Column
 House with Skip Floors
Atelier Cotocoto
Atelier Cotocoto

House with Skip Floors｜Custom Home Examples by Architectural Offices17Picks｜Volumetric Richness Created by Level Differences

Author: Qurasuki Editorial Department
A split-level (skip-floor) configuration introduces intermediate floors between primary storeys, delivering three-dimensional connectivity and variation within a residence. By offsetting floors by half levels, sightlines extend through the interior while spaces are gently articulated, producing openness together with an appropriate degree of privacy. The voids and stepped areas that result can be efficiently programmed as storage, and when combined with vertical atria, daylight and air circulate volumetrically throughout the home. The vertical movement of children between levels also creates natural informal play spaces. Architectural firms carefully propose the potential of such three-dimensional dwellings, taking into account site topography and household composition.

House with Skip Floors

Residence in Moriguchi

In-Ex Design Co., Ltd.
Situated close to a shopping arcade, this is a “windowless house” built on a mere 19-tsubo hexagonal site. The building wraps around the full perimeter of the lot, creating a quiet interior world cut off from the street’s bustle. Exterior spaces are inserted at both ends of the two-storey volume, and living areas are arranged along the circulation that connects them. Without distinct room partitions, the spaces are loosely zoned by use and activity, accommodating the occupants’ flexible patterns of living. An inventive urban dwelling, it feels closed yet conveys a rich sense of spatial expansiveness.

Garage House Featuring a Skip-Floor Design

JYU ARCHITECT
This is a garage house built on a corner lot of approximately 30 tsubo. By employing a split-level configuration that takes advantage of the site’s level changes, the design mitigates moisture while creating a variety of comfortable living areas. It accommodates the pleasures of daily life with a bright built-in garage, a living room with a sloped ceiling, a dining area overlooking a specimen/symbol tree, an all‑stainless steel kitchen, a large-capacity pantry, and dedicated spaces such as a sewing studio and storage for road bikes. The dwelling also features high thermal insulation performance and a seismic damping structure, combining provision for hobbies with comfort and peace of mind.

The Sunken Retreat

Far East Design Lab.
Located in a quiet residential neighborhood in the city center, this house occupies a sloping site with an elevation change of approximately 5 m. Under the constrained conditions of being enclosed by adjacent buildings, the design secures residential floor area through a three-level configuration that includes a basement. A sequence of split-level living spaces and a stair atrium approximately 10 m in height are provided so that daylight from a skylight reaches down to the basement. The top floor is conceived as an open space connected to a garden and roof terrace; the contrast with the calm atmosphere of the basement creates a three-dimensional residence evoking a natural ravine.

House with Skip Floors

Tatsumi Negishi Architectural Studio
A split-level residence that takes advantage of the site’s changes in elevation. Half-level-offset spaces extend vertically and horizontally, and family members’ presence remains gently connected through an atrium. The open, Japanese‑modern interior fosters natural interaction centered on the kitchen. Thoughtful provisions for enjoying hobbies are woven throughout—such as a tea room integrated with the entry and a high‑capacity bookshelf spanning an entire wall. Additionally, the rooftop provides a dedicated spot for reading and enjoying a beer. A playful home that layers small luxuries into everyday life.

House Along the Jōsui Canal

Atelier Cotocoto
A small live-work dwelling that nestles against the lush greenery of the Tamagawa Josui. While screening views from the heavily trafficked greenway, it aims to create a space that still retains a connection to nature. A high‑ceilinged, open‑plan studio is organized with three floor levels of varying heights; the split‑level arrangement gently delineates work and living zones. Through an inner courtyard that controls sightlines, the interior opens views toward the greenery along the Tamagawa Josui. Within a compact total floor area of 45 m², this residence demonstrates a new possibility that reconciles a sense of spaciousness and comfort.

Tezukayama Higashi House

ARCHIXXX Satoru Shinno Architectural Design
This three-story split-level house brings light and air to every floor while incorporating views of Bandai Pond. The first floor includes private rooms conceived as individual “huts” for each of the three children, while the second floor contains a kitchen and dining area, along with two living rooms that can also accommodate guests. The third floor features a yoga studio with views and an indoor balcony, while the rooftop can be used for barbecues. In addition, a terrace surrounds an old crape myrtle tree that has long been cherished on the site, creating a composition from which the tree can be viewed from various parts of the house.

Message from the sky

Hirotaka Sato Architects
This urban residence was born from the desire “to feel the sky.” Light entering through the skylights brings the clear morning sky, summer sunlight, twilight, snow, and scenes after the rain into the interior, allowing the ever-changing expressions of the sky to become part of everyday life. Natural materials such as natural slate, cedar, and earthen walls are used, along with underfloor heating that takes advantage of concrete’s thermal storage capacity. Light and shadow, together with the textures of the materials, resonate with one another to create a rich living environment.

Residence at Myokoji-dai

Naoko Matsumoto Architects & Associates
A split-level residence built on a hill in Yokohama that enjoys abundant views. By taking advantage of the site's level differences in the spatial arrangement, the design reconciles expansive vistas from each level with privacy. Tapestries and small objects that reflect time spent living abroad add color to the spaces, and a well-appointed library is located on the upper floor. It is a distinctive home where the occupant's memories and interests are cherished, and views and daily life are harmonized.

