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- Steep pitched or hipped roofs
- Tall ceilings and windows
- Traditional materials including clay, stone, and brick offer a rustic appeal
- Exposed wooden beams in ceilings and walls
- Flat planes and clean lines
- Monochromatic brickwork
- Asymmetrical home layouts
- Nature-inspired interior
- Interior level shifts between rooms
- Share one or two walls with adjacent homes
- Have their own entrances
- Are built with multiple floors to maximize vertical space
- Often share a similar style to their neighbors’ homes and may operate under an HOA
- Textured walls with decorative shingles or half-timbering
- Large round or polygonal tower at the home’s corner
- Steeply pitched and asymmetrical roof
- Decorative spindles on porches and trim
- Decorative single-pane or stained glass windows
- Uniquely shaped Mansard Roof
- Decorative window framing and dormers
- Decorative rails or balustrades around terraces and staircases
- Iron roof crest and eaves with support brackets
- Single-story floor plans with low-pitched roofs
- Rectangular, “U,” or “L” shaped open floor plans
- Patio or deck space connected to the home
- Often includes a finished basement or attached garage
- Easy to identify shapes, including a rectangular building and triangular roofs
- Gable-front designs
- Large porches and protected entryways
- Greek-inspired columns both square and round
- Broad gambrel roofs that are visually similar to barn-style roofs
- Open-floor plans
- Flared roof eaves
- Split doors
- Pointed arch in windows, doors, and decoration
- Elaborate wood trim vergeboards and bargeboards
- Steeply pitched roofs and front-facing gables
- Towers and turrets resembling medieval castles
- A crown and pilasters framing the front door
- Decorative quoins or bricks at the corners
- Smooth decorative blocks as moulding
- Use of geometric shapes
- Large, floor-to-ceiling windows
- Clean lines and flat roofs
- Open floor plans
- Dormer windows, including one centered above the door
- External stairs to enter higher floors
- Iron stairs and balconies
- Slightly raised basements to support the floor
- Belvederes for natural light and airflow
- Overhanging eaves with decorative support brackets
- Tall and narrow or pedimented windows with rounded crowns
- Cast iron detailing and decor
- Elaborate woodwork and trim
- Towers, turrets, and dormer windows
- Steep gabled roofs
- Partial or full-width porches
- Shingles cover the entire exterior
- Asymmetrical interior layouts without a central hallway
- Emphasis on horizontal planes
- Custom built to meld with the nature surrounding the house
A French Country home has a rustic yet upscale charm. French Country architecture is designed after French chateaus and became popular with American soldiers returning from World War I.
French Country homes offer a unique house style featuring:
French Country homes are designed with their environment in mind. They often feature neutral colors with soft, nature-inspired pops of color like sunshine yellows and grass greens.
Mid-century Modern designs are nothing new and have influenced interior design, graphic art, and house styles. Mid-century Modern homes are designed to embrace minimalism and nature. They’re also often modeled to appeal to a futuristic or abstract concept.
Mid-century Modern homes can be identified by their:
Mid-century architecture is still widely popular today, as are Mid-century Modern interior design and furniture trends.
Townhomes are common in cities and densely populated neighborhoods. Townhouses are tall and narrow homes designed to make the most out of vertical space without too much of a yard or garden area.
Homes are considered townhouses when they:
Townhouses can be built to mimic other architecture styles, like Italianate and Greek Revival, while maintaining the condensed, vertical floor plan.
Queen Anne homes were popularized in the later Victorian era, beginning around 1880. This style is the quintessential Victorian home for many, with ornate woodworking and decor inside and out.
Queen Anne homes have key regional differences across the country, but maintain these essentials:
Queen Anne architecture is most common in homes, but can also be seen in schools, churches, and office buildings.
Second Empire homes were a modern Victorian-era style that started in France before spreading through the Northeastern and Midwestern United States. Second Empire architecture features similar ornate Victorian trends, though generally offers a simplified Victorian aesthetic.
