The popular two-level farmhouse design

Ranch-style home designs have been extremely popular in the United States since the 1950s and are as quintessentially American as jazz and cheeseburgers. The layout of a ranch house is generally asymmetrical and low, with a horizontal extension orientation in a rectangular, U-shaped, or L-shaped configuration. Roofs are gabled or hipped with wide eaves. Cottages generally have attached garages and feature minimal ornamentation, but contain modern design elements such as large glass windows, sliding glass doors, and Formica countertops.

Another common feature was the raised ranch, or two-story home, which emerged as a variant of the original ranch style in the late 20th century (although some early examples predate World War II and the Sears catalog of Honor-Bilt Homes listed various tier designs in the 1930s). Unlike traditional ranch-style homes, these were innovative in their use of interior space. Instead of arranging the rooms on one floor, the style rearranged the space according to its use. For example, in a popular two-level variant, the entrance, kitchen, dining room, and living rooms occupied the main level; the upstairs bedrooms are accessed by a half staircase leading upwards; and the laundry area, guest bedroom, and family game room are accessed by a half staircase leading down. In some country house designs, the garage was placed on the lower level, with easy access via a half staircase to the upper level. Another possibility was a split entry house, characterized by a small entrance with a half staircase that leads to the living and bedroom areas on the upper floor and another half staircase to the side that leads to the garage, laundry room and living room. There were also many other settings.

The popularity of the split level derived in part from its modernity and its differentiation from traditional mid-20th century housing styles such as Minimalist, Cape Cod, Colonial Revival, and bungalows. This architecture can be made to blend in with a hillside site in a natural way. These homes maximize your square footage and curb presence, and minimize costs without needing larger lots or basements by taking advantage of the natural curvature of the terrain, so earthmoving costs are minimized. The two-level ranch style provided an ideal balance between the buyers ‘goal of getting the most house for the money, with the builders’ goal of making a good profit.