Raised Bungalows vs. Traditional Bungalows: Key Differences
Both are one-storey homes, but they live very differently. The difference comes down to one thing: how much of the basement sits above the ground.
The one-sentence difference
In a traditional bungalow, the main floor sits close to ground level and the basement is fully below grade. In a raised bungalow, the whole house is lifted so the basement sits roughly half above ground — and that one change alters the windows, the entry, the stairs and how usable the lower level feels.
The traditional bungalow
The classic post-war Ontario bungalow: you walk in at main-floor level, and everything you use daily — kitchen, living room, bedrooms, bathroom — is on that one floor. The basement below is a true basement: small windows up near the ceiling, less natural light, and a space most owners use for storage, a workshop, or a rec room that feels like a basement. For buyers who want genuine one-level living, this is the purest form of it. Entry from the front door or the garage involves few or no stairs, which is exactly why traditional bungalows are prized by downsizers and anyone planning around mobility.
The raised bungalow
A raised bungalow (sometimes listed as a "raised ranch") pushes the foundation up so the lower level gets large, near-full-size windows and real daylight. The front door typically opens onto a small foyer landing with a half-flight of stairs up to the main floor and a half-flight down to the lower level — a split entry. The main floor itself sits higher, so it's more private from the street and the views out are a little better. Raised bungalows were built in large numbers across Ontario suburbs, and they remain one of the most common bungalow styles you'll see listed.
The lower level is the real divide
This is where the two styles separate in daily life. A raised bungalow's lower level doesn't feel like a basement: with big windows and decent ceiling height, it works as a genuine second living space — a family room, extra bedrooms, a home office that doesn't feel like a cave. It's also the layout that most often lends itself to a secondary suite, because the light and the separate-entry potential are already there (any suite still has to meet your municipality's rules and building-code requirements, including egress windows for bedrooms). A traditional bungalow's basement can be finished too, but it usually takes more work — window wells or enlarged openings — to get the same light, and bedrooms down there face the same egress rules.
The stairs trade-off
Here's the irony buyers miss: the raised bungalow, bought in the name of one-storey living, has stairs at the front door no matter which way you go — up to the living space or down to the lower level. The traditional bungalow is the one that delivers flat, step-free daily living. If the whole point of your bungalow search is avoiding stairs, the raised layout partly defeats it. If instead you want a bungalow's footprint with two usable floors of space, the raised layout is the one that delivers.
Don't confuse them with split-levels
Listings blur the family lines, so it helps to be precise. A backsplit or sidesplit is not a bungalow at all: it's a split-level, with living space staggered across half-storeys — a few steps up to the bedrooms, a few down to the family room. A raised bungalow keeps the bungalow's promise of one complete main floor; the split entry is a foyer, not a level you live on. When a listing says "bungalow," check the photos of the front steps and the entry: a door at grade with the living floor right there means traditional; a door landing between two half-flights means raised; short stair runs in several directions inside means you've wandered into split-level territory, whatever the headline calls it.
Which one suits you?
- Choose a traditional bungalow if: step-free living is the priority, you want the main floor at garden level, and the basement is for storage or occasional use.
- Choose a raised bungalow if: you want a bright, genuinely usable lower level — room for kids, guests, an office, or a possible suite — and a half-flight of stairs at the entry is no hardship.
- Either way: check the lower level for the things photos hide — window size and egress, ceiling height, and any moisture where the foundation meets the soil line.
A viewing checklist for both styles
- Count the stairs from the front door to the kitchen and the main bedroom — that's the daily number, not the one in the listing.
- Stand in the lower level at midday. Window size on paper and daylight in person are different things, especially on a north-facing lot.
- Check lower-level ceiling height under ductwork and beams, not just at the centre of the room.
- Look at the foundation line outside — grading should slope away from the house on both styles; a raised bungalow simply gives you more wall to inspect.
- Ask what's finished with permits. Lower-level bedrooms and bathrooms are where unpermitted work most often hides, in either layout.
Next step
Bungalows are the most-searched style on HomesFound, and Scarborough has one of the deepest selections in the GTA — see what's available now among bungalows for sale in Scarborough. Comparing footprints as well as layouts? See how large bungalows typically are, in square footage.