What Defines Cape Cod Style Homes?

What’s your home style? Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to interior design and architecture, and knowing what you like—as well as what elements define it—can be helpful when you’re buying a house or decorating. This is particularly true with Cape Cod style homes, which have an enduring history that’s as part and parcel of the aesthetic as the design features themselves.

In this article, we’ve rounded up all of the essential information that you need to know about Cape Cod style architecture, including where it comes from, what its defining features are, and answers to some common questions that might be helpful if you’re looking to buy.

What are Cape Cod style homes?

Cape Cod style homes are traditionally single story homes with a low and broad rectangular profile, a central chimney, and a pitched, side-gabled roof. In later years, dormers or second stories were often added to Cape Cod homes, though other primary features were maintained.

The gabled roof, a central feature of Cape Cod style homes, consist of two roof sections that slope in opposite directions to either side of a structure (sort of like the roof you’d see in a child’s drawing of a house). They’re common in cold climates like those where Cape Cod homes originated, since snow and rain easily fall off of their steep slopes.

History of Cape Cod homes

It’s hard to separate Cape Cod style homes from their history. Like many other interior design styles, the Cape Cod home was a product of its environment—in this case, New England, where winters are harsh and early Puritan settlers were in need of homes that were easier to heat and wouldn’t collapse under the weight of so much falling snow.

The Cape Cod style is essentially an adaptation of the English cottage, with some distinctly American traits that developed over time as these types of homes become more popular. Many traditional English features do remain however, such as low ceilings (to better conserve heat) and the use of shutters to block out strong winds.

As for the term itself, the name “Cape Cod house” was introduced in the early 1800s by Timothy Dwight, then president of Yale College, when he viewed this style of home on a trip to Cape Cod, Massachusetts. While they were already quite widespread at this time, it wasn’t until the 1920s or 1930s that Cape Cods become popularized as a contemporary home option, during which time they were adapted a bit with some of their more recognizable modern features.

Types of Cape homes

The various types of Cape Cod style homes can be classified by architectural style as well as by the eras during which they were most prominent.

Half- and three-quarter Capes are the modest variety that popped up throughout New England from the late 1600s to the mid-1800s, and include features like shingle-clad roofs and front doors off to one side of the house. Half Capes were the most prominent style, with wealthier settlers adding on to their homes until they became what we now know as the three-quarter Cape.

Full Capes (also known as double Capes or Colonial Revival Capes) came about later, and may be more in line with what you picture when you think of Cape Cod homes: symmetrical and with a centrally located front door. Full Capes feature other distinctive features of this style, such as the large chimney and more steeply pitched roof.

Key elements of Cape Cod house

Like all architectural styles, it’s not enough to just call a house Cape Cod style. There are some very particular elements that define this type of home, and while they might not be present in all Cape Cod style houses (especially contemporary versions), at least some of them need to be there in order for a home to be classified as a Cape.

Exterior elements:

    • Steep, gabled roof – As previously mentioned, this feature was to help snow and rain quickly slide off of the roof, which also has a shallow overhang to keep the falling moisture from piling up right at the base of the structure.
    • Large chimney – The massive chimneys of Cape Cod houses are usually centrally located right behind the front door, with the fireplace itself serving as one of the main interior features that the rest of the home is built around.
    • Shingle siding – Today’s Cape Cod homes can be found with various types of siding—including brick and stone—however gray shingles are the classic siding option for this type of house.
    • Window placement – A standard Cape Cod house has two windows on either side of the front door, as well as a dormer window on either side of the chimney.

    Interior elements:

      • Captain’s stairway – You may notice that many Cape Cod houses have a “captain’s stairway” leading up to the second floor, which is a steep and narrow staircase designed to take up as little of the first floor as possible.
      • Symmetrical layout – A defining interior feature of a Cape house is its layout, which is designed to be symmetrical and centered around one main living space.
      • Open concepts – This is a takeaway from early Capes, when Settlers required an open concept plan to ensure that heat could flow more freely throughout the home.
      • Low ceilings – Another way to maintain heat was to keep ceilings low, and you’ll still find this in Cape homes today.

      Common questions about Cape homes

      Thinking of buying a Cape Cod style home? Here are some quick answers to questions that you might have.

      Are Cape Cod homes expensive to maintain?

      A modern Cape Cod home shouldn’t be more expensive to maintain than any other type of recently built home, but things get tricky if it’s a bit older. For all of their historical charm, old houses can pose some costly issues, so you’ll want to have a very through home inspection done prior to investing so you know what you’re getting into.

      Do Cape Cod styles homes have basements?

      Here’s another thing that tends to separate older Capes from newer ones. While a modern Cape Cod home is likely to have a basement (depending on where it’s located, of course), older Capes usually have what is known as a “Cape Cod” basement—which is a small, brick or stone enclosure that’s just big enough for essentials like a water heater, boiler, and electrical panel.

      What does it mean if a Cape Cod house is 1.5 stories?

      Early Cape Cod homes were normally just one story, with the second story only being added on much later. Some Capes however are listed as 1.5 stories, which usually entails a smaller, partial second story with just a room or two. In these homes, the master bedroom is often still on the main level.

      What is the difference between a Cape Cod and a bungalow?

      These two architectural styles sometimes get confused with each other, since they often share some overlapping features, including gabled roofs, a single story design, and a symmetrical exterior. However bungalows lack some of the other key features of a Cape, such as prominent central chimneys. They also tend to have a front porch, which makes sense for where they came from (west coast) but wouldn’t have made as much sense in a home built with the needs of New England winters in mind.

      What is the difference between a Cape Cod and a Dutch Colonial house?

      Here’s another style that tends to get confused with Capes, but there is one very obvious difference that you can spot right away: the roof. Unlike the gabled roofs of a Cape, Dutch Colonial homes have a gambrel roof, a two-sided roof where each side has two slopes, one shallow and one steep.

      What colors do you normally paint the exterior of a Cape home?

      If you want to keep it classic, then you should plan to go simple and neutral with a Cape Cod style home’s exterior color. Gray has long been the traditional siding color for Capes, but white or light blue are also good choices.

      Is a Cape Cod home right for you? If you’re a fan of historical houses then you might love a Cape, with its design elements that are deeply rooted in its storied past. But if you like a modern or contemporary home, you’ll have a tough time fitting your interior design preferences into the structural bones of a Cape. Cape Cod style homes are quite beautiful though, so if it fits your aesthetic than you can’t really go wrong.