The row house sits between the flat and the bungalow. Like a bungalow, it is a house on its own plot, with its own entrance, its own terrace and no shared lobby or lift. Like a flat, it shares walls with neighbours — usually on both sides — which makes it far cheaper in land than a detached house and far more compact to build. In Gujarat and Maharashtra, row house societies are one of the most common forms of middle-class housing on the edges of cities, and in Surat, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Pune and Nashik, many families who outgrow a flat move to a row house rather than a bungalow.
The same features that make row houses affordable also make them hard to design. With neighbours on both sides, a typical row house gets daylight and breeze only through its front and rear walls and through the roof. A plot 6 m wide and 16–18 m deep produces a building 10–12 m deep, and the middle of that plan — where the staircase usually sits — can be dark and airless. Many row houses also suffer from problems at the shared wall: cracks where two neighbours built at different times, damp at the parapet junction, and sound passing through. And because each owner customises the front, many row house streets lose the unity that made them attractive in the first place.
This guide explains how row houses work, the plot sizes and setbacks that shape them, how to plan a 6 m wide house so every room gets light and air, how to detail the shared wall, and what a row house costs to build in 2026. Dimensions follow NBC 2016 and common Indian practice; local development control regulations decide the final numbers and must always be checked.
What a row house is — and what it is not
A row house is one of a series of houses built side by side on adjoining plots, each sharing one or both side walls with its neighbour and each with its own plot, entrance and roof. The houses at the two ends of a row have one open side and are usually called end units or corner units. The same type is called a terraced house in Britain and a townhouse in North America. A twin bungalow, or semi-detached house, shares only one wall with one neighbour; a bungalow shares none. A flat shares walls, floors, ceilings, a lobby and services.
| Row house (middle unit) | Twin bungalow / semi-detached | Detached bungalow | Apartment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shared walls | Two | One | None | Walls, floor and ceiling |
| Light and air from | Front, rear and roof | Front, rear, one side and roof | All sides and roof | One to three sides |
| Typical plot (indicative) | 60–150 m² | 120–250 m² | 200 m² and above | No individual plot |
| Land cost per home | Low | Medium | High | Lowest |
| Privacy and independence | Good; own entrance and terrace | Better | Best | Limited; shared lobby |
| Expansion potential | Upwards, within FSI and society rules | Upwards and sometimes sideways | Most flexible | None |
| Key design challenge | Dark middle, shared-wall detailing | Balancing the open side | Orientation and boundary walls | Interiors only |
Where the row house comes from
India has a long tradition of attached houses. The pols of old Ahmedabad — part of the Historic City of Ahmedabad inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage City in 2017 — are dense neighbourhoods of narrow, deep houses built wall to wall along lanes, each with an internal courtyard (chowk) that brings light and air into the middle of the plan, and often a carved timber facade. Similar attached townhouses appear in old Surat, Jaipur, Varanasi and many other historic cities. The lesson these houses teach is the same one modern row houses need: when the side walls are shared, the house must open up in the middle, through a court or a well of light.
The European terraced house, built in large numbers in British cities from the eighteenth century onwards, gave the type its familiar form: a narrow frontage, a deep plan, a staircase against the party wall and rooms front and back. Colonial cantonments and railway colonies in India built rows of staff quarters on similar lines. After independence, housing boards and development authorities built row houses as an efficient form of low-rise housing, and from the 1980s private developers in Gujarat and Maharashtra turned the row house society — a gated group of identical houses with a common road, a garden and sometimes a clubhouse — into a mainstream product.
