PropStream is a real estate investing software tool that grants real estate investors, brokers, and real estate agents complete access to information on distressed properties. Such information includes data about foreclosures in a local area, divorces, tax liens, and deaths.
This software is an online tool and one could use it either on their computer at home or download the mobile app on a phone. The mobile version has a great user interface that allows one to surf through the app even when on the move. It is extremely responsive and allows for real-time drive logs to track opportunities on the go.
PropStream offers a variety of features and benefits, the most significant of which is its large database of properties. Regardless of its features and benefits, the fact remains that there are other investing software tools widely available in today’s real estate market. This raises a few questions about PropStream. These questions include:
- How does PropStream help investors?
- How does this software compare to similar real-estate tools?
- What are the pros and cons of using this tool for investing?
These questions are explored in this review.
How does PropStream Help Investors?
Since its creation, PropStream has steadily grown in popularity among real estate investors. This may be thanks to the ton of features available on the software. Most of these features aim to arm investors with relevant data on distressed properties as soon as it becomes available. Some of the benefits and features of PropStream that help investors make decisions on the go include:
PropStream Provides a Large Database of Investing Information
The ‘comprehensive nationwide data’ feature on the software allows users to search for properties they’re most interested in. You do this by narrowing your search using a variety of criteria like vacant land, industrial, residential, commercial, office, etc. You can also search for the exact type of property you want by searching terms such as townhouse, single-family home, etc.
One of the best things about this feature is that even if you are interested in properties far away from your present location, you can do a nationwide search to find data on these faraway locations.
Additionally, you can search for the details of a homeowner, contact information, balances on loans, other previous transactions, and data on cash deals. So, not only does this tool help investors find likely investments, but it also provides brokers with information that they could use for marketing.
One major downside to this search feature is that one can only run searches on properties within the United States, so users looking for investing information in places such as Canada, wouldn’t find much use for this software.
It Helps with Marketing
PropStream’s marketing feature helps users create a variety of tools that could improve their business considerably. The main focus of this feature is to help people find and connect with business prospects. Through this tool, one can find information on property owners, send voicemails, postcards, and automated e-mails, create custom landing pages, and do some online advertising.
These activities are all aimed at helping users grasp and convert leads; nurture them and keep in touch. This feature also allows you to have an updated marketing list, which can be used to reach your clients at any time.
PropStream Allows Users to View and Generate Property Lists
The ‘targeted property lists’ feature is one feature that serves real estate investors a lot more than it does real estate brokers. It allows users to generate lists containing their preferred kinds of properties. With this list, a user would get a notification if there’s a property that meets their preferences. Using the filter feature, you can search for various types of properties at once, even those that aren’t in the market yet. Features to select for this type of search include, for instance, high equity, bankruptcy, divorce, cash buyers, pre-foreclosure, involuntary liens, bankruptcy, expired listings, etc.
PropStream Allows Users to Compare the Value of Similar Property
With the software’s ‘Instant Comps’ feature, a user can immediately evaluate just how valuable a piece of property is; by comparing the property to other similar ones around. You can compare square footage, number of bedrooms, date range, number of bathrooms, last sale date, etc.
PropStream Helps Users Analyze Property Deals
There is a ‘property deal analyzer’ feature in the software that offers you detailed data about the investment processes and transactions on each deal. The deal figures that can be calculated by this feature include cash flow, mortgage amount, detailed mortgage analysis, projected rental income, total purchase price, tax information, tax deductions, and property expenses. With this feature, you can also find the trends for rental prices, property prices, preferred home features, and market performance.
PropStream Estimates the Price for a Rehab
Users who love to purchase properties so that they can flip then sell them; will find the ‘Rehab estimator’ feature very useful. This feature is a calculator that gives you a ballpark of just how much you might spend refurbishing a property. The types of costs calculated include the costs of plumbing, roofing, flooring, and electrical costs. This feature would give you an estimated cost for doing the project yourself, alongside the cost of having a contractor do it. It would also give you estimates for the cost of local building materials and the cost of labor.
What Are The Pros and Cons of PropStream?
There are a few qualities that have made this tool very popular among real estate investors over the years. However, PropStream also comes with a few limitations that the developers of the software may need to review.
Pros
- Even though one has to pay to use this software, the price for a subscription is affordable compared to other similar tools.
- PropStream allows users access to data nationwide and is not limited to any state or county.
- The value of the Rehab Estimator and Deal Analysis features cannot be over-emphasized. Thanks to these features, investors can make informed decisions, plan and remain within a budget when embarking on projects.
- The software has a one week free trial period, which is enough time to check out the software and determine whether it’s worth paying for
Cons
- The software has several features so it may take a while to understand the way everything works. However, it has a user-friendly interface and lots of tutorial videos that would help
- It does not have data for places outside the United States.
How Does PropStream Compare Against Competitors?
PropStream is regularly compared to other real estate investment analysis tools such as REIPro, Realeflow. However, ReipRO does not quite have the listings and lead generation capacity that PropStream does. Similarly, Realeflow, while comparable to PropStream, costs a lot more.
PropStream is one of the best aggregators of data available. It delivers data in an unprecedented manner. For instance, a mere address search would also bring up information about the property owner, liens on the property, divorce, or bankruptcy. This helps users make quicker and more informed decisions than they will with most other similar software.
PropStream also uses one of the best calculators for rehab costs. They use the same rehab calculator as those used by insurance companies, which means that the software gives estimates that are right on point.
PropStream FAQs
These are a few questions that may come to the mind of anyone considering getting this software:
How Much Does It Cost?
PropStream appears to be one of the most reasonably priced software in its category. Firstly, it has a seven-day free trial period during which time you can explore the software at no cost and make up your mind on whether or not you want to spend your money on it. If you decide to pay for it after your trial, it will cost you $99 only, per month.
Aside from the cost of a subscription, you can also buy some additional add-ons such as the Marketing Tools, Mobile Scout, List Automator, and Team Member. For some of these additional features, for instance, e-mailing and skip tracing, you’ll have to pay per use. Skip tracing costs 12 cents per search while e-mails cost 2 cents each.
Can One Search For Properties Outside the United States?
No, at the moment, one can only retrieve data on properties within the U.S
Conclusion
The question in the mind of many intending users of PropStream is whether the software indeed gives an accurate representation of the real estate market in the real world. After using the software, you’ll find that the answer to this question is ‘yes.’
PropStream creates an accurate picture for real-estate investors looking for information on available properties. It helps investors get to investments before competitors even get wind of the investments. It allows users to carry out their research and even calculate estimated costs to reduce the chances of exceeding their budgets.
The best thing about the software is the fact that it doesn’t discriminate. It caters to real estate aficionados alongside newcomers in the industry. Anyone considering investing in real estate would get a competitive edge by using this software to gather data.
