Two of Canada’s prominent real estate search platforms are winding down their consumer-facing operations this month, with RBC-owned Houseful and Wahi both revealing changes to their businesses.
The developments mark the end of two platforms that sought to simplify the homebuying process through digital tools, property data and access to real estate professionals.
RBC winds down Houseful
Houseful, operated by OJOHome Canada Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), announced its exit from the market this week.
“We have made the decision to wind down Houseful and focus on other ways to support Canadians’ homeownership needs,” the company said in a statement posted on its website.
“We are proud of what the Houseful team built and thank our users and real estate partners for their trust and support.”
Acquired by RBC in 2023, Houseful offered personalized home search tools, market insights and access to real estate and mortgage professionals. The platform was designed to help Canadians navigate various stages of the homebuying journey.
The company has not provided a specific closure date or further details about the decision. REM has requested a comment.
Wahi redirects homebuyers to Johnston & Daniel
Wahi will redirect visitors to its website to Johnston & Daniel, a boutique brokerage that’s affiliated with Royal LePage, beginning Nov. 13, according to a statement provided to REM by managing director Leonie Tait.
“Wahi is evolving,” Tait said.
The team behind Wahi will instead focus on RPS Real Property Solutions, which provides property intelligence and valuation services to Canadian financial institutions.
Launched in 2022, Wahi positioned itself as a more transparent, consumer-focused approach to real estate. Its platform offered property listings, historical sales data, school scores, personalized alerts, showing management tools and Realtor matching services.
“We’re grateful to the buyers, sellers and Realtors who have been part of Wahi,” Tait said.
‘Traffic doesn’t always translate into a successful business’
For Mustafa Abbasi, founding president of technology-enabled brokerage Zolo and former president of Sotheby’s International Realty Canada, the announcements highlight the difficult economics of operating real estate search portals.
“There are only so many buyers, sellers, transactions in Canada, yet you see all these websites and portals,” he told REM.
Abbasi said many platforms now offer similar technology and access to property listings, making it increasingly difficult – and important – to distinguish themselves from competitors.
“If we’re all kind of offering similar information, then it’s hard because we’re competing for that audience.”
More consolidation ahead?
Abbasi also pointed to the challenge of converting online traffic into revenue, particularly when consumers may browse listings on one website but ultimately complete transactions through traditional brokerages.
“Traffic doesn’t always translate into a successful business,” he said.
“Building a good-looking website and a good app nowadays is one thing, but building a sustainable business and monetizing and creating a business value, is another thing.”
He believes the industry could see further consolidation.
“It’s unfortunate that it happened to two websites that I thought were great, but likely we’ll see some more consolidation and closures of websites in the months and years to come as well.”
Still, Abbasi said opportunities remain for technology companies that can solve meaningful problems in real estate and develop economically sustainable business models.
Courtney Zwicker is a digital reporter and associate editor for REM. Based in Atlantic Canada, she has over a decade of experience covering daily business news.
