From the high-rises to the landed homes, Malaysia is blessed with a multitude of property types. Drawing parallels with our melting pot of multiculturalism, property terms are also thrown around and mixed together, making their identification convoluted.

What is the difference between a villa and a bungalow? What divides a linked house from a terrace one? Let’s start with the landed properties in Malaysia:

Terrace house

Also known as a linked house, it is among the most popular type of landed properties in Malaysia due to its conservative built and lower pricing. Just like its namesake, units are linked together in a straight line, and they share walls on both sides with neighbouring units, with the exception of the corner lot.

Corner lot units enjoy a larger piece of land at the side, better ventilation and lighting, which makes it costlier compared to the others. You may have also heard of the superlink house, which is a term created by developers for marketing purposes.

To cut short, a superlink house is no different to a terrace house, with the exception that the former is bigger.  Superlink houses usually come with two storeys. However, some developers may refer to their terrace houses as superlink homes just to make it sound more impressive.

Semi-detached house

Unlike the parallel lines that make up the terrace house, semi-detached homes are built in pairs, with the layout of each house a mirror image to the other. Not only that, they are linked to each other by a wall. Semi-detached houses also enjoy the benefits, not unlike a corner lot of the terrace houses.

Cluster homes

From the front, the cluster homes look no different from the semi-detached. But like its namesake, they come in clusters of four units, possibly joined at the side and back. Each house enjoys a space much like a corner lot of a terrace house, and the kitchen section is usually facing the back, meeting up with the kitchens of the other units. Possibly, the middle of the cluster will serve as a mini quadrangle, allowing for ventilation and light into the units.

Detached house

As a free-standing residential building, the detached house is not linked to the other units in the development, which affords owners an unprecedented degree of privacy compared to the previous types. Since the walls and floors are not shared with others, the sound between dwellings is not so easily transferred. Not only that, this benefit allows the owner to freely remodel or repaint their homes without the need to ask permission from their neighbours. 

Townhouse

Historically, townhouses made up the residence for wealthy and noble families, and in Europe, these houses are terraced, with a small minority being detached. In Malaysia, townhouses follow the same configuration of being terraced, usually three to four storeys and an average of 10 to 12 units per row. Townhouses are thought of as hybrid condo and terrace houses, with basic facilities.

Villa

A villa was originally the country house for the ancient Roman upper-class, and they use such properties as an escape from the city. Now, the term “Villa” is a loose one as it may mean many things to different peoples. 

However, most will agree that a villa is a luxurious stand-alone country house with a sizable area and has its own grounds. Pegged to the state of luxury, Villas usually have beautiful water fixtures such as pools and fountains, exterior patios and lush front gardens.

Bungalow

The bungalow conjures up images of large, luxury, stand-alone houses in the minds of most Malaysians. Even so, the term originated from humble beginnings, which was derived from the thatched huts of Bengali farmers. 

The British built these single-storeyed bungalows all over British India, and the style was eventually adopted in Britain. In Australia, bungalows have broad verandas at the side to shade the interior from the sun. With regards to Malaysia, a bungalow may be unrecognisable from a villa, and these two terms are used interchangeably.

Mansion

Mansions make up the rarest type of landed property in Malaysia, and aptly so, considering that the wealthy form the minority in our demography. Developers usually do not build mansions, as individuals in this target market seldom adhere to the concept of uniformity that makes up the bedrock of every developer-made township and project.

Individuals with the purchasing power usually buy the land from developers or local authorities and hire a construction company to build their mansions, which is custom-built to his or her particular tastes.

A mansion is further divided into wings, effectively dividing the property into various sections and functions, such as a private study, home theatre, library and more. In Europe, mansions that have garnered state significance and a considerable size are called palaces.