Houzez Banner Search – Feature Overview

WordPress plugin that adds a status + area search widget for the Houzez real estate theme. It uses Houzez taxonomies and search templates. Free to download and use.

Core Features

Status Tabs

• Tabs for property statuses (Buy, Rent, Off-plan, etc.) from the property_status taxonomy
• Order: Buy → Rent → Off-plan → others
• “Buy” label for Sell/For Sale/Buy slugs
• Only statuses with properties are shown

Area Autocomplete

• Autocomplete for areas/communities from property_area
• Suggestions on focus (popular areas) and while typing (2+ characters)
• Results sorted by property count (descending)
• Shows property count per area
• Counts respect the selected status tab

Area Tag Selection

• Selected area shown as a removable tag
• Single area selection
• Tag can be removed with ×

Search Redirect

• Search button redirects to the Houzez search page with status[] and areas[]
• Uses Houzez search template URL
• URL parameters preserved for sharing/bookmarking

Shortcodes

• [houzez_banner_search] – main shortcode
• [houzez_status_area_search] – legacy alias

Shortcode Attributes

• status – default status slug
• area – default area slug

Technical Features

AJAX

• houzez_area_suggestions – area autocomplete (GET)
• houzez_status_area_filter – filtered listings (POST)
• Nonce verification for both
• Works for logged-in and guest users

Houzez Integration

• Uses property_status and property_area
• Uses Houzez search template link
• Uses Houzez listing templates (e.g. item-v1)
• Uses Houzez pagination (houzez_ajax_pagination)
• Uses Houzez filters (houzez_sold_status_filter, houzez_prop_sort)
• Uses Houzez options (search layout, posts per page, grid columns)

URL Handling

• Reads status and area from $_GET
• Updates URL with history.replaceState when filters change

Responsive Layout

• Flex layout with wrapping
• Mobile: stacked layout, full-width elements

UI/UX

• Open Sans font
• Debounced input (300 ms) for autocomplete
• Enter key triggers search
• Click outside closes suggestions
• Loading state with spinner
• Hover styles on tabs, suggestions, and buttons

Dependencies & Requirements

• Houzez theme – required; plugin deactivates if Houzez is not active
• jQuery – required for frontend JS
• WordPress – standard WP environment

File Structure

Summary

The plugin adds a compact search widget (status tabs + area autocomplete) that redirects to the Houzez search page with the chosen status and area. It uses Houzez taxonomies and templates and is intended for hero/banner sections on listing or homepage layouts.