Multifamily residential facts for kids

A multifamily residential building.

Multifamily residential means a type of housing where many separate homes are found within one building or a group of buildings. These homes can be side-by-side or stacked on top of each other. A common example is an apartment building. Sometimes, people in these buildings own their homes, like in a condominium, instead of renting from one owner.

What is Multifamily Housing?

Multifamily housing includes buildings designed for more than one family to live in. Each family has its own private living space, often called a unit or apartment. These buildings come in many shapes and sizes. They can be tall towers or smaller buildings with just a few homes. This type of housing is very common in cities where many people live close together.

A Look Back: History of Shared Homes

Long ago, before big factories and cities grew, shared living spaces were not very common. They mostly existed in very old cities. For example, in Ancient Rome, there were tall apartment buildings called insulae. Some ancient cities, like Shibam, had early skyscrapers where many families lived. These old examples show that people have lived in shared buildings for a very long time.

Types of Multifamily Homes

There are many different kinds of multifamily homes. Here are some common examples you might see:

Apartment Buildings

• Apartment building or block of flats: This is a building with many separate apartments inside. There can be several apartments on each floor and often many floors. Apartment buildings vary greatly in size. Some have only a few apartments, while others have hundreds. They usually have hallways inside that lead to each apartment. Sometimes, apartments have their own outside entrances. An apartment building can be owned by one person or company, who then rents out each apartment. Or, each apartment can be owned separately as a condominium.

• Apartment community: This is a group of apartment buildings located next to each other. They are usually owned by the same company. These communities often share things like swimming pools, parking areas, and clubhouses. The clubhouse might also be where the leasing office is located.

Homes with Mixed Uses

• Mixed-use building: This type of building has space for both businesses and homes. For example, shops or offices might be on the first floor. Apartments or homes would then be on the floors above. Sometimes, the business area is at the front, and the living area is at the back. The owner might use some of the space, or rent out all the business and home units.

Special Ownership Types

• Condominium (or Condo): This is a way of owning an apartment. You own your specific apartment, and you also co-own a part of all the shared areas. These shared areas include hallways, stairs, lobbies, and any outdoor spaces. Townhouses and apartments owned this way are often just called "condominiums" or "condos."

• Housing cooperative (or Co-op): In a co-op, a non-profit company owns the entire building. Residents own shares in this company. These shares give them the right to live in a specific apartment and use the common areas.

Other Common Types of Shared Homes

• Duplex: This is one building that contains two separate homes. They can be side-by-side or one on top of the other. Each home usually has its own entrance. Common areas like a basement or porch might be shared.

• Flat: In Great Britain and parts of Ireland, "flat" means the same as "apartment." In some parts of the United States, like San Francisco, a "flat" can mean an apartment that takes up an entire floor of a large house.

• 2-Flat, 3-Flat, and 4-Flat houses: These are buildings with 2, 3, or 4 apartments, respectively. Often, each apartment takes up one whole floor. There is usually a shared stairway for everyone to use. These types of homes are common in older neighborhoods.

• Garage-apartment: This is an apartment located above a garage. If the garage is attached to a main house, the apartment will have its own separate entrance.

• Garden apartment: This style of building often has two stories. Each floor is a separate apartment. They are usually semi-detached, meaning they share one wall with another building.

• Loft or warehouse conversion: These are apartments created inside old factories or warehouses. They often have very high ceilings. Sometimes, a bedroom or bathroom is built on a second level within the tall space.

• Maisonette: This is an apartment that has two levels with stairs inside. It might also have its own entrance directly from the street.

• Mother-in-law apartment (or Granny flat): This is a small apartment, often at the back, in the basement, or on an upper floor of a main house. It usually has its own entrance. These apartments always have kitchen facilities.

• Microapartment: These are very small, single-room homes. They include a kitchen, bathroom, and sleeping area all in one space. They are usually found in multi-story buildings.

• One-plus-five: This is a type of mid-rise apartment building. It has four or five floors made of wood above a concrete base, which often contains parking. This style became very popular in North American cities in the 2010s.

• Penthouse: This is the apartment located on the very top floor of a tall building.

• Rooming house: In a rooming house, residents usually have their own bedroom. However, they share facilities like bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms. Sometimes, they also share living and dining rooms.

• Rowhouse (USA); also called Terraced home (USA); or Townhouse: These are three or more houses built in a row. They share side walls with their neighbors. Rowhouses usually have multiple stories. In the UK, "terraced house" is the common term.

• Semi-detached: This is one building that is split into two separate "houses," usually side-by-side. Each house has its own entrance and is typically owned by a different person.

• Studio apartment (or Studio flat in the UK): This is an apartment with one main room that serves as both the living room and bedroom. It also has a small kitchen area and a bathroom. It's designed for one person or a couple.

• Tenement: This is a large apartment building, often with many apartments and up to five stories tall. Tenements usually do not have elevators. In some places, the word "tenement" can mean a building that is old or not well-maintained.

• Tower block or Apartment tower: This is a very tall apartment building, also known as a high-rise.

• Triple decker: This is a three-family apartment house, usually made of wood. All three apartments are stacked one on top of the other.

• Triplex: Similar to a duplex, but with three stories and three separate homes.

• Two decker: This is a two-family house with two apartments stacked on top of each other. They often have similar floor plans.

• Tyneside flat: These are pairs of single-story apartments found in two-story buildings. They are special because each apartment has its own front door directly to the street, instead of sharing a lobby. They are mostly found in Tyneside, England.

• Quadplex: Similar to a triplex, but with four separate apartments.

Images for kids

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  Example of late Victorian terrace in Moss Side, Manchester, UK.

See also

In Spanish: Hábitat colectivo para niños

• Cohousing