, and communicates with stakeholders. | $2,000 – $8,000 | $5,000 – $15,000 | $8,000 – $20,000 |
| UI/UX Designer | Design the user interface and user experience of the app, ensuring usability and visual appeal. | $2,000 – $10,000 | $4,000 – $15,000 | $6,000 – $20,000 |
| Frontend Developer | Builds the client side of the application, responsible for implementing UI and user interactions. | $3,000 – $12,000 | $6,000 – $20,000 | $8,000 – $25,000 |
| Backend Developer | Develops server-side logic and database of the app, ensures smooth functionality and performance. | $3,000 – $12,000 | $6,000 – $20,000 | $8,000 – $25,000 |
| Mobile Developer | Develops the mobile app for iOS and Android platforms, implements platform-specific features and APIs. | $3,000 – $12,000 | $6,000 – $20,000 | $8,000 – $25,000 |
| Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer | Test the app to identify bugs and ensure their quality and reliability. | $2,000 – $8,000 | $4,000 – $12,000 | $6,000 – $15,000 |
| DevOps Engineer | Sets up and maintains development, testing, and deployment environments, ensures smooth operations. | $2,000 – $8,000 | $4,000 – $12,000 | $6,000 – $15,000 |
| Total Estimated Cost Range | $17,000 – $70,000 | $35,000 – $114,000 | $50,000 – $145,000 |
How Long Does it Take to Make Zillow Clone?
Time and cost are two of the different aspects however investing and the time it takes to develop an app goes in sync.
Bothered about how long it takes to make an app?
Relax? No need. Go through the table to find out more.
| Development Phase | Time Required |
| Research & Planning | 2-4 weeks |
| UI/UX Design | 4-8 weeks |
| Frontend Development | 8-16 weeks |
| Backend Development | 8-16 weeks |
| Integration & Testing | 4-8 weeks |
| Deployment & Launch | 2-4 weeks |
| Post-launch Maintenance | Ongoing |
The approximate time to make an app like Zillow can be 8-16 weeks. It is an estimation, to know more about mobile app maintenance services, and app development contact to a firm.
How to Make Money With App Like Zillow?
Till now, you have an idea of the cost and factors impacting the cost along with features that can help you identify the cost to build an app like Zillow.
Now it’s time to learn about the monetization strategies that can assist you in knowing how you can make money by developing an app like Zillow.
Zillow clone development cost can be recovered by implementing the right monetization strategies that can assist the app to lead the market and make money for you. Check the monetization model below.
Featured Listing Models
The cost to develop an app like Zillow can be divided based on the cost of posts on real estate apps as per the size of the property. The featured listings permit the sellers to post listings that can attain maximum visibility by charging a valuable amount. Providing sellers with a platform to display properties can help you to charge a commission on the same. This commission will act as revenue for your app.
Advertisement
Advertisements are a popular medium to earn high revenue via apps. We offer a platform for small businesses to display their advertisements within your app. It can be an efficient source of income for your app. Moreover, while posting, use different ad formats including sponsored listings and banner ads along with native ads.
Offer Premium Subscription
Try offering a premium subscription to your regular app visitors. It will motivate the users to use your real estate app. It can also help you to cover the cost of building a real estate app like Zillow. In a premium subscription, you are charged monthly, quarterly, and annual subscriptions to the users. Here the user pays according to the needs of the property search. This fee can be considered as an amount of revenue from the app.
Partnerships and Sponsorships
You can partner with similar companies to offer complementary services to your customers. For example, you can contact the logistics companies to shift the goods of customers to their new homes. In exchange for this service, you can charge nominal fees from the logistics companies that can act as a source of revenue for your app.
Lead Generation
Real estate professionals always look out for potential clients. With effective app monetization strategies, they make a way by selling leads to agents, developers, and brokers. Ensure that the users of your app are genuinely interested in the real estate market and making your leads more effective. Try to convert to potential clients who express interest in selling and buying properties.
Data Licencing
You will have a vast amount of data with a large number of users. It will help you with data licensing. Analyze the data for extracting reports that can be based on labor costs, industry data, and the number of users using the real estate app. The app can also be helpful to have market trends, user behavior indexes, and property prices.
How Nimble AppGenie can Help you?
Creating an app provides you with a business to make revenue and to have money. However, with a development team, it becomes feasible for you to have an app.
Nimble AppGenie is a real estate app development company. We are experts in the field and can create an app for you based on your demands.
All you need is to contact us.
Conclusion
You might have got an idea with the blog in relation to cost to build a real estate app like Zillow or Trulia. The real estate app industry is continuously heading towards earning a high amount of revenue. Zillow app is the beauty of real estate and you can become one by adding the features as the app has.
The need for cost to make an app like Zillow arises due to creating awareness about the changes in real estate, enhancing user experience, etc. Further, an estimated cost has been identified to help you with the app development. The monetization strategies that you can use to make money can be advertising, lead generation, and data licensing.
FAQs
The average cost of developing a real estate app like Zillow ranges from $15,000 to $95,000, depending on various factors such as features, complexity, and development resources.
Developing an app like Zillow can help you tap into the lucrative real estate market, improve user experience, promote paperless transactions, and enhance customer relationship management, among other benefits.
Key features include user registration, advanced search filters, mortgage calculators, automatic rent reminders, cost estimation tools, listing services, push notifications, scheduled property visits, and map search functionality.
The development timeline typically ranges from 8 to 16 weeks, encompassing phases such as research and planning, UI/UX design, frontend and backend development, integration and testing, deployment, and post-launch maintenance.
Monetization strategies include offering premium listings, displaying advertisements, implementing subscription services, forming partnerships and sponsorships, generating leads for real estate professionals, licensing data, and providing premium features for a fee.
Several factors impact the development cost, including the app’s complexity, chosen development platform, tech stack, UI/UX design requirements, and the expertise and location of the development team. These factors influence the overall budget range from $15,000 to $95,000.
Niketan Sharma is the CTO of Nimble AppGenie, a prominent website and mobile app development company in the USA that is delivering excellence with a commitment to boosting business growth & maximizing customer satisfaction. He is a highly motivated individual who helps SMEs and startups grow in this dynamic market with the latest technology and innovation.
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