How you represent yourself as a brand and an agent depends on your website. Your clients’ overall user experience from the moment they land on your page to the moment they contact you is all that matters. Your website speed, uptime, security, and customer support are important factors when choosing a web hosting solution. If you are starting without a domain, then checking out entry-level hosting plans is worth it.
Hostinger
Like some other web hosting providers, they don’t reserve uptime for expensive plans. As real estate websites are rich in images, fast servers are essential. A 99.9% uptime is important for consistent lead generation, especially if your business is global.
Fast Loading: It is the LightSpeed servers and SSD storage that make your website load faster. Hence, it also helps your portfolio to maintain performance and image rendering. You can use Hostinger as a website builder also if you haven’t built your portfolio site yet.
Pricing(Best Value):
- Single plan: ₹69/month
- Premium plan: ₹129/month
- Business plan: ₹199/month
- Cloud Startup: ₹549/month
Highlights:
- Provides a beginner-friendly control panel(hPanel).
- Offers coupon codes and deals for affordable prices.
- Best for solo agents who are entering the online space.
- Offers managed hosting for WooCommerce and WordPress.
- Does not reserve speed and uptime for expensive plans.
Bluehost
Showing real-time property listings on your site will increase the chance of landing a client. This is possible for sites with MLS(Multiple Listing Service). After installing Bluehost, you need to choose an IDX solution and connect to the MLS system. This feature allows you to list real-time updates on your website.
Go for the Starter plan to handle ~40k monthly traffic on your site. Anything more than that will need additional storage available on the high-tier standard hosting. VPS and cloud hosting are recommended when you want higher control and customization.
Standard Pricing:
- Starter plan: ₹199/month
- Business plan: ₹279/month
- E-commerce Essentials: ₹649/month
Highlights:
- Best if you plan to launch your site with WordPress.
- Features a variety of themes and plugins for real estate agents.
- Offers standard, VPS, dedicated, and cloud hosting solutions for different needs.
- Best for small teams who need a simple hosting experience.
Cloudways
Cloudways is suited for those looking for fully managed cloud hosting. This hosting type is great for scalable servers during peak traffic season. It features a customised control panel rather than an industry-standard cPanel. Which is why new Cloudways users could face a slight learning curve.
Compared to other hosting providers, Cloudways does not provide domain registration or email hosting services.
Pricing(Server Type: Basic):
- Micro plan: $14/month
- Small plan: $28/month ($37/month for additional NVMe storage)
- Medium plan: $54/month
- Large plan: $99/month
Highlights
- Optimized for WordPress, Magento, Laravel, and other PHP applications.
- Provides 24/7 support and 99.99% uptime throughout the year.
- Scalable servers during seasonal spikes.
- Offers flexible pricing with flexible storage.
Namecheap
Namecheap provides Shared hosting, Reseller hosting, VPS hosting, and dedicated servers. The industry-standard cPanel streamlines collaboration with its “Manage Team” feature. It features AI design tools like logo maker, Business name generator, and font maker to assist your website journey.
Pricing(Shared Hosting):
- Stellar plan: ₹179.62/month
- Stellar Business plan: ₹451.76/month
Highlights
- Beginner-friendly hosting for independent real estate agents.
- A decent entry-level hosting provider for your website.
- Not suitable for a fast-growing site compared to Bluehost and Hostinger.
GoDaddy
Getting your hosting with GoDaddy is a no-brainer if you already have a domain with them. The one-click WordPress installation with their 24/7 support takes care of the technical jargon. Their other hosting type includes VPS hosting for advanced users who want privacy. Along with 2-128 GB RAM, this hosting type offers the Plesk control panel.
Pricing:
- Web Hosting Starter: ₹89/month
- Web Hosting Economy: ₹219/month
- Web Hosting Deluxe: ₹329/month
Highlights
- For agents launching their portfolio with a simple WordPress site.
- Not recommended if you want to scale beyond basic hosting plans.
- Best for users who already use their email hosting and domain registrar.
Final Thoughts
Hostinger and Bluehost are the reliable and affordable options if you don’t have your portfolio website yet. You will need to opt for premium plans, especially if you plan to display property listings using MLS(Multiple Listing Service). Cloudways would be a suitable option if you are only looking for managed cloud hosting. GoDaddy and Namecheap are great for entry-level hosting but may lack advanced infrastructure.