6 ms·

So what is a duplex? Nowhere does it say and it's not a term I've ever heard used in the UK? I guess "semi-detached" would be closest but not sure?

by jbb123 7y ago

CalRobert 7y ago
Two end of terrace houses next to each other. If you want a standard "semi-detached" house in the US it's normally called a townhouse (or similar).
- souprock 7y ago
  To be a duplex, it needs to be 2 homes on one property that are touching. It is expected that the wall would be shared and that the two homes would be mirror images of each other. There exist houses that touch each other but are on separate lots; these are not duplexes. A townhouse is 2-story and it touches another one. It could be a duplex, but it might be on a separate lot or it might be part of a group of more than 2.
  - CalRobert 7y ago
    I wasn't aware of the lot distinction. I believe we agree otherwise, though. In the UK, Ireland, etc. a "terraced" house is essentially what we'd call a townhouse - they can be in groups of 2, 3, 20, etc.
icebraining 7y ago
I think a semi-detached is a duplex, but the latter term is more broad, covering also two-story apartment buildings and such: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duplex_(building) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duplex_(building)
- vidarh 7y ago
  'Semi-detached' can be used about the end unit of a long chain of terraced houses, so while a semi-detached can be part of a duplex, it might also not be.
MandieD 7y ago
Building with two separate housing units. In most of the US, probably similar to what you call a "semi-detached" or Germans call "Doppelhaushälfte" (units are next to each other, sharing a wall in the middle), but especially in the Northeast, sometimes a larger old house split by floors (ground floor and basement as one unit, second floor and attic as another unit, with some sort of separate entrance to reduce disturbance of first unit residents)
markkanof 7y ago
Coming from the East Coast of the U.S. I always called these houses twins. One building with two housing units side by side, usually mirror images of each other. We would refer to a building with two housing units above and below each other as a duplex.
thedaemon 7y ago
It's a home that's been divided into 2 homes, usually with paper thin walls. At least that's been my experience in the USA.
dragonwriter 7y ago
> So what is a duplex? A single property (usually a single building) consisting of exactly 2 housing units. > I guess "semi-detached" would be closest but not sure? Semi-detached is similar, but AFAIK usually refers to separate properties sharing a wall not two housing units on one property. There appear to be regional variations in both terms, though.

So what is a duplex? Nowhere does it say and it's not a term I've ever heard used in the UK? I guess "semi-detached" would be closest but not sure?

by jbb123 7y ago

So what is a duplex? Nowhere does it say and it's not a term I've ever heard used in the UK? I guess "semi-detached" would be closest but not sure?

CalRobert 7y ago

Two end of terrace houses next to each other. If you want a standard "semi-detached" house in the US it's normally called a townhouse (or similar).

souprock 7y ago
To be a duplex, it needs to be 2 homes on one property that are touching. It is expected that the wall would be shared and that the two homes would be mirror images of each other. There exist houses that touch each other but are on separate lots; these are not duplexes. A townhouse is 2-story and it touches another one. It could be a duplex, but it might be on a separate lot or it might be part of a group of more than 2.
- CalRobert 7y ago
  I wasn't aware of the lot distinction. I believe we agree otherwise, though. In the UK, Ireland, etc. a "terraced" house is essentially what we'd call a townhouse - they can be in groups of 2, 3, 20, etc.

icebraining 7y ago

I think a semi-detached is a duplex, but the latter term is more broad, covering also two-story apartment buildings and such: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duplex_(building) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duplex_(building)

vidarh 7y ago
'Semi-detached' can be used about the end unit of a long chain of terraced houses, so while a semi-detached can be part of a duplex, it might also not be.

MandieD 7y ago

Building with two separate housing units. In most of the US, probably similar to what you call a "semi-detached" or Germans call "Doppelhaushälfte" (units are next to each other, sharing a wall in the middle), but especially in the Northeast, sometimes a larger old house split by floors (ground floor and basement as one unit, second floor and attic as another unit, with some sort of separate entrance to reduce disturbance of first unit residents)

markkanof 7y ago

Coming from the East Coast of the U.S. I always called these houses twins. One building with two housing units side by side, usually mirror images of each other. We would refer to a building with two housing units above and below each other as a duplex.

thedaemon 7y ago

It's a home that's been divided into 2 homes, usually with paper thin walls. At least that's been my experience in the USA.

dragonwriter 7y ago

> So what is a duplex? A single property (usually a single building) consisting of exactly 2 housing units. > I guess "semi-detached" would be closest but not sure? Semi-detached is similar, but AFAIK usually refers to separate properties sharing a wall not two housing units on one property. There appear to be regional variations in both terms, though.