It appears Google may be taking a step back in the portal wars just a month after entering the highly competitive environment.

Listings of for-sale homes are no longer embedded in mobile search results in markets like Chicago, Denver and Austin. 

The search result listing displays had been powered by a paid partnership between Google and ComeHome, which is a subsidiary of HouseCanary. As a licensed brokerage, HouseCanary subscribes to MLSs and has access to MLS feeds. 

The listings embedded in the search results included all of the property’s details, along with links to request a tour or contact a buyer’s agent. 

In an article published by Barron’s last week, a Google spokesperson told the publication the program was a “small experiment,” and did not specify how long it would last. 

In an emailed statement, a HouseCanary spokesperson told HousingWire that any reports that the experiment had been shut down were untrue.

“Reports that the Google project has been ‘shut down’ are not accurate,” the spokesperson wrote. “HouseCanary remains engaged with Google on a controlled experiment in the U.S. As a member of the MLSs we work with, we collaborate directly with those organizations and honor their requests.” 

Industry sources told HousingWire that the removal of these embedded listings came after several MLSs moved to block the use of their listing data, which prevented Google from both continuing and expanding the experimental program in many markets. 

Specifically in California, sources told HousingWire that California Regional MLS (CRMLS) terminated its data licensing agreement with HouseCanary last Tuesday after HouseCanary allegedly violated CRMLS’s licence agreement.

CRMLS did not wish to comment on the termination of HouseCanary’s licensing agreement or the removal of embedded listings in mobile search results in markets like Los Angeles and San Francisco. 

HouseCanary also did not wish to comment on what happened with CRMLS. 

In response to backlash over the Google integration, HouseCanary posted on LinkedIn in December that before it began the “experiment” with Google, it  contacted every MLS in the regions included. 

“We are working with those MLSs directly and we have active, ongoing communication with them throughout the test. If an MLS has questions or concerns, we address them directly and promptly,” the post stated. “The goal is simple: improve how consumers discover listings while staying aligned with the rules and expectations of the MLS community.”

This was not the first time Google has tested a real estate-related product, and as none of the technology behemoth’s prior attempts have evolved into anything serious, this outcome may not come as a surprise to many.