| Period | Form | Typical features | Lesson for today |
|---|---|---|---|
| Historic Indian towns | Pol houses and attached townhouses | Narrow frontage, internal chowk, shared walls, carved facades | Light the middle with a court |
| 18th–19th century Europe | Terraced houses | Standard plots, party walls, rooms front and back | Repetition creates a coherent street |
| Colonial and railway towns | Rows of staff quarters | Verandahs, high ceilings, simple plans | Shade the front; ventilate high |
| Post-1950s public housing | Housing board row houses | Small plots, G or G+1, standard plans | Efficient land use for low-rise homes |
| 1980s onward, private sector | Row house societies | Gated layouts, G+1 or G+2, car in front margin | Design controls keep elevations unified |
| Today | Duplex and triplex row houses | Double-height living, terrace gardens, solar | More height, more light, less land |
Plot sizes, setbacks and footprints
Row house plots are narrow and deep. Widths commonly range from about 5 to 9 m (roughly 16 to 30 ft) and depths from about 12 to 20 m (40 to 65 ft). In Gujarat, plot areas are often quoted in square yards (vaar); one square yard is 0.836 m², so a 6 × 16.5 m plot of 99 m² is about 118 sq yd or 1,066 sq ft. The table below lists common sizes and what each typically allows, using illustrative setbacks.
| Plot (width × depth) | Area | Illustrative footprint (front 3–5 m, rear 1.5 m) | What it typically holds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.0 × 12 m (≈ 16 × 40 ft) | 60 m² ≈ 646 sq ft ≈ 72 sq yd | 5 × 7.5–8.5 m | 2BHK over G+1; two-wheeler parking only |
| 6.0 × 15 m (≈ 20 × 50 ft) | 90 m² ≈ 969 sq ft ≈ 108 sq yd | 6 × 8.5–10.5 m | 3BHK over G+1; one small car |
| 6.0 × 16.5 m (≈ 20 × 55 ft) | 99 m² ≈ 1,066 sq ft ≈ 118 sq yd | 6 × 10 m | 3BHK over G+1 with a court; one car |
| 7.5 × 18 m (≈ 25 × 60 ft) | 135 m² ≈ 1,453 sq ft ≈ 161 sq yd | 7.5 × 11.5–13.5 m | 3–4BHK; car plus garden strip |
| 9.0 × 18 m (≈ 30 × 60 ft) | 162 m² ≈ 1,744 sq ft ≈ 194 sq yd | 9 × 11.5–13.5 m | 4BHK, double-height living, two cars in tandem |
Row houses are usually allowed only within approved layouts or schemes where the local development control regulations permit attached construction. Typically, middle units have no side margins, end units keep a side margin on their open side, and every unit keeps a front margin for parking and access and a rear margin for light and ventilation. Ground coverage, FSI and height limits then decide whether the house is G+1, G+2 or larger. All of these figures vary by city and by scheme — in Gujarat they are set by the CGDCR and the relevant town planning scheme — so the numbers in this guide are illustrative and must be confirmed locally.
Planning a 6 m wide row house
A 6 m wide house is the most common row house in Indian cities, and it is a useful case because every problem of the type appears in it. With party walls of 230 mm on each side, the clear internal width is about 5.5 m — enough for one large room across the full width, or for a room of about 3.3–3.6 m plus a toilet or staircase of 1.8–2.4 m. The depth of the building, here 10 m, is divided into three zones: a front zone with the main living room or master bedroom, a middle zone with the staircase and a court or light well, and a rear zone with the kitchen, dining or a second bedroom.
That three-zone arrangement is the backbone of almost every good row house. The front and rear zones get windows; the middle zone gets the stair, the toilets that can be ventilated through a duct, and the opening to the sky. Putting the staircase against one party wall in the middle, rather than at the front, also keeps the front elevation free for a large living-room window and leaves the stair to act as a chimney for warm air. The plan in Fig. 2 shows this on a 6 × 16.5 m plot, with a 5 m front margin for a car and a 1.5 m rear margin.
How the plan in Fig. 2 works
On the ground floor, the living room takes the full 6 m width at the front, about 4.2 m deep, with a wide window onto the front margin and the car. Behind it, the staircase runs along one party wall in a 2.4 m wide zone, and the remaining 3.6 × 3.0 m becomes a court — open to the sky through a skylight or a covered opening at roof level — that lights the living room from behind, the dining room and the stair. The rear zone holds a 3.0 × 2.8 m kitchen and a 3.0 × 2.8 m dining area, both with windows onto the rear margin. A small toilet fits under the stair landing, ventilated by a duct.
