Can an agency order Houzez apps for several client sites?
Yes. Every order is its own app, at $1,499 for iPhone and Android or $999 for one platform, paid once with the first year of updates included. Order each one with the same email address and every app lands in the same client portal. Each app is still published under that client's own Apple and Google developer accounts.
If you build and look after Houzez sites for several real estate businesses, this guide covers how ordering works across them, what each client must do themselves, and what usually falls to you.
How do several apps work in one client portal?
The client portal is where everything for an app is collected before we build it. With several clients, it keeps each app separate:
- One app per order. Every order is its own app.
- Same email, same portal. Ordering again with the same email address adds the new app to the portal you already have.
- One App Settings page per app. Each app gets its own page with a field for every item on the setup checklist, including uploads for the key files.
- Sign-in by one-time code. You sign in with your email address and we send you a one-time code.
The uploads matter more for an agency than for a single site owner. An app for both platforms needs three key files from the client's Apple and Google accounts, and anyone holding them can upload apps to those accounts. In the portal, uploaded files are stored privately and can only be downloaded by you and our team, which keeps them out of email threads. Add each piece as the client finishes it and we'll start on what we can.
Why does each client need their own Apple and Google accounts?
Both stores require an app to be published by the business it represents. Each client's app is published under that client's own developer accounts, in the client's company name.
There are hard rules behind it too. Apple's App Review guideline 4.3 ("Spam") rejects near-identical apps published by one developer, and guideline 4.2.6 rejects apps made from a commercialised template unless they're submitted by the provider of the app's content. A white-label product like this one is exactly that shape. Publishing every client's app under one account, whether that's yours or ours, invites Apple to reject them. Publishing each one under the client's own account, with the client's branding and content, is the accepted way to build these.
It also settles ownership. The client owns the app. If they stop working with us, the app, its reviews and its users stay with them. They invite us into their accounts and can remove us at any time.
For Apple, each client should enrol as an Organization, not an Individual. An Organization shows the company name as the seller on the App Store and can invite team members; an Individual account shows a person's legal name and can't. Organizations need a D-U-N-S number, and the company name, address and phone number must match the official registration exactly.
Who does what?
| Step | Who does it |
|---|---|
| Order and pay for each app | You, with the same email each time |
| Enrol with Apple ($99 a year) and Google Play ($25 once) in the company's name | The client |
| Switch on App Store Connect API access | The client's Apple Account Holder, nobody else |
| Install the two plugins on the website | The site's web developer, often you |
| Add brand details and upload key files | You, on that app's App Settings page |
| Rebrand, build, sign, upload for testing and submit for review | Our team |
| Release the approved app | The client, in their own account |
Apple's verification is the step that sets each client's timeline. It takes one to two weeks, and Apple may phone the number registered against the client's D-U-N-S to verify them; if nobody answers, enrolment stalls. Ask each client to start on day one. Each app is usually live two to four weeks from its order.
What does the client's web developer need to do?
The site owner's web developer is often who installs the two plugins. If that's you, the work per site is short:
- Check the basics: Houzez 2.x or newer, WordPress 6.0 or newer, PHP 8.0 or newer, a valid HTTPS certificate, and permalinks set to anything except "Plain".
- Install both plugins. We send Houzez API and JWT Shield Lite as
.zipfiles. Upload, activate, and there's nothing to configure. - Settle www or non-www. Make WordPress Address and Site Address identical and leave them alone. Changing them after launch logs every app user out at once.
- Let the app through security tools. If Wordfence, Cloudflare or similar sits in front of the site, allow requests to
/wp-json/. The usual symptom of a block is an app with no listings while the website works. - Set up a review login with the client. App Review needs a real account on the site that stays live with the same password, because reviewers come back for every update.
Can you send the setup guide to your clients?
Yes. The setup guide is public, so you can send each client the link instead of rewriting it. It walks through every screen of the setup only the account owner can do, in order, starting with the Apple account. The checklist puts every item on one page, so you can see what a client still owes.
Key facts
- Every Houzez app order is its own app, and ordering with the same email adds it to the same client portal.
- Each app in the portal has its own App Settings page, with uploads for the key files.
- The client portal signs you in with a one-time code sent to your email address.
- Each client's app is published under that client's own Apple and Google developer accounts, in the client's company name.
- Apple's guidelines 4.3 and 4.2.6 reject near-identical and template-built apps that aren't published by the business whose content they show.
- The client owns the app and can remove our team from their accounts at any time.
- Each app costs $1,499 for iPhone and Android or $999 for one platform, paid once with the first year of updates included.
Where to go next
Our page for agencies sums up how ordering for clients works. Send each client the setup guide, track what's outstanding against the checklist, and when a client is ready, choose their plan.