Architectural Styles

New Orleans offers a great variety of architecture, influenced by different cultures including the Greeks, Italians, Creoles and Americans. The various home types and styles explain the city's evolution. Type describes a houses layout and does not change with time. While style describes its design and changes with time.

Homes in New Orleans were built to maximize space and withstand the weather, so designs focused around air circulation and efficient space use. Many home types do not use hallways and are raised to allow air to pass underneath.

A few of the more common types and styles of homes Rebuilding Together New Orleans restores are:

Townhouse

Townhouses can be found in various types. The all have two or more stories and gave New Orleanians the ability to have more space without taking up a large piece of land. Read More >

Bungalow

A Bungalow is typically 1 or 1½ story homes with simple lines and large projecting roofs. Read More >

Creole Cottage

The Creole Cottage was introduced to New Orleans by Haitian refugees in the 1790s. Read More >

Shotgun

The shotgun single is a rectangular house consists of three to five rooms in a row with no hallways. Read More >