15 Questions to Ask Before Buying a Real Estate CRM

Before you ask: know your own answers

A vendor can only answer well if you know what you need. Spend 30 minutes writing down:

• Every lead source you use today: portals, Meta, Google, website, walk-ins, CPs.
• How many users, and how many work mainly from the field.
• How many of your agents use iPhones vs Android phones.
• Whether you sell resale, rentals, new launches or your own projects.
• What you need on day one, and what can wait three months.

The 15 questions

1. Is it built for real estate, or adapted from a general CRM?

Why it matters: A general sales CRM can be configured for property, but you will build projects, units, site visits and portal capture yourself, or pay someone to.

Good answer: The vendor shows projects, properties, site visits and portal leads already set up in the demo, without "we can customise that".

2. Which lead sources can it capture automatically?

Why it matters: If leads from 99acres, MagicBricks, Housing.com or Meta still need manual downloads, your response time will not change.

Good answer: A clear list of sources, honest about what depends on your account or portal package, and a live demo of a new lead arriving with its source and listing attached.

3. How are new leads assigned, and what happens if nobody calls?

Why it matters: Unassigned leads are the most common leak in Indian sales teams.

Good answer: Rules for round robin, by project or by location, plus reminders and an alert to the manager when a lead has no first contact.

4. Does it use the official WhatsApp Business API or the WhatsApp app?

Why it matters: The official Meta API supports approved templates, automated welcome messages, broadcasts and a shared inbox. Tools that drive the regular app depend on one phone.

Good answer: "Official Meta WhatsApp Business API", with templates, automation and chats saved on the lead timeline. Ask who pays Meta's conversation charges and how they are billed.

5. How does call tracking work on Android and on iPhone?

Why it matters: Managers want call reports. But iOS does not allow apps to read the phone call log, so automatic logging works differently on iPhones.

Good answer: An honest explanation. In Antoc, for example, calls are logged automatically on Android, and the team is told plainly that iOS does not allow apps to read the call log. Be wary of any vendor who promises identical automatic logging on both.

Want to see this on your own leads? Book a free Antoc demo.

6. Can agents do their whole day from the mobile app?

Why it matters: Agents spend the day at sites and on calls. If the app is a cut-down version, they will go back to their phone's contacts and WhatsApp.

Good answer: iOS and Android apps where agents can see assigned leads, call and WhatsApp in one tap, get reminders, update status and share properties.

7. How does it manage properties, projects and inventory?

Why it matters: Brokers need to match leads with listings quickly. Developers need unit-wise availability so two agents never sell the same flat.

Good answer: For brokers, property records with lead matching and WhatsApp sharing. For developers, projects, towers, unit availability and holds or bookings that update for everyone.

8. Does it handle channel partners and post-sale work?

Why it matters: Developers who track CP registrations and payment collections in separate sheets lose the full buyer history.

Good answer: CP management with registration and tagging, and a post-sale flow covering booking, payment plan, demands, payments, ledger and reminders.

9. What AI does it really have, and what can the AI see?

Why it matters: "AI-powered" can mean anything. You need to know what it does and whose data it can access.

Good answer: Specific features you can try, such as AI calling to qualify leads or connecting the CRM to ChatGPT or Claude, with access limited to the signed-in user's business and CRM permissions.

10. What reports do I get without building them?

Why it matters: If every report needs an export to Excel, managers will stop looking.

Good answer: Ready reports for leads by source, pipeline, calls by agent and deals closed, plus a daily summary on WhatsApp or email.

11. How are permissions controlled, and what happens when an agent leaves?

Why it matters: In India, a departing salesperson taking leads in their phone is a familiar story.

Good answer: Role-based access, agents seeing only their leads if you choose, and the ability to deactivate a user and reassign their leads in one step.

12. Can I export all my data at any time?

Why it matters: Your leads, chats and deal history are your business. You should never need the vendor's permission to take them.

Good answer: Self-service export of leads, contacts and deals in a standard format like CSV or Excel. Ask to see it in the demo.

13. What does onboarding and data migration look like?

Why it matters: Most CRM failures are adoption failures, not software failures.

Good answer: A written plan with dates: import of your existing sheet, connection of lead sources, user setup, training for agents and managers, and a check-in after the first weeks.

14. What will I pay in total for a year?

Why it matters: The per-user price is only part of the cost. Meta's WhatsApp charges, telephony, extra modules and setup can change the total.

Good answer: A written quote with per-user price, billing cycle, what each plan includes, and which charges are billed by third parties. For more detail, see our guide to real estate CRM pricing in India.

15. Can we test it with our own leads before committing?

Why it matters: A demo with sample data always looks good. Your real leads, agents and phones will show the gaps.

Good answer: A trial or pilot where you connect at least one real source, give logins to two or three agents, and run real follow-ups for a week or two.

Scoring vendors side by side

Use the same scorecard for every vendor. Score each area from 1 to 5 after the demo, then multiply by the weight that reflects your priorities.

Area	Questions	Example weight	Vendor A	Vendor B
Lead capture and assignment	2, 3	3
WhatsApp and calling	4, 5	3
Mobile app	6	2
Inventory, CP and post-sale	7, 8	2 for brokers, 3 for developers
Reports and AI	9, 10	2
Data control and export	11, 12	3
Onboarding and support	13	2
Total cost and trial	14, 15	2

Verify every feature and price claim on each vendor's current website and in writing. Features change, and a demo promise is not a contract.

How to run the evaluation in two weeks

1. Write your needs list and pick two or three vendors to shortlist.
2. Send each vendor the 15 questions before the demo, so they come prepared.
3. In the demo, ask them to show, not tell, especially questions 2, 4, 5 and 12.
4. Score each vendor on the same table within a day of the demo.
5. Run a short pilot with the top choice using one real lead source and a few agents.
6. Check that agents actually used it: calls logged, statuses updated, reminders acted on.
7. Get the final quote in writing and decide.

If you are still on spreadsheets, read our comparison of Excel vs CRM for real estate to judge whether now is the right time.

Illustrative cost example in ₹

Here is how total cost works for a team on Antoc, using the published per-user monthly prices. Check the pricing page for current prices and applicable taxes.

An agency with 8 users on the Prime plan, which adds the AI Assistant, automated lead capture, advanced analytics, brochure tracker and smart follow-ups to the Basic features:

• Annual billing: 8 users × ₹699 × 12 months = ₹67,104 a year
• 6-month billing: 8 users × ₹799 × 6 months = ₹38,352 per six months

A developer with 15 users on the Developer plan, which adds building inventory, unit-wise availability and CP management:

• Annual billing: 15 users × ₹1,199 × 12 months = ₹2,15,820 a year

On top of this, budget for WhatsApp conversation charges billed as per Meta's current rates for India, and any telephony you choose. Ask every vendor to fill in the same calculation.

Common mistakes

• Choosing on the demo's look and feel rather than your own leads and workflows.
• Buying the cheapest per-user plan without adding WhatsApp and telephony costs.
• Not asking how call tracking works for agents on iPhones.
• Skipping the data export question until the day you want to leave.
• Letting only the owner see the demo, so agents meet the CRM on launch day.
• Signing an annual plan before a short pilot with real leads.
• Expecting the CRM to fix a process nobody has written down.

Choosing with confidence

The best CRM for your team is the one your agents will actually open every morning, with your leads already in it. Ask the 15 questions, score honestly and pilot before you commit.

For a step-by-step method, read our full guide on how to choose a real estate CRM. Then use the same 15 questions to test each option in our comparison of real estate CRMs for Indian teams.