Reading time: 4 minutes

8 tools to help you find your new home

Ready to start home hunting? We've got all the tools you need: from mapping out your favourite streets to checking travel times to the local pub. Let's find your dream home.

Words by: Nic Hopkirk

Senior Editor

Want to live 10 minutes from your favourite coffee shop?

Been eyeing up homes on a certain street?

Fancy a garage, home office or - heck, why not - a hot tub?

Whatever's important to you in your next home, we've got a tool that can help.

Our range of property tools make it way easier to understand the property market, know what you'll sell for, and find everything you want in your next home.

Here are our 8 top tools to help you find your dream home.

1. Find out what your home's worth with My Home

Image of page on Zoopla where people can enter their postcode and check the market value of their homes

If you're selling as well as buying, the first step is to find out what price you'll be able to sell for. It'll help you set your budget for your next place.

At My Home, you can register your property and keep track of its estimated value, receiving automatic email updates when the value of your property changes.

You can compare your home to the sold house prices of others in your area and you can arrange a free agent valuation with a trusted local agent.

Don't forget to log that you're the homeowner. You'll get to see more data around your home and its value.

Plus, we'll show you similar properties nearby and what they've sold for.

It'll all help you understand the local market and what price you could get for your home.

You can also find out what your home's worth with our instant online estimate. It's based on powerful market data from across the property industry.

2. Register with us to save properties and add notes

Register with Zoopla to keep everything to do with your property search in one place.

You'll be able to return to your recent searches in the click of a button, so you can be first to see what's new.

Save and track properties you love, whether it's to keep an eye on the price, find out when they sell or get in touch with the agent later.

You can add notes to properties too. You might want to list the pros and cons, or jot down questions to ask at a viewing.

And if you want to share that dream pad with friends and family, just hit the share button.

3. Find your dream pad with our search filters

Image of Zoopla house search portal 'Advanced Search' tool

When you know what your dream home looks like, you need a search function that'll get you there faster.

Use our search filters to cut to the chase and find exactly what you want.

Start with searching by location, number of bedrooms and price.

Then zone in: do you want a detached home, flat or terrace? Are you open to new-builds? Looking for Shared Ownership properties only? What are your must-haves?

Our advanced search will help you find your dream home faster.

4. Draw a map of the exact area you want to be in

Image of map search tool on Zoopla which lets users draw an area they want to search for a home in

Know exactly where you want to be?

Or want to see properties from a few different areas in one search?

Draw a map to pinpoint the area (or areas) that you'd like to live in.

It's the easiest way to zone in on the single street, group of streets or neighbourhoods that you'd want to live in.

And don't forget to set up an alert - we'll let you know when anything new pops up in your personal map area.

5. Work out travel times from homes you like

You might need a pad that's less than half an hour from work.

Maybe you want to live close to the local school or your parents' house.

Or perhaps you just want to be safe in the knowledge that a good pub's within walking distance.

Search by travel time to make sure you're close to what's important to you.

You can set the maximum journey time you want to travel to your favourite places. Choose from walking, cycling, driving or public transport.

We'll do the rest, and we'll only show you properties that fit your travel preferences.

Search for homes by travel time

Want to be near your family, the city centre or the train station? Use our travel time tool and stay close to what’s important to you.

6. See how homes you like have changed in value

A property timeline that shows a house's price change, listing history and archive photos between 2000 and 2022

Found a home you like?

See how its value has changed over time with our house prices tool.

You'll get to see when it was last sold and how much the owners paid for it.

We even have old photos from the last time it was sold, so you can snoop on any improvements they've made.

Plus, the market stats will show you how it stacks up against average prices and comparable properties.

It's all there to help you understand what the local market's doing and if that home will be a good buy for you.

7. Ping a valuation request to local estate agents

An image of a Zoopla form which allows users to request a valuation of their homes from an estate agent

Fill out our quick valuation form for an easier way to get in touch with local estate agents.

You can reach out to several agents of your choice in the click of a button.

Choose how and when you're contacted, so you'll never be bothered when you don't want to be.

And get someone over to value your home when it suits you - whether you're looking to sell or you're just curious. There's no obligation to list your home for sale.

With the local market knowledge that only estate agents have, they'll give you the most accurate valuation possible.

8. Secure your next mortgage

Lenders will usually lend up to 4.5 times your annual income for a mortgage.

Use our mortgage affordability calculator to work out how much you could borrow for your next home move.

How much can I borrow?

Get a quick idea of what you might be able to borrow for your next home.

Zoopla branded illustration with decorative calculator, pie chart, bar chart and line graph.

Work out what your monthly repayments could be using our repayments calculator.

Simply add your salary or, if you're buying with someone, combined salaries, then the mortgage interest rate and the term of your mortgage.

We'll crunch the numbers to show you what your monthly repayments could be.

How much could my mortgage repayments be?

Get a quick idea of how much it's going to cost each month or how a rate change could affect your monthly payments.

Zoopla branded illustration with decorative calculator, bar chart and house shaped piggy bank.

You can lock in the best mortgage rates for you six months in advance.

Zoopla's trusted mortgage partner is the award-winning Mojo Mortgages.

Mojo are a whole-of-market broker, which means they work with over 70 lenders.

They'll help you to find the right deal for you and they'll do it for free.

This has won them lots of happy customers on Trustpilot.

Save money with Mojo Mortgages

Allow award-winning Mojo to show you the best rates available to you. A whole-of-market broker, Mojo work with over 70 lenders. And they won't charge you a penny for their services.


We try to make sure that the information here is accurate at the time of publishing. But the property market moves fast and some information may now be out of date. Zoopla Property Group accepts no responsibility or liability for any decisions you make based on the information provided.