These elements help identify a Second Empire home:
Second Empire homes are also easy to identify since they’re the only Victorian-era style that often features a symmetrical, rectangular floor plan.
Ranch house styles are the most searched style in the US today and are common in cities and suburbs across the country. There are various ranch house styles, including California and split-level ranch homes. The main distinguishing features between these styles are living space and home layout.
Ranch style homes feature:
Ranch homes are the most popular homes in 34 US states — particularly in the Midwest and on the East Coast.
Around the 1820s, Americans experienced a renewed interest in classic Greek and Roman culture. This cultural shift was a natural fit for architects, who brought the Greek Revival house style to life.
Greek Revival architecture became popular in homes as well as businesses, banks, and churches. Prominent features include:
Greek Revival homes often have decorative trim and moulding around the front door and windows. These ornate features and columns are easy ways to identify Greek Revival architecture.
Most Dutch Colonial homes you find today are actually from the Colonial Revival period of the early 20th Century. Original Dutch Colonial homes feature flared roof eaves and creative wood and brickwork. They are much more ornamental than classic Colonial homes, though the Dutch Colonial Revival style tends to be more subdued than the original Dutch Colonial homes.
Dutch Colonial Revival houses feature:
The large barn-style roofs are the most identifiable feature of a Dutch Colonial home and even became known as “Dutch roofs.”
Gothic Revival architecture grew in the mid-19th century and was one of the early styles of Victorian-era homes. The Gothic Revival style takes influence from Medieval Europe and was designed as a country home. Architects believed the asymmetrical design and ornamentation complemented the nature of rural America.
Gothic Revival homes can be identified by their:
Gothic Revival architecture was a popular style for schools and churches as well as rural homes.
Georgian-style homes were one of the most common styles in the 18th century and showcased formal and classical details that previous homes didn’t. Georgian houses are similar to Federal houses, though they can be distinguished by:
You can also find regional variations with hooded front doors and pent roofs between levels.
Modern home design became popular in the early 20th century and has a heavy influence on today’s contemporary designs. The core of modern designs can be seen in their:
These styles attempt to connect with nature through minimalism and fluid design between outdoor and indoor spaces. Modern house styles branch into a few key sub-styles.
The French Colonial house style can be seen around the world and has significant variety among its sub-styles.
French Colonial houses have the same symmetry as other Colonial homes with these distinct features:
French Colonial houses are most similar to Spanish Colonial houses and easily identified by their elaborate iron balconies, stairs, and entrances.
Italianate architecture continues the trend of asymmetrical design, romanticism, and Medieval influence — this time borrowing features from Medieval Italy. Italianate style is common up and down the East Coast and peaked in popularity between 1850 and 1880.
Italianate architecture features:
Pattern books were becoming a popular way for craftsmen to build homes in different styles. This flexibility meant Italianate features were accessible for a variety of homes including large estates and urban townhouses.
Victorian homes were built between 1837 and 1901 while Queen Victoria reigned in Britain. “Victorian” actually refers to multiple styles that vary in influence, but each features ornate detailing and asymmetrical floor plans.
The key features of a Victorian-era home include:
Victorian homes are all about ornamentation — industrialization allowed these homes to be produced en masse and across a variety of architectural styles.
Shingle-style homes took influence from Colonial architecture rather than Medieval Europe. Ornamentation became simpler towards the end of the Victorian-era and Shingle-style homes are best known for their creative floor plans and signature shingles on exterior walls.
Shingle Victorian homes are identified by these interior and exterior features:
Shingle-style houses were designed as a work of art and encouraged creativity in their use of shapes and features.
House styles will continue to evolve with influences from history, culture, and our lifestyles. All of these house styles can be seen and celebrated across the US and have their own stories to tell. Choose the house style that fits your lifestyle, location, and, of course, personal style best. Then check your credit score, get pre-approved, and start house-hunting.