home stylesplate 10 of 13built c. 1950s–1970sboyenga team at compass
Split-level homes half a flight at a time
A one-story wing beside a two-story wing, offset by half a floor, with the front door on the middle level. San Francisco Planning calls the split-level a type built widely across the country in the 1950s and 1960s. Here it fills tracts from Almaden to Westlake, and hillside lots where the code asks a house to step with the ground. Here is how to read one, where to find them, and every one listed for sale now.
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- selling silicon valley since1996
how to spot one
How to spot a split-level from the sidewalk
Look for two roof heights and a front door between floors. Hover or tap a number on the drawing to match it to the list.
Two roof heights
Low gable or hip roofs over a one-story wing and a two-story wing, side by side.
Offset floors
The windows of the two wings don't line up: the floors sit about half a story apart.
Entry at the middle level
The front door opens at or just above grade onto the living level, with short stairs up and down.
Garage half a level down
In the common side-split, the garage tucks under the bedroom wing, sometimes beside a den or rec room.
Picture window
A large front window marks the living room on the entry level, a habit borrowed from the ranch house.
Cladding that changes by level
Brick, stone or stucco below and wood siding above, so the lower level reads as a base.
on the market
Split-level homes for sale now
Every active listing in our service area, built 1945 to 1995, that the MLS tags split-level, or whose description says split-level, tri-level, bi-level or split-entry. Many split-levels aren't labeled at all, so ask us about any house with half-flights between floors.
Loading live listings from the MLS…
How homes land here: we read each active listing’s MLS style field and its description, then check the year built. “MLS-tagged only” keeps the homes whose listing agent picked this style. Orange pins are MLS-tagged. Some listings record a style only in fields this search can’t filter on, so a few may not appear here; ask us for a full search. Listing data comes from the MLS and is shown with the listing brokerage; confirm details with the listing agent.
where to find them
Where split-level homes cluster
Neighborhoods where our guides, city plans and San Francisco Planning's surveys record split-level and tri-level houses, or where the hillside code asks for stepped plans. Each name opens the full guide.
San Jose
- Almaden MeadowsRanch, tri-level and two-story plans; listing records include a 1972 tri-level on an 8,250 sq ft lot on Calle Esperanza.
- Oakridge & FoxchaseOriginal ranch and split-level plans on the 1960s streets, and two-story plans on Foxchase Dr from 1983.
Los Gatos, Saratoga & Cupertino
- Blossom Hill, Los Gatos1960s ranch and split-level tract homes on lots mostly about 8,000 to 11,300 sq ft.
- Saratoga Foothills, SaratogaSplit-level and two-story hillside custom homes from the 1960s to 1990s, above the 1950s–70s ranch tracts.
- Inspiration Heights, CupertinoThe city's hillside code asks for split-level designs that follow the slope, so expect stepped floor plans and retaining walls.
Peninsula
- Ladera, Portola ValleyAbout two dozen Jones & Emmons–designed Eichlers on Aliso Way and La Mesa Drive, on sale by August 1951, included Eichler's first split-level and two-level homes.
- Westlake, Daly CitySF Planning calls the split-level a common type in Henry Doelger's Westlake, and the city's General Plan describes the houses as generally split-level.
San Francisco
- Diamond HeightsAbout 100 Claude Oakland–designed Eichlers from about 1962 to 1964; the slope ruled out one-story plans, so many are split-level.
- Outer & Central SunsetSF Planning calls the split-level rare in the Sunset; Henry Doelger built several dispersed blocks of them on 31st and 33rd Avenues in 1942.
inside
What you find inside
- plan
Three zones on three levels
Living room, dining room and kitchen on the entry level; bedrooms half a flight up; garage and a den or rec room half a flight down.
- plan
Short stairs, no step-free floor
Every room is a half-flight from the next, but no single floor holds everything. Count the steps from garage to kitchen to main bedroom.
- split-entry
The landing at the door
In a bi-level, or split-entry, the front door opens onto a landing between two stacked floors, with the lower one set partly below grade.
- hillside
A lower level that opens to the yard
On a slope the lower level can open straight onto the garden. In Diamond Heights the hill ruled out one-story Eichler plans altogether.
the nerd check
Buying or selling one
What we check when you buy
- Where the wings meetCheck for cracks, sloping floors and sticking doors at the joint between the one-story and two-story wings, which sit at different floor heights. On a hillside lot, ask for a foundation report.
