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Free Apps to Download Before You Buy Your Next Home

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When I started my real estate career way way back in 1987, we carried around with us a mortgage factor handbook, similar in size to a small handheld personal telephone book, which helped us quickly calculate monthly mortgage payments for our clients. We opened the book to the corresponding interest rate and quickly multiplied the factor by the loan amount. Quick and easy. Right?
Today, we have apps.  ‎Millennials thrive on apps. Apps are truly the quick and easy way to get what you want, when you want it. So here are some quick and easy apps for your smartphone.

The Financial Post’s Josh McConnell rounds up the best apps for home buyers:

Whether you are buying your first home, moving, or simply want to renegotiate, these apps can help make the process a little easier. Now that warmer weather is in the forecast and home-buying season is getting into full swing, here are a few free mobile apps that can help you make sense of the mortgage process in order to get on with the fun part of buying a home.

The Canadian Mortgage App: 

Platforms iOS, Android, BlackBerry

This is the app most people love to refer to when talking about mortgages. When asked, both homebuyers and mortgage specialists alike recommend it. The app has been used more than 2.1 million times with more than 3,000 five-star reviews.

Ready Set Home: 

Platforms iOS, Android, BlackBerry

A helpful mobile app offered by the CMHC, which provides mortgage loan insurance, to help ensure you make informed choices when buying a home. This app helps you by not only figuring out what you are able to afford, but it also explains some of the confusing terminology(great for first-time home buyers).

Home Decorating

Platforms Varies

So if you’re done with mortgage talk, here are some apps to look at after you lock into your new home. Some companies offer unique apps that let you virtually shop furniture and décor. Ikea offers a Living Room 3D app (as well as apps for other rooms such as the bedroom or bathroom) that lets you create your own room using their products, it also allows you to share your ideas with the community to compare and share thoughts. There is also Houzz Interior Design Ideas, which lets you take photos of your own home and insert items from a catalogue.