Tools: I Built a Free Offline CRM for Real Estate Agents Using Flutter — Here's Why

** ## Meet Boring CRM** I live in India, and real estate agents here have a massive problem — they track leads in notebooks, WhatsApp chats, and random Excel sheets. I asked a few agents why they don't use a CRM. The answers were always the same: So I decided to build something dead simple. Boring CRM is a free, offline-first CRM built specifically for real estate agents. The name says it all — it's intentionally boring. No AI, no integrations, no dashboards with 47 charts. Just the basics done right. What makes it different: Here's what I used to build it: ### Why Flutter + SQLite? The biggest decision was going offline-first. Most CRMs use cloud databases (Firebase Firestore, Supabase, etc.), but my target users often work in areas with poor connectivity. SQLite was the obvious choice — fast, reliable, zero network dependency. The data model is straightforward: Templates let you quickly answer FAQs or store snippets for re-use. Are you sure you want to hide this comment? It will become hidden in your post, but will still be visible via the comment's permalink. Hide child comments as well For further actions, you may consider blocking this person and/or reporting abuse COMMAND_BLOCK: dart // Lead model - kept intentionally simple class Lead { int? id; String name; String phone; String email; String status; // new, contacted, follow_up, negotiation, closed String source; String propertyInterest; DateTime? followUpDate; DateTime createdAt; List<Note> notes; List<Activity> activities; } Handling Follow-up Reminders This was the trickiest part. Real estate agents live and die by follow-ups. Miss one call, lose a deal. I used flutter_local_notifications with scheduled notifications: - When an agent sets a follow-up date, a local notification is scheduled - Works completely offline — no server needed - Notifications persist even after app restart What I Learned Building This 1. Simple beats feature-rich My first version had charts, analytics, and export-to-PDF. I removed all of it. Agents wanted to add a lead in 5 seconds, not analyze data. 2. Offline-first is harder than it sounds Even without a server, you need to think about data migration when the schema changes, backup/restore flows, and CSV import edge cases. 3. Free is a distribution strategy Competing with Zoho and HubSpot on features is impossible. Competing on price (free) and simplicity (offline, no sign-up) gave me a niche they'll never care about. 4. The Indian market is underserved Most global CRMs are priced for US/EU markets. A solo real estate agent in a tier-2 Indian city won't pay $20/month. But they desperately need a lead tracker. Current Stats - 100+ downloads on Google Play Store - 4.9 star rating What's Next - iOS version - WhatsApp integration (huge in India) - Team features for small brokerages - Multi-language support (Hindi, Telugu, Tamil) Try It Out - Website: https://boringcrm.in - Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.boringcrm.app If you're a developer thinking about building for underserved markets do it. The big players ignore these niches, and real people need real solutions.  I'd love to hear your feedback. What would you build differently? What features would you add? Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode COMMAND_BLOCK: dart // Lead model - kept intentionally simple class Lead { int? id; String name; String phone; String email; String status; // new, contacted, follow_up, negotiation, closed String source; String propertyInterest; DateTime? followUpDate; DateTime createdAt; List<Note> notes; List<Activity> activities; } Handling Follow-up Reminders This was the trickiest part. Real estate agents live and die by follow-ups. Miss one call, lose a deal. I used flutter_local_notifications with scheduled notifications: - When an agent sets a follow-up date, a local notification is scheduled - Works completely offline — no server needed - Notifications persist even after app restart What I Learned Building This 1. Simple beats feature-rich My first version had charts, analytics, and export-to-PDF. I removed all of it. Agents wanted to add a lead in 5 seconds, not analyze data. 2. Offline-first is harder than it sounds Even without a server, you need to think about data migration when the schema changes, backup/restore flows, and CSV import edge cases. 3. Free is a distribution strategy Competing with Zoho and HubSpot on features is impossible. Competing on price (free) and simplicity (offline, no sign-up) gave me a niche they'll never care about. 4. The Indian market is underserved Most global CRMs are priced for US/EU markets. A solo real estate agent in a tier-2 Indian city won't pay $20/month. But they desperately need a lead tracker. Current Stats - 100+ downloads on Google Play Store - 4.9 star rating What's Next - iOS version - WhatsApp integration (huge in India) - Team features for small brokerages - Multi-language support (Hindi, Telugu, Tamil) Try It Out - Website: https://boringcrm.in - Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.boringcrm.app If you're a developer thinking about building for underserved markets do it. The big players ignore these niches, and real people need real solutions.  I'd love to hear your feedback. What would you build differently? What features would you add? COMMAND_BLOCK: dart // Lead model - kept intentionally simple class Lead { int? id; String name; String phone; String email; String status; // new, contacted, follow_up, negotiation, closed String source; String propertyInterest; DateTime? followUpDate; DateTime createdAt; List<Note> notes; List<Activity> activities; } Handling Follow-up Reminders This was the trickiest part. Real estate agents live and die by follow-ups. Miss one call, lose a deal. I used flutter_local_notifications with scheduled notifications: - When an agent sets a follow-up date, a local notification is scheduled - Works completely offline — no server needed - Notifications persist even after app restart What I Learned Building This 1. Simple beats feature-rich My first version had charts, analytics, and export-to-PDF. I removed all of it. Agents wanted to add a lead in 5 seconds, not analyze data. 2. Offline-first is harder than it sounds Even without a server, you need to think about data migration when the schema changes, backup/restore flows, and CSV import edge cases. 3. Free is a distribution strategy Competing with Zoho and HubSpot on features is impossible. Competing on price (free) and simplicity (offline, no sign-up) gave me a niche they'll never care about. 4. The Indian market is underserved Most global CRMs are priced for US/EU markets. A solo real estate agent in a tier-2 Indian city won't pay $20/month. But they desperately need a lead tracker. Current Stats - 100+ downloads on Google Play Store - 4.9 star rating What's Next - iOS version - WhatsApp integration (huge in India) - Team features for small brokerages - Multi-language support (Hindi, Telugu, Tamil) Try It Out - Website: https://boringcrm.in - Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.boringcrm.app If you're a developer thinking about building for underserved markets do it. The big players ignore these niches, and real people need real solutions.  I'd love to hear your feedback. What would you build differently? What features would you add? - "Too expensive — I can't pay ₹2,000/month for software" - "Too complicated — I just need to remember who to call" - "Doesn't work without internet — I'm always in the field" - Add and manage unlimited leads - Color-coded sales pipeline (New → Contacted → Follow-up → Negotiation → Closed) - Follow-up reminders with push notifications - Call logging and interaction history - CSV import/export for bulk lead management - Import contacts directly from your phone - Link properties to leads - Notes and activity tracking per lead - 100% offline — works without internet, always - Zero sign-up — download, open, start adding leads - Free forever — no subscriptions, no trial expiry - Data stays on your device — complete privacy - Flutter — Cross-platform framework (currently Android only) - SQLite — Local database for offline-first storage - sqflite package — SQLite wrapper for Flutter - flutter_local_notifications — For follow-up reminders - Firebase Analytics — To understand usage patterns - shared_preferences — For app settings