- Raised floors and bracingConfirm the foundation type and any bolting and cripple-wall bracing. California's Earthquake Brace + Bolt program offers retrofit grants for wood-framed houses built before 1980 on raised foundations in designated ZIP codes, with registration open for a limited time each year.
- Rooms over the garageThe state's Earthquake Soft-Story program offers grants of up to $13,000 for houses built before 2000 with living space over the garage, no more than two stories, in eligible ZIP codes. Ask whether the garage walls have been strengthened.
- The lower levelA level set into the slope or partly below grade needs a look at drainage, grading and any sump pump, and permits for rooms finished after the house was built.
- Heating three levelsOne furnace often serves every level. Ask how the upper and lower floors heat and cool, and have the duct runs checked.
- Wiring generationsCheck panel capacity, grounding and later additions. Aluminum branch wiring may be present in circuits installed from 1965 to the mid-1970s; the federal safety commission points to the connections as the concern.
- Lead paintPaid work that disturbs paint in a house built before 1978 must be done by a certified firm under EPA's renovation rule, and window replacement is always covered.
- Asbestos-containing materialsEPA lists popcorn ceilings, joint compound, resilient floor tiles, sheet-vinyl backing and pipe insulation as possible sources, and recommends accredited testing before work disturbs them.
How we market one when you sell
- Draw the levelsA floor plan that shows each level and the stairs between them answers the first question buyers ask.
- Open on the main levelPhotograph the entry-level living room and kitchen first, then the half-flights up and down.
- Document the systemsPanel, wiring, plumbing and roof dates, plus any foundation or soft-story retrofit permits.
- Permits for finished roomsPull permits for any lower-level room or garage conversion, since buyers compare the square footage with county records.
- Show how it sits on the lotIf the lower level opens to the garden, photograph it from outside so buyers see how the house steps down the slope.
San Carlos's Hillside (H) overlay applies to lots averaging a 20% slope or more and requires multi-level foundations unless design review approves another approach. Cupertino's hillside code asks for split-level designs that follow the slope and limits grading to 2,500 cubic yards. In San Francisco, Planning has found the Diamond Heights Stage 1 Historic District, the streets of Claude Oakland's split-level Eichlers, eligible for the California Register, so exterior changes there can get historic review. We check the rules for a specific address before you plan changes.
questions
Questions we hear
What is a split-level house?
A house with three or more floor levels set about half a story apart and joined by short stairs. In the common side-split, a one-story living wing sits beside a two-story wing with bedrooms above and a garage or den below.
What's the difference between split-level, tri-level and bi-level?
Tri-level is the usual listing word for a split-level with three levels; some have four. A bi-level, or split-entry, stacks two full floors and puts the front door on a landing halfway between them.
When were split-level houses built?
San Francisco Planning calls the split-level a type built widely across the country in the 1950s and 1960s. Henry Doelger built blocks of them on San Francisco's 31st and 33rd Avenues in 1942, and Eichler's first split-level designs went on sale in Ladera in 1951.
Can you add a second story to a split-level?
Often the one-story wing can be raised, but height limits, daylight planes and design review vary by city, and hillside lots can add slope and grading rules. We read the zoning for the address before you plan.
Do split-levels qualify for earthquake retrofit grants?
It depends on the house. Earthquake Brace + Bolt covers wood-framed houses built before 1980 on raised foundations, and Earthquake Soft-Story covers houses built before 2000 with living space over the garage and no more than two stories, both in eligible ZIP codes during yearly registration windows.
Is a split-level a kind of ranch house?
A close relative. Split-levels share the ranch's low roofs, picture windows and attached garage, but stack part of the house half a level up and down instead of keeping everything on one floor.
further reading
From the Property Nerds
all home styles
Every style in the field guide, by era
Bars show the years each style was mostly built here. See the full field guide.
- 01Victorian & Edwardian1870s–1910s
- 02Craftsman & bungalow1905–1930
- 03Spanish & Mediterranean1915–1940
- 04Tudor, storybook & traditional1920s–1940s
- 13French Country & Provincial1920s–1940s
- 12Monterey Colonial1925–1940
- 11Minimal Traditional1935–1952
- 05California ranchlate 1930s–1970s
- 06Mid-century modern1945–1975
- 07Eichler1949–1974
- 10Split-level1950s–1970s
- 08Modern & contemporary1970s–today
- 09Modern farmhouse & new construction2005–today
talk to a property nerd
Own a split-level, or want one?
Call us for a value, a plan for the foundation, garage and drainage questions buyers ask, or help reading the hillside rules before you add on. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.
Questions about split-level homes? Send us a note.
