<P> The raised ranch is a two - story house, in which a finished basement serves as an additional floor . It may be built into a hill to some degree, such that the full size of the house is not evident from the curb . However, it does not become a raised ranch simply by having two floors . For it to be a raised ranch, you will have to climb a flight of steps to get to the main living floor - if not it is just a bi-level house . Among real estate agents, this term is commonly misused . </P> <P> The ranch house style was adapted for commercial use during the time of the style's popularity . As the concept of a "drive in" shopping center was being created and popularized, the ranch style was a perfect style to fit into the large tracts of ranch homes being built . Commercial ranch buildings, such as supermarkets and strip malls, typically follow the residential style with simple rustic trim, stucco or board and batten siding, exposed brick and shake roofs, and large windows . </P> <P> The 20th century ranch house style has its roots in North American Spanish colonial architecture of the 17th to 19th century . These buildings used single story floor plans and native materials in a simple style to meet the needs of their inhabitants . Walls were often built of adobe brick and covered with plaster, or more simply used board and batten wood siding . Roofs were low and simple, and usually had wide eaves to help shade the windows from the Southwestern heat . Buildings often had interior courtyards which were surrounded by a U shaped floor plan . Large front porches were also common . These low slung, thick - walled, rustic working ranches were common in the Southwestern states . </P> <P> By the 1950s, the California ranch house, by now often called simply the ranch house or "rambler house", accounted for nine out of every ten new houses . The seemingly endless ability of the style to accommodate the individual needs of the owner / occupant, combined with the very modern inclusion of the latest in building developments and simplicity of the design, satisfied the needs of the time . Ranch houses were built throughout America and were often given regional facelifts to suit regional tastes . The "Colonial Ranch" of the Midwest and Northeast is one such noted variant, adding American Colonial features to the facade of the California ranch house . Ranch houses of the 1940s and 1950s are typically more deliberately rustic in nature than those of the 1960s and 1970s, with features such as dovecotes, Swiss board edging on trim, and generally western and even fantasy trim styling . In the 1960s, the ranch house echoed the national trend towards sleekness in design, with the homes becoming even simpler as this trend continued . </P>

Why is it called a ranch style house
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