On the first floor, the master bedroom of about 4.2 × 4.2 m takes the front, with an attached toilet and a dressing area along one party wall and a 1.2 m balcony projecting over the front margin where the regulations allow. The stair lands in the middle beside the void over the court, which keeps the first floor bright and lets both floors share the same column of air. A second bedroom of 3.6 × 2.8 m sits at the rear with its own toilet and a small wash area. A third bedroom can be added on a second floor, or by using a deeper plot, within the local FSI.
| Room | NBC 2016 Part 3 minimum (general) | Size in Fig. 2 | Design note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Living room | 9.5 m², width 2.4 m | 6000 × 4200 (25.2 m²) | Full-width window to the front; borrowed light from the court |
| Master bedroom | 9.5 m², width 2.4 m | 4200 × 4200 (17.6 m²) | Toilet and dressing on the party-wall side |
| Second bedroom | 7.5 m² (if the second room), width 2.1 m | 3600 × 2800 (10.1 m²) | Window to the rear margin |
| Kitchen | 5.0 m², width 1.8 m (with separate dining) | 3000 × 2800 (8.4 m²) | L-shaped counter; window over the sink to the rear |
| Dining | — | 3000 × 2800 | Opens to the court and the kitchen |
| Toilet (bath + WC) | Combined 2.8 m², width 1.2 m | 1500 × 2400 on first floor | Window or duct to outside air |
| Staircase | Riser ≤ 190 mm, tread ≥ 250 mm (residential) | Two flights, about 1000 mm wide | Headroom of at least 2.2 m throughout |
| Room height | 2.75 m habitable | 3000–3150 mm floor to floor | Higher ceilings help fans and stack ventilation |
Light and air in the middle of the house
The defining problem of a row house is the middle. Side windows are impossible on shared walls, and a building 10–12 m deep is too deep for front and rear windows alone to light it. Daylight from a window reaches only about two to two-and-a-half times its head height into a room — a common daylighting rule of thumb — so a window with a head at 2.1–2.4 m lights only about 5–6 m of floor. Air follows the same pattern: cross-ventilation works through a front-to-back plan only if the internal walls and doors allow air to pass, and in still weather it needs a way out at the top.
There are four ways to open the middle. A court open to the sky, as in a traditional chowk, is the most effective: it lights and ventilates the rooms around it and can hold plants and a small seating area. A light well — a smaller vertical shaft with a skylight or a louvred cap — brings daylight to the stair and adjoining rooms. A skylight over the staircase turns the stair into a lantern and a stack: warm air rises through the stairwell and escapes through high-level louvres, drawing cooler air in through the front and rear windows. And a double-height living room near the front lets light from a tall window reach deeper into the plan. Many good row houses combine two of these.
| Strategy | Typical size (indicative) | What it does | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Court open to the sky | 3 × 3 m and larger | Lights and ventilates every room around it; outdoor room | Rain and dust: drain the floor, consider a retractable or fixed cover |
| Light well with skylight | 1.5 × 1.5 to 2.4 × 3 m | Brings daylight down two floors; air if the top is louvred | Heat gain through glass; shade or use insulated glazing |
| Skylight over the stair | Stairwell width, ≈ 1 × 2.4 m and up | Turns the stair into a light and air stack | Leaks — use a proper upstand and flashing |
| High-level louvres at roof | Along one or two sides of the stair cabin | Lets warm air escape; drives stack ventilation | Rain-proof louvres and insect mesh |
| Double-height living | Full width × 4–5 m deep, ≈ 6 m high | Tall front window lights deeper into the plan | Uses floor area that could be a room; cleaning high glass |
| Clerestory over a party wall | Where the house rises above the neighbour | Side light above the neighbour's roof | Only possible if the neighbour stays lower |
Where a court or light well is used to light and ventilate a habitable room, local regulations usually set minimum dimensions for it — commonly in the region of 3 m width and 9 m² area in many development control regulations for low-rise buildings — while smaller ducts are permitted only for toilets and stairs. Check the local rule before relying on a shaft to make a room compliant.
