What Is a Bungalow? Pros and Cons of Living in a Bungalow

A bungalow is a small cottage-type home, usually built as a one-story house without stairs. Bungalows typically feature sloped roofs, open floor plans, large front windows, and broad front porches. Popular as single-family homes, bungalows typically have a living room, kitchen, and bedroom within a one to two thousand square-foot space.

Bungalows originated in the Bengal region of South Asia during the British colonial occupation of India in the nineteenth century. The Arts and Crafts movement ushered the American-style bungalow into prominence during the early twentieth century, and variations of this style continue to be sought-after by homeowners around the world.

Bungalows are a small type of house, while a house is a more general term for many types of single and multi-family dwellings. Bungalow-style homes are ground-level detached structures often featuring sloped roofs, dormer windows, built-ins, and front porches with overhanging eaves. Unlike traditional two-story homes, most bungalows have minimal square footage and lack a second story.

While the Craftsman bungalow (also known as the American bungalow) refers to the classic bungalow-style house, there are a variety of different bungalow housing structures that a homeowner can buy or build.

1. 1. California: California bungalow design uses stucco and wood, often with shingle siding. This one-story bungalow-style features a sloping roof, a sizable porch with overhanging eaves, and an open floor plan. Builders do not typically use bricks to construct this housing style. Stucco and wood are the preferred building materials and are often covered with shingle siding. Architects Charles Sumner Greene and Henry Mathis Greene pioneered the California bungalow-style homes to suit Southern California’s climate.
2. 2. Chicago: Brick-built Chicago bungalows usually feature one-and-a-half stories above a basement, with stairs leading up to the porch from the street level. Chicago bungalows may feature dormer windows and an enclosed front room, while the stairway entrance is located on the side of the house. This housing style is rectangular and usually features a full-size basement.
3. 3. Mission: With broad, overhanging eaves and exposed rafters, a Mission-style bungalow has a hipped or gabled-type roof. They may also feature smooth stucco or plastic siding and a Spanish-style tiled roof.
4. 4. Tudor: Seemingly contradictory to the bungalow theme, the Tudor-style bungalow features more intricate design work, such as elaborate chimneys, detailed doorways, and wall cladding. Tudor bungalows have steep-pitched, gabled roofs, and tall, narrow windows with half-timbering. Tudor bungalows blend medieval architectural design with the simple layout of a standard bungalow.
5. 5. Prairie: Developed by a group of Chicago architects known as the Prairie School (including member Frank Lloyd Wright), this style has piers to support the porch roof, flat chimneys, contrasting wall materials, and Prairie-style windows. The interior may feature ceiling beams and horizontal woodwork.

Consider the advantages and disadvantages of buying a bungalow.

1. 1. Low maintenance: Bungalow roofs are lower to the ground, making them more easily accessible for cleaning out gutters and other architectural renovations.
2. 2. Ease of mobility: Since bungalows often don’t have stairs, they offer ease of mobility for people with limited movement. The stairless design is also beneficial for homeowners with younger children who want to avoid any staircase-related accidents.
3. 3. Lack of privacy: These types of homes feature large windows at ground level, which can create privacy issues for some homeowners. Some homebuyers place shrubbery and other foliage around the low-set property to enhance privacy.
4. 4. Limited square footage: Bungalows are small homes best suited for single-family homeowners. With open floor plans, bungalows can present challenges for multiple roommates or families with children. Some homeowners may screen in the front porch to create additional living space.

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