A House Living in Harmony with Wood

Ringo Studio, First-Class Architect's Office
A residence situated in the scenic conservation district of Ōmiya, connected to tranquil nature. Under a site‑coverage limit of 40%, a simple square planimetric and volumetric composition was employed to create a generous spatial extent. Openings boldly capture the light and breezes passing through the private road to the south and borrow the landscape of the neighboring house. Internally, a skip floor with a 1.5‑storey intermediate level secures floor area and openly links the spaces of differing heights. The spaces, finished in locally sourced Nishikawa cedar, form a beautiful building—underpinned by classical methods—where exterior and interior comfortably meld.

Narrow Skip-Floor Steel-Frame Garage House | ' ' House

Yoshihiro Yamamoto Architects Associates
A house sited on a narrow lot in a traditional downtown neighborhood. Vertical circulation is treated not as a constraint but as an experiential element: a skip‑floor arrangement of staggered half‑levels produces a sequence of varied spatial conditions. Ultra‑thin external walls and a steel skeletal frame maximize the usable area of the site, and by optimizing regulatory allowances the design also achieves an open top‑floor terrace. Compact yet filled with light and natural ventilation, the residence establishes a light, airy living environment.

Makizukadai House, Sakai

Kumi Inoue Architects
This residence is situated in an elevated residential area in Minami Ward, Sakai City. To maximize the southeast-facing views, an L-shaped plan encloses a terrace. Responding to strict diagonal-plane restrictions and the site’s level changes, the design links a dark pitched-roof volume and a white-walled volume through shifts in level, creating a three-dimensional spatial composition via split-level floors. A semi-basement music room, parking and private zones are arranged progressively, while the top floor houses a living room with expansive views and a raised tatami alcove. The project makes the most of the site’s characteristics, integrating a variety of living settings and rich vistas.

House Living with the Sky

Archiplace
This dwelling, designed for a couple in their thirties and their child, adopts a simple, modern and natural aesthetic. To comply with strict area and height regulations, part of the volume is sunk as a semi‑basement, above which a two‑storey timber structure is arranged. A split‑level configuration from the semi‑basement up to the loft produces a sense of spatial expansiveness and an efficient domestic circulation. On the south side a walled deck terrace provides an outdoor space that integrates with the living‑dining‑kitchen, admitting light and ventilation so occupants can feel connected to nature despite the urban location.

Four Decks

Yosuke Tomiya Architectural Design Co., Ltd.
Working together from the search for a site, we chose a sloping plot with an elevation difference of approximately 2 m in response to the request for a home with split levels. Making full use of the existing terrain, we created a three-dimensional space in which four levels are gently connected through an atrium. As you move through the house, you encounter different views and a sense of the family’s presence. The home features windows that frame the surrounding mountain ridges and greenery of the park, a doma-like earthen-floored space connected to the garden, and flexible open areas that can be used for a variety of purposes. It is a home that transforms the difference in elevation into an asset while living in harmony with nature.

House in Hamadera

Coo Planning
This residence is located in a quiet residential neighborhood in Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture. While maximizing the greenery of the shrine to the south, the design aims for an expansive spatial quality reminiscent of a Parisian apartment. A three-dimensional composition of split-levels and high ceilings imparts a generous sense of openness to the home. Bookshelves fitted across the full extent of the east and west walls become the focal point of daily life, and light, breeze, and greenery entering through cross-mullioned windows and skylights enliven the spaces. Together with the textures of the materials, the house deepens in character as the family’s time accumulates.

Uenoge T

Takeshi Hirobe Architects
This residence stands on a sloping site in Setagaya. Making use of the skip floors generated by stringent regulatory conditions, it achieves a spatial composition in which the courtyard, doma, and zashiki flow continuously into one another. Connecting the courtyard and dining area with the same flooring and gradually raising the level toward the living room creates a rich gradient in which inside and outside merge. A square window cut into the enclosed courtyard frames the adjacent pine grove like a single painting. While standing quietly in relation to the city, the residence contains abundant nature and a sense of expansiveness within.

House in Nishiokamoto II

Abax Architects
This residence is situated on the Yamate hillside of Kobe, along the Sumiyoshi River. While maximizing Kobe’s characteristic views of mountain and sea, a split-level (skip-floor) plan is adopted to respond to the site’s changes in elevation, and the building is simply articulated in timber construction. By sitting close to the topography, unobstructed sightlines are secured, creating a three-dimensional space where different vistas can be enjoyed on each tier. It is a home that directly incorporates the appeal of a location where the natural environment and the urban presence intersect into everyday living.

House in Higashiyukigaya

Takayoshi Nakamura Architects & Associates
This tiny house stands on an approximately 9-tsubo site along the Nomigawa River and comprises four levels, including a basement, with a total floor area of 21 tsubo. Inheriting the client’s attachment to the land where their parents once lived, the project sought to create a home in which its compactness could be enjoyed. The stringent slant-line restrictions are addressed through skip floors divided according to function. Changes in level and a spiral staircase bring rich variation to the space, while the distinctive roof form creates a serene and dignified presence.