The party wall: shared or twin?
Every row house has to decide how to build its side walls. There are two main options. In the first, one wall of 230 mm brick or block is built on the common boundary, and both houses use it — sometimes with shared columns along the line. This saves 115–230 mm of plot width on each side and some construction cost, and it is common when a developer builds the whole row at once. In the second, each house builds its own wall, with its own columns and footings, entirely within its own plot, and a narrow separation joint of about 25–50 mm is left between the two walls.
Aaditya Interior generally prefers the twin-wall approach when houses are built or rebuilt by different owners at different times, because it lets each house be built, repaired and later redeveloped without touching the neighbour's structure; it avoids cracks caused by one house settling differently from the other; and the double wall with its air gap reduces sound transmission. The shared wall works when a single developer builds the entire row together on a common structural design and the society's rules make the shared wall a recorded part of the layout. Whichever option is chosen, the structural design should be by a qualified structural engineer, and the detail at the top — where two parapets or roofs meet — must be waterproofed with a cap or flashing that covers the joint.
| Aspect | Shared party wall | Twin walls with separation joint |
|---|---|---|
| Plot width used | 115 mm per side (half of 230) | 230 mm per side plus half the joint |
| Structure | Common wall, often common columns | Independent columns, beams and footings per house |
| Construction sequence | Best when the whole row is built together | Each house can be built or rebuilt separately |
| Settlement and cracking | Differential settlement cracks the shared wall | Joint absorbs small movements |
| Sound between houses | Single 230 wall — moderate | Two walls and an air gap — better |
| Waterproofing | Simple at the top; fewer joints | Joint must be capped and sealed at parapet and roof |
| Repairs and redevelopment | Need the neighbour's agreement | Largely independent |
| Legal clarity | Needs to be recorded in the layout and society documents | Each wall clearly within its own plot |
Elevations: one row, many owners
A row of identical houses can look calm and dignified, or it can look like a catalogue of every material sold in the city. The difference is usually design control. Many row house societies adopt elevation guidelines — a common parapet height, common window and balcony lines, a limited palette of plaster colours and cladding, and rules for gates, compound walls and front-margin sheds. These rules may feel restrictive to individual owners, but they protect the value of every house by keeping the street coherent, and they make later additions, such as an extra floor or a solar structure, easier to approve.
Within those lines there is room for character. A 6 m frontage can carry a deep shaded balcony, a vertical jaali or louvre screen on the stair zone, planters at the parapet and a well-designed gate. In a hot climate such as Surat's, the front elevation should be designed for shade first: deep projections over windows, light-coloured walls, and screens or louvres on west-facing fronts. The rear elevation, often neglected, deserves the same care because it lights the kitchen and second bedroom and faces another row's rear across a narrow margin — privacy screens and staggered windows help.
What a row house costs to build in 2026
Construction cost for a row house follows the same rates as any independent house, measured per square foot of built-up area. The bands below match those used in Aaditya Interior's house planning guides for tier-2 Gujarat cities; metros are higher. For the house in Fig. 2 — about 60 m² per floor of internal area, or roughly 1,300 sq ft built-up over two floors including walls and the stair cabin — they give the totals shown. Land, approvals, design fees and interiors are extra.
