The short answer
Yes, in three ways: a native app built from your site, a WebView wrapper that loads your website inside an app shell, or a progressive web app (PWA) added from the browser. Houzez Mobile is the first kind: the official Houzez app, rebranded as yours and reading your listings, agents and enquiries live from your existing site.
What are the three options?
A native app
A native app is built for iOS and Android and installed from the App Store and Google Play. Its screens are made for a phone, with a tab bar, filters, map search and listing pages, and it gets its content from your site through an API instead of loading web pages.
That is what Houzez Mobile is, connected to your site through two plugins.
A WebView wrapper
A WebView wrapper puts your mobile website inside an app shell. It shows the same pages a phone browser would, with an app icon in front.
The catch is Apple. App Review guideline 4.2, Minimum Functionality, expects an app to offer features, content and interface that lift it beyond a repackaged website. A wrapper that does nothing but show your site is a repackaged website, and it can be rejected for exactly that.
A progressive web app (PWA)
A PWA is a website built so visitors can add it to their phone's home screen from the browser. There's no store review to pass, but there's no store listing either: PWAs aren't listed in the App Store, so someone searching it for your agency won't find you there.
Native, WebView or PWA: how do they compare?
| Native app (Houzez Mobile) | WebView wrapper | PWA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | An iOS and Android app with screens built for the phone | Your mobile website inside an app shell | Your website, added to the home screen from the browser |
| Where content comes from | Your site, live, through the Houzez REST API | Your site's web pages | Your site's web pages |
| New listings appear | Automatically, no new build | Automatically | Automatically |
| On the App Store | Yes, under your own developer account | Only if it passes App Review | No |
| App Store review | Our team takes it through review for you | Rejection risk under guideline 4.2 | None, as it isn't in the store |
| Push, maps, sign-in | Push from your own OneSignal dashboard, Google Maps, sign-in with email or Google | Whatever your website and the shell provide | Whatever your website and the browser allow |
All three show a new listing as soon as you publish it, because all three read your site. The difference is what people hold in their hand, and whether they can find it in the store.
How does a native Houzez app connect to your site?
Through two plugins we send you as .zip files. They aren't on the public plugin directory.
- Houzez API exposes your listings, agents, cities and enquiries to the app.
- JWT Shield Lite handles secure login, so your users can sign in from the app.
Install and activate both; there's nothing to configure.
From then on, publish a property, edit a price or mark one sold in WordPress, and the app shows it on the next refresh, with no new release and no store review. Enquiries sent from the app reach your agents through Houzez, the same as the ones from your website, and people sign in with the same account they use on your site.
Only changes to the app itself, like a new screen or a colour change, need a new build and another store review.
What does your Houzez site need?
| Requirement | Minimum |
|---|---|
| Houzez theme | Version 2.x or newer, active |
| WordPress | 6.0 or newer |
| PHP | 8.0 or newer |
| HTTPS | A valid certificate, not expired or self-signed |
| Permalinks | Anything except "Plain" |
The app talks to your site at an address like yoursite.com/wp-json/…, and that address only exists when permalinks are switched on.
Security plugins and firewalls like Wordfence or Cloudflare can block that same address. The symptom is an app that shows no listings while the website works perfectly. Whoever manages your security setup needs to allow requests to /wp-json/; it's the only exception the app needs.
Last, settle on www or non-www and leave it. App logins are tied to your site's address, and changing it after launch logs everyone out of the app at once.
What does it cost, and how long does it take?
$1,499 for iPhone and Android, or $999 for one platform. You pay once, and it covers rebranding, building, store approval and the first year of updates. Our team rebrands the app, connects it to your site and takes it through App Store and Google Play review. Most apps are live in two to four weeks; the longest wait is Apple verifying your company for a developer account.
The app is published under your own Apple and Google developer accounts, so you own it outright. Apple charges $99 a year for a developer account and Google charges $25 once, paid to them directly.
Key facts
- Houzez Mobile is the official mobile app for the Houzez WordPress theme, rebranded with your name, icon and colours.
- It is a native iOS and Android app that reads listings, agents, cities and enquiries live from your site through the Houzez REST API.
- Your site needs Houzez 2.x or newer, WordPress 6.0+, PHP 8.0+, valid HTTPS, permalinks not set to Plain, and two plugins: Houzez API and JWT Shield Lite.
- New listings, price changes and sold properties appear in the app without a new release or store review.
- Apple's App Review guideline 4.2 expects an app to be more than a repackaged website, which is the main risk for a WebView wrapper.
- PWAs aren't listed in the App Store.
- Houzez Mobile costs $1,499 for iPhone and Android or $999 for one platform, paid once, and is usually live in two to four weeks.
If your site already meets the list above, the website setup guide takes about five minutes, and the full setup guide covers the developer accounts. Plans and ordering are in the pricing section.