What is a Duplex ?

Homes come in many shapes and configurations, and one type that's popular with extended families or budding landlords is a duplex. But just what is a duplex? It's not just one home, but two. They may be stacked one atop the other on separate floors, or they may be side by side with a shared wall. A duplex may also be called a “multifamily dwelling,” because more than one family can live in it.

In North America, a duplex house is a dwelling having apartments with separate entrances for two households. This includes two-story houses having a complete apartment on each floor and also side-by-side apartments on a single lot that share a common wall. By contrast, a building comprising two attached units on two distinct properties is typically considered semi-detached or twin homes but sometimes also duplex.

A duplex is sometimes confused with a “twin home,” but they're not the same thing. A twin home may look like a duplex: two separate homes sharing a wall. But with a twin home, the lot line actually runs through the common wall—so on each side you have an individual home on an individual lot, even though they're connected.

A duplex is different: Rather than owning just one home, you own two. As such, duplexes will likely cost more than a single-family home at the outset. However, if you rent out the other half, this revenue can drastically offset your expenses and potentially make duplex living cheaper than what you'd pay for a freestanding house. 

The term "Duplex" can't be extended to three-unit and four-unit buildings, as they would be referred to with specific terms such as triplex and fourplex or quadplex/quadruplex. Because of the flexibility of the term, the line between an apartment building and a duplex is somewhat blurred, with apartment buildings tending to be bigger, while duplexes are usually the size of a normal house.

It's a popular option for people who want to keep family members nearby or who want a steady income from a place that's not too far away to manage.


This information is brought to you by Kingdom Estate Realty LLC-www.kingdomestaterealty.com

Joe Goh is a Licensed Texas Realtor with DFWTEXASPROPERTY covering Dallas-Fortworth. For more information, go to www.dfwtexasproperty.com