WhatHouse?
WhatHouse? is a UK new-build property portal serving prospective homebuyers across outright, shared ownership, part buy-part rent, build to rent, and retirement segments. Revenue is generated primarily through housebuilder advertising, lead referrals, and co-marketed content partnerships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What WhatHouse? does
WhatHouse? is a UK-focused digital property portal specializing in new build homes. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in London, the company operates whathouse.com as a listing, content, and lead-generation platform covering new property developments across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The portal serves prospective buyers and renters across multiple ownership and tenure models — outright purchase, government-backed Shared Ownership, Part Buy Part Rent via the Home Reach scheme (in partnership with heylo Housing), Build to Rent, retirement / later living, part exchange, and luxury segments — with consumer-facing access offered free of charge. The site additionally publishes daily real estate news, expert interviews, and buying guides.
The platform's technology stack is a property search and listing aggregation layer with filtering by location, budget, bedrooms, ownership type, and tenure, supplemented by email-alert functionality and the proprietary WhatHouse? Location Ratings system. Location Ratings, developed in partnership with CLSQ.com, scores every new-build development against 50+ geospatial attributes across five categories — health and wellbeing, mobile connectivity, transport links, finance, and education and amenities — providing a standardized location-quality metric that competes generalist portals do not natively offer. Supporting consumer tools include a housebuilder directory, a Value My Home valuation tool, and historical sold-house-price data.
WhatHouse? monetizes primarily through B2B channels: housebuilder and developer advertising (featured listings, regional placements, directory presence) and lead generation forwarding buyer enquiries to developers, supplemented by affiliate referral arrangements and co-marketed content partnerships such as the New Homebuyers Guide with Redrow and the Part Buy Part Rent Guide with heylo. The company also operates an annual industry awards program (WhatHouse? Awards) and participates in property events including the London New Home Show. The customer base features major UK volume and premium housebuilders — Barratt Homes, Berkeley, Persimmon Homes, David Wilson Homes, McCarthy Stone, Lifestory Group, and Mount Anvil — plus a mortgage content partnership with Tembo. WhatHouse? is privately held with 11–50 employees and no disclosed institutional funding, venture backing, or M&A history in the available data.
WhatHouse? firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- WhatHouse?
- Legal name
- WhatHouse?
- Website
- https://whathouse.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- WhatHouse? is a UK new-build property portal serving prospective homebuyers across outright, shared ownership, part buy-part rent, build to rent, and retirement segments. Revenue is generated primarily through housebuilder advertising, lead referrals, and co-marketed content partnerships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
WhatHouse? industry classification
Industry- Product category
- New Homes Property Portal
- NAICS
- Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519), Real Estate Property Managers (53131)
- SIC
- Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Real Estate (6500)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Land & Development Site Brokerage (BPAJABAG)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Luxury & High-End Residential Brokerage (BPAJAAAC)
Keywords
Where WhatHouse? is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Markets served
WhatHouse? business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Housebuilder Advertising: Housebuilders and developers pay to advertise their properties on the platform, appearing in featured listings, developer directories, and regional search results.
- Lead Generation: The platform captures user enquiries and forwards them to housebuilders as qualified leads, earning referral or lead generation fees.
- Guide Downloads / Content Marketing: Free downloadable guides (New Homebuyers Guide with Redrow, Part Buy Part Rent Guide with heylo) generate user data and engagement while driving partnership revenue.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free consumer access to property search, listings, and basic guides |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
WhatHouse? product offering
Product offeringCore offering
WhatHouse? operates the largest UK property portal focused exclusively on new build homes, aggregating listings from hundreds of housebuilders across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The platform enables consumers to search and filter new build properties by ownership model (outright purchase, Shared Ownership, Part Buy Part Rent/Home Reach, Build to Rent, retirement), location, budget, and bedrooms, supported by the proprietary WhatHouse? Location Ratings geospatial scoring system, email alerts, and editorial guides.
Product overview
WhatHouse? is a UK-focused new homes property portal offering a comprehensive search platform for new build properties. The core offering consists of multiple integrated search verticals: the main New Homes Search Portal for outright purchases, Shared Ownership for government-backed partial purchases, Part Buy Part Rent (Home Reach) in partnership with heylo housing for flexible ownership, Built to Rent for rental properties, and Retirement Properties for later-living developments. Supporting features include WhatHouse? Location Ratings (a geospatial scoring system powered by CLSQ.com), a Housebuilder Directory, News & Advice editorial content, the WhatHouse? Awards program, Budget Search filters, Value My Home valuation tool, Sold House Prices data, Mortgage Guide resources, Luxury Homes listings, and Part Exchange Homes listings. The platform connects prospective buyers with property developers and housing schemes across the UK.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- WhatHouse? Awards: Annual awards event recognizing excellence in the new homes industry
- WhatHouse? Location Ratings
Products and services
- New Homes Search Portal Property search portal enabling users to browse and search thousands of new build home listings across the UK, with filters for location, budget, bedrooms, and property type.
- Shared Ownership Homes Search portal for Shared Ownership new build properties, a government-backed scheme allowing buyers to purchase as little as 25% of a new home and pay rent on the remaining share.