| Specification (built-up area) | Indicative rate per sq ft | G+1, ≈ 1,300 sq ft built-up | What changes between bands |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | ₹1,800–2,400 | ≈ ₹23–31 lakh | Vitrified tiles, standard fittings, aluminium or uPVC windows |
| Better | ₹2,400–3,200 | ≈ ₹31–42 lakh | Larger tiles or granite, branded fittings, better windows, skylight and court finishes |
| Premium | ₹3,200 and above | ≈ ₹42 lakh and above | Stone or wood floors, premium fittings, facade cladding, double-height glazing |
| Twin party walls (extra over shared) | Additional wall, columns and joint | Often a few per cent of the structure cost | Confirm with the structural engineer |
| Interiors (separate, carpet area) | ₹800–3,500+ | See the interior cost guides | Kitchen, wardrobes, ceilings, lighting |
| Approvals, soil test, structural design | Lump sum | Verify locally | Fees and consultants vary by city |
Where row house design is heading
Row houses are getting taller and lighter. As land prices rise, G+2 and stilt-plus-two row houses with a terrace room are becoming common where FSI allows, and the extra height makes the central light shaft even more important. Double-height living rooms, internal courts with planting, terrace gardens and rooftop solar panels are now standard requests in new row house societies. Builders are also experimenting with mixed rows — narrower middle units and wider end units — and with shared community spaces in place of individual front lawns. Underneath these trends, the old lessons hold: shared walls must be designed, not just built, and a narrow, deep house lives or dies by the light that reaches its middle.
Rules for designing a row house
- Confirm the layout approval, margins, coverage, FSI and height limits for the scheme before drawing anything.
- Plan in three zones: front and rear for rooms that need windows, the middle for the staircase, services and a court or light well.
- Bring light and air into the middle with a court, a skylit stair or a light well, and add high-level louvres for stack ventilation.
- Keep every habitable room at or above the NBC minimums and 2.75 m clear height, with windows to the front, rear or a compliant court.
- Choose the party wall deliberately: twin walls with a capped separation joint for independent owners, a shared wall only for a row built together.
- Get a structural engineer to design columns, footings and the party wall, and never cut into a neighbour's wall or footing.
- Design the front and rear elevations for shade and privacy, and follow the society's elevation guidelines.
- Plan for later: leave structural capacity and a stair route for an extra floor if the FSI allows it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a row house and a bungalow?
A bungalow stands free on its plot with open space on all sides; a row house shares one or both side walls with neighbours and has open margins only at the front and rear (and on one side for end units). Row houses use less land and cost less, but they need careful planning to bring light and air into the middle.
What is a good size for a row house plot?
A plot of about 6 × 15–16.5 m (roughly 20 × 50–55 ft, or 108–118 sq yd) is the most common and comfortably holds a 3BHK over two floors with one car. Narrower plots of 5 m suit 2BHK homes; wider plots of 7.5–9 m allow larger living rooms, two cars and a garden strip.
How do you get natural light into a row house?
Place living rooms and bedrooms at the front and rear, and open the middle with a court, a light well or a skylight over the staircase. Add high-level louvres so warm air can escape at the top; this draws breeze through the front and rear windows. A double-height living room at the front also pushes daylight deeper into the plan.
Can I add a floor to my row house?
Only if the local FSI and height limits, the layout approval and the society's rules allow it, and if the existing structure was designed for it. A structural engineer should check the columns and footings first. Because the walls are shared, an extra floor may also affect the neighbours' light, privacy and waterproofing, so the society usually needs to approve it.
Should row houses share a common wall?
A shared wall saves plot width and works when one developer builds the whole row on a common structural design. Where houses are built or rebuilt by different owners at different times, twin walls with a small separation joint and independent columns are usually better: they avoid settlement cracks, improve sound insulation and allow independent repairs. The joint must be capped at the top.
Sources & standards
- Bureau of Indian Standards — National Building Code of India 2016, Part 3 (room sizes, heights, open spaces), Part 4 (staircases) and Part 6 (structural design)
- Gujarat Comprehensive General Development Control Regulations (CGDCR) and town planning schemes — row housing, margins, coverage and FSI (local variations apply)
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre — Historic City of Ahmedabad (inscribed 2017): pol houses and courtyards
- Neufert, Architects' Data — terraced housing, plot widths and room planning
- Bureau of Energy Efficiency — Eco-Niwas Samhita (Energy Conservation Building Code for residential buildings): daylight and natural ventilation
- Bureau of Indian Standards — IS 1905 (structural use of unreinforced masonry) and IS 456 (plain and reinforced concrete)
- Price ranges: indicative October 2026 estimates — confirm locally before budgeting
