You are on page 1of 2

List of house types (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia).

Here is a list of dwellings in the U K and in the USA. Click on the appropriate words to see them and for more details. Residential dwellings can be built in a large variety of configurations. A basic division is between the house/single-family home and the flat/apartment, but there are also many subdivisions, listed below.

Houses

Colonial house: a traditional style house in the United States Cottage: Usually refers to a small two-storied country dwelling, but weavers' cottages are three-storied townhouses with the top floor reserved for the working quarters. Detached : Any house that is completely separated from its neighbours. o Bungalow: Single story house (not including optional basement) o Backsplit: Multilevel house that appears as a bungalow from the front elevation o Frontsplit: Multilevel house that appears as a two story house in front and a bungalow in the back. It is the opposite of a backsplit and is a rare configuration. o Sidesplit: Multilevel house where the different levels are visible from the front elevation o Link-detached: Adjacent detached properties which do not have a party wall, but which are linked by the garage(s) and so forming a single frontage. o prefab A house where the main structure is prefabricated (common after the second world war). o Ranch: Single story house, usually with garage and basement. Farmhouse: Building serving as the main residence on a farm. Linked: Rowhouse or semi-detached house that is linked only at the foundation. Above ground, they appear as detached houses. Linking the foundations reduces cost. Mansion: Very large/expensive house Manufactured Home Mews property: A Mews is an urban stable-block that has been converted into residential properties. The houses are converted into ground floor garages with a small flat above which used to house the ostler. Rowhouse: (USA); also called "terraced home (USA); also called "townhouse"; ": 3 or more houses in a row sharing a "party" wall with its adjacent neighbour. In New York, "Brownstones" are rowhouses. Rowhouses are typically multiple stories. The term townhouse is currently coming into wider use in the UK, but terraced house (not "terraced home") is more common. Semi-detached: two houses joined together, often called a "duplex" in the USA. Terraced House: Since the late 18th century is a style of housing where (generally) identical individual houses are conjoined into rows - a line of houses which abut directly on to each other built with shared party walls between dwellings whose uniform fronts and uniform height created an ensemble that was more stylish than a "rowhouse". However this is also the UK term for a "rowhouse" regardless of whether the houses are identical or not. o Back-to-back: Terraced houses which also adjoin a second terrace to the rear. They were a common form of housing for workers during the Industrial Revolution in England. Townhouse: also called rowhouse (US). In the UK, a townhouse is a traditional term for an upper class house in London (in contrast with country house), and is now coming into use a

a term for new terraced houses, which are often three stories tall with a garage on the ground floor.

Flats / Apartments

Apartment building: a multi-unit dwelling made up of several (generally four or more) apartments. Apartment tower, Block of flats or Tower block: a high-rise apartment building Condominium: Separate residences with some common areas (see townhouse). Duplex: Two separate residences, usually side-by-side, but sometimes on two different floors. The former often looks like two houses put together, sharing a wall (see semidetached); the latter usually appears as a townhouse, but with two different entrances. Garden Apartment: a building style usually characterized by two story, semi-detached buildings, each floor being a separate apartment. Maisonette: an apartment / flat on two levels with internal stairs, or which has its own entrance at street level. Less used in the UK now that the term apartment is migrating into British English. Penthouse: Refers to the top floor of multi-story building Tenement a multi-unit dwelling made up of several (generally four or more) apartments (i.e. an apartment building). In the United States the connotation implies a run-down or poorly-cared-for building. Loft or Warehouse conversion: Trendy flats inhabited by bourgeois bohemian after gentrification of an industrial area Garage-Apartment: An apartment over a garage; if the garage is attached, the apartment will have a separate entrance from the main house. Garalow: a portmateau word garage+bungalow; similar to a garage-apartment, but with the apartment and garage at the same level. Mother-in-Law Apartment: Small apartment either at the back or on an upper level of the main house, usually with a separate entrance.

You might also like