- Part Buy Part Rent (Home Reach) Search portal for Home Reach part-buy-part-rent properties operated in partnership with heylo housing, allowing buyers to purchase 25-75% of a new home and pay rent on the remainder with the ability to staircase up to 100% ownership.
- Built to Rent Homes Search portal for brand new Build to Rent rental properties offering the convenience and flexibility of renting brand new homes without ownership responsibilities.
- Retirement Properties Search portal for new build retirement and later-living developments with on-site facilities, care services, and age-exclusive communities aimed at downsizers and over-55s buyers.
Quantifiable outcome
- Largest database of new build homes in the UK
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use WhatHouse?
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
WhatHouse? technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
WhatHouse? partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- CLSQ.comcoreCLSQ.com is a property data, technology, and data-led insurance provider that collaborated with WhatHouse? to power the Location Ratings system. They analyze over 50 geospatial attributes for every new build location to provide scoring across five core topics: Health and Wellbeing, Mobile Connectivity, Transport Links, Finance, and Education and Amenities.
- TembosupportingTembo is a mortgage affordability specialist partnered with WhatHouse? to provide financial guidance content and calculator tools. Their insights help homebuyers understand borrowing capacity and financial options for purchasing new homes.
- heylo Housing Groupcoreheylo Housing Group runs the Home Reach part buy-part rent scheme in partnership with housebuilders. WhatHouse? features Home Reach properties and co-markets the Part Buy Part Rent guide together. Home Reach allows buyers to purchase 25-75% of a new home and pay rent on the remainder.
- RedrowsupportingRedrow, a major UK housebuilder, partnered with WhatHouse? to create the New Homebuyers Guide that takes buyers through the step-by-step process from house-hunting to moving-in day.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
WhatHouse? competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Rightmove: UK's largest residential property portal, listing both resale and new-build homes from major housebuilders. Direct competitor for consumer property search traffic and housebuilder advertising spend.
- OnTheMarket: UK agent-backed property portal listing new-build and resale properties. Competes in the same consumer search vertical and increasingly in new-build developer advertising.
- PrimeLocation: Zoopla-owned premium property portal focused on higher-end and featured listings. Overlaps with WhatHouse?'s Luxury Homes vertical and draws from the same housebuilder inventory.
- Zoopla: Major UK property portal (owned by Silver Lake/Houseful) covering sales, lettings, and new-build listings. Competes for the same consumer eyeballs and housebuilder advertiser budgets as WhatHouse?.
Regional players
- Foxtons: London-focused estate agency also active in new-build sales. Comparable where WhatHouse? operates in the London new-build market, though primarily agent-led rather than portal-led.
Broad incumbents
- Countrywide / Connells Group: Large UK estate agency group with new-build sales divisions. Competes for the same housebuilder marketing and lead-generation spend that drives WhatHouse? revenue.
- Knight Frank: International residential agency active in UK new-build sales and marketing, including luxury developments. Comparable to WhatHouse? in serving developer clients seeking buyer leads.
- Savills: Global real estate agency with significant UK residential new-build marketing arms. Overlaps with WhatHouse? on marketing new-build developments, though primarily as agent rather than aggregator.
Emerging players
- Property Finder: Property portal operating in MENA with newer expansion ambitions into other markets; comparable as a new-build-focused portal, though not directly competing in the UK.
Others
- Propertymark naea propertymark: UK professional body for estate and letting agents. Adjacent industry participant shaping standards and influencing housebuilder/agent marketing channels relevant to WhatHouse?.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
WhatHouse? social profiles
Digital presenceWhatHouse? financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
WhatHouse? leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
WhatHouse? funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
WhatHouse? M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about WhatHouse?
What does WhatHouse? do?
WhatHouse? operates the largest UK property portal focused exclusively on new build homes, aggregating listings from hundreds of housebuilders across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The platform enables consumers to search and filter new build properties by ownership model (outright purchase, Shared Ownership, Part Buy Part Rent/Home Reach, Build to Rent, retirement), location, budget, and bedrooms, supported by the proprietary WhatHouse? Location Ratings geospatial scoring system, email alerts, and editorial guides.
Is WhatHouse? a public or private company?
WhatHouse? is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was WhatHouse? founded?
WhatHouse? was founded in 1997. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is WhatHouse? based?
WhatHouse? is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does WhatHouse? make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Housebuilder Advertising is the primary driver. The others are lead Generation and guide Downloads / Content Marketing.
Who are WhatHouse?'s main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Rightmove, OnTheMarket, PrimeLocation and Zoopla. Foxtons is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Countrywide / Connells Group, Knight Frank and Savills. Property Finder is listed as an emerging player. Propertymark naea propertymark is listed as an others.
Does WhatHouse? have an API?
No public API is recorded for WhatHouse?.
What industry is WhatHouse? in?
WhatHouse?'s product category is New Homes Property Portal. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAJABAG, Land & Development Site Brokerage, with a secondary code of BPAJAAAC, Luxury & High-End Residential Brokerage. Its NAICS code is 519 and its SIC code is 6531.