Bastide, mas, longere… French houses explained
Lost in the French property vocabulary? No need to panic, you will find here a list of terms widely used to describe our houses!
Maison de maitre
literally: Master’s house.
A maison de maitre is a spacious countryside house or townhouse. It used to be colonial properties, castles, luxury villas or large farmhouses, set in strategic places of a village or a town. They often come with spacious lands and outbuildings.
e maison de maitre its singular presence and style. Outside, the walls are always made with cut stone, with a garret overhead, and a bonnet roof or a roof having a single slope on each side of a central ridge. The windows are particularly numerous and large.
Maison bourgeoise
litterally: middle-class houses.
A maison bourgeoise is set in a city, a town or a small village: it used to be the house of the wealthy shopkeepers, artisans and notables, or a private hotel. The architecture is simple and functional, made with natural, noble and perennial materials; it is more or less decorated according to the status and the fortune of the owner. The building comprises one or two floor, as well as attics.
Maison d’architecte
literally: architect’s house.
This term is used to describe a house which was “custom-built”, in comparison with houses which are already designed off-plan and converted according to the purchaser’s tastes. Therefore, there are no limits for size and eccentricity. The plans are drawn for one unique house.
Domaine
literally: domain.
A domain is a synonym for an estate (house and land). It is also used for houses with a vineyard (and even a wine exploitation), which are then called “domaine viticole”.
Maison a Colombages
literally: half-timbered house.
A maison a colombages comprises 2 main features: a wooden structure, and a “hourdage”, forming the walls, used to fill and tighten them. The hourdage is made of bricks or light materials such as cob or plaster. This type of house is easily recognizable thanks to the typical exposed beams.
Bastide
literally: country house.
A bastide used to be a farming property owned by wealthy people, usually with a precise activity: farming, vineyards, market gardens, etc…The bastide comprised then a maison de maitre (see above) and numerous outbuildings and accommodations for the workers. Nowadays, the term bastide can be used to describe only the main house, the holiday house, and sometimes the complete exploitation.
Mas
litterally: farmhouse.
A mas is a typical farmhouse from the Provence, Languedoc and Roussillon regions of France. The farmhouse used to be linked to the rural economic life, but nowadays, this type of house is mainly converted into holiday homes. A farmhouse is different from a bastide (see above), as a bastide was built for the bourgeoisie, the upper-middle class. The mas is always facing the South, with only a few windows on the north side, to prevent from the cold.
Longere
literally: long house.
The longere is a typical farmhouse in which all the rooms (for humans and animals) are set in a row. The house is usually built with its back to the wind, with local materials. It is common to find longere in the north-west part of France, as well as in the Limousin region.
Pavillon
literally: detached house.
A pavillon is a house with a moderate size and a garden. It is usually a detached house with a common architecture, symbol of the low-cost houses from the end of the 20th century in France.
Gite
literally: guesthouse.
A gite is a furnished quality holiday home with typical regional characteristics, which is rented (studio, apartment, house or part of a house) to customers passing through. The renting of such houses should be declared to the local authorities, and is controlled by the regional prefecture, contrary to a B&B activity (chambre d’hotes).