CHICAGO, March 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As smartphones and mobile devices become increasingly common, app usage has skyrocketed worldwide. In fact, mobile app downloads doubled in 2012 to 46 billion¹ and are expected to double again in 2013, reaching 81 billion. By 2016, mobile app downloads will reach 310 billion² and their use will surpass the use of Internet domain names, making apps the No. 1 way of engaging with brands, according to Gatner's Brian Blau³. In response to this projected dominance in the mobile space, sisters websites—Apartments.com and RentalHomesPlus.com—dialed up its mobile experience for on-the-go renters by launching brand new apps for Apple® iOS, Android™ and Kindle Fire⁴ for Android as well as making enhancements to existing ones. Whether shopping for an apartment or a rental home, renters on the move can now effortlessly search for a place to live from the mobile device they prefer.

"It's no secret more and more people are choosing to interact with brands from the click of an app," said Dick Burke, senior vice president and general manager, Apartments.com. "People are using apps for everything from banking to ordering groceries and recording shows on their DVR. At Apartments.com, we've watched our own mobile traffic grow by 96% year over year. This confirms our decision to make mobile a priority and provide an excellent experience across many devices not only to remain competitive, but relevant with the way people are searching."

Rental Homes Plus Launches Apps for iOS and Android

RentalHomesPlus.com, a one stop shop for renting a house, condo or townhouse nationwide, recently rolled out apps for all Android, Kindle Fire, iPhone® and iPad® platforms. Now, renters looking for a single-family home can search thousands of listings nationwide with ease from a wide range of mobile devices.

Key Features Include:

• Ability to search by City, State and Zip Code
• GPS functionality to display apartments nearby
• Searches customized by floor plans, photos, amenities and more
• Favorite searches users can save and return to later
• Directly contact a property representative via phone or email
• View map and get directions to visit a property
• Results provided in map or list view

Android and Apple users eager to learn more about the RentalHomesPlus.com apps and download for free are encouraged to visit the iTunes or Google Play store.

Apartments.com Enhances Mobile Suite

To provide users with a seamless mobile search experience, Apartments.com recently launched an iPad app and updated the existing iPhone app, which originally launched in July, 2009. The enhanced Android app, launched in January, 2012, uses responsive design to allow renters to search for an apartment from any Android phone or tablet as the screen adjusts automatically to the size of the device.

Users who prefer a mobile website to an app are still in luck. All Apartments.com listings are accessible on any mobile browser.

Both Apple and Android users can search for their next apartment with ease by downloading the app of their choice from the iTunes or Google Play store.

For even more information on RentalHomesPlus.com mobile apps, go to www.rentalhomesplus.com/mobile.

Sources:

1. eMarketer, Paid vs. Free Mobile App Store Downloads Worldwide, 2011 to 2016, September 11, 2012.
2. ibid
3. http://www.eweek.com/mobile/apps-marketing-and-the-cloud-gartner-predictions-for-2013/
4. Amazon, Kindle, Kindle Fire, the Amazon Kindle logo and the Kindle Fire logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates

About Apartments.com
Apartments.com (http://www.apartments.com) is a leading national apartment Internet listing subscription service with more than 50,000 unique addresses representing millions of rental units from managed properties, newspaper classifieds and for-rent-by-owner properties. By incorporating the most relevant products to reach renters including personalized searches and highly visual ads featuring live chat, real-time rent, online video walk-through demonstrations, professional photography, a mobile website and iPhone and Android apps, Apartments.com creates easy access to its listings. Providing unmatched exposure to its advertisers through an intuitive name, strategic search engine placements and featured partnerships and more than 120 newspaper websites and innovative emerging media, Apartments.com reaches millions of renters nationwide, driving both qualified traffic and highly-engaged renters to leasing offices nationwide. Apartments.com is a division of Chicago-based Classified Ventures, LLC. The Apartments.com network of apartment rental websites includes Apartment Home Living (http://www.apartmenthomeliving.com), a leading social media apartment website distinguished by a "live for fun" community experience, proprietary lifestyle matching and local living guides to help renters find their perfect place to live; Rental Homes Plus (http://www.rentalhomesplus.com), an online destination where house hunters who prefer to rent can choose from a robust inventory of houses, condos, town houses, duplexes and apartments from around the country; and Rentfish (http://www.rentfish.com), a national apartment website offering customizable searches by neighborhood, favorite coffee spot, sports arena, famous landmark and more.

SOURCE Apartments.com