10 Spanish-Style Homes That Are Warm and Inviting

When it comes to modern Spanish-style interiors, Roberts says that details “like smooth plaster walls, arched cutouts between rooms, vibrant accents, and the use of linen in furniture and window treatments all contribute to a true Spanish look.”

What Is a Spanish-Style House? Here’s What to Know

​Marshall Bright is a freelance lifestyle writer and home décor expert for MyDomaine with over 10 years of experience. She is based in Nashville, Tennessee. Bright has covered everything from design to health to food for websites like Apartment Therapy, Refinery29, InStyle, and SheKnows.

In This Article

If you grew up in certain parts of the country, it can be easy to forget the influence that Spanish colonialism had on America. With so many elementary and high school textbooks tracing the United States from the pilgrims to the Revolutionary War, over 400 years of Spanish rule in what is the modern-day U.S.A. gets tossed by the wayside.

In areas that were once part of Spain, however, you can still see evidence of that centuries-long rule, particularly in place names and architecture. Today, one of the most visible reminders is Spanish-style homes that draw design elements from Spanish colonial building styles.

What Is a Spanish-Style House?

Spanish-style homes are inspired by colonial architecture under Spanish rule and incorporate many key design elements like stucco and terracotta roof tiles. In the United States, they are most common in areas that were ruled by Spain, like Florida, California, and the Southwest.

While you can find Spanish-style homes all over the country, they are most common in areas that were under Spanish rule. The states with the most properties described as Spanish-style are California, New Mexico, Arizona, and Florida. While they are more common in those states, they are still relatively unique: about 1% of listings in those areas are Spanish-style, compared with only .11% nationally.

Many of these Spanish-style homes are also relatively new: periods of revival, especially in the 20th and 21st centuries, have lead architects and designers to draw inspiration from an area’s past without being totally bound to it. Modern and revival Spanish-style homes offer reinterpretations of the aesthetic, often mixing elements and including nods to more contemporary sensibilities.

What Makes a House Spanish-Style?

Spanish-style houses vary widely but have a few common features that set them apart from other American home styles, particularly the English-inspired revivals. Spanish colonial houses draw strongly from Meddieterian building styles. Many of the utilitarian elements meant to make homes cooler in a hot climate, like stucco walls and terracotta roofs, are now beloved details of this design style.

Revival houses, which were built starting in the late 19th century, also include features like exposed beams, wrought iron banisters, and colorful tiles. Inside, many of these homes feature tile as well as exposed stucco walls, though more modern constructions may look otherwise traditional.

Exterior:

• Terracotta Roofs
• Stucco Walls
• Ornamentation
• Small Windows
• Wooden Support Beams
• Local Materials
• Wooden Support Beams

Interior:

• Visible Wooden Beams
• Domed Ceilings
• Decorative Tiles
• Wrought Iron

The History of Spanish-Style Homes

While you can still find many Spanish colonial-era buildings and churches throughout America, most homes you see are part of the revival movement. Starting in the 19th century, and inspired by events like the world’s fair, architects began to build houses that harkened back to Spanish rule. Many cities also chose to design public buildings and spaces around a unified, Spanish-inspired style.

Spanish Revival homes, like any revival movement, aren’t exact replicas. Modern elements were included, like glass windows and second floors. Other features combine design elements from different areas and eras, like the Spanish Baroque and Moorish Revival. Mexican architecture movements have had an influence on the development of Spanish-style homes in the U.S. as well.

The Different Types of Spanish-Style Houses

While most Spanish-style homes were built in the last 150 years and would fall broadly under the Spanish Revival movement, there are different styles of the revival that can be found throughout the U.S.

Mission Revival

The Mission Revival movement saw homes as well as public buildings built in a style reminiscent of the Spanish missions. These relatively simple structures were primarily in California. Facades often resembled the missions themselves, with arched entrances, low roofs, and even bell towers. Walls are typically stucco with tiled roofs.

Pueblo Revival

Popularized in the 1920s and 30s, Pueblo Revival took elements from indigenous design as well as Spanish. Pueblo revival homes typically have flat roofs, thick stucco walls, and visible, rounded roof beams, or “vigas,” that can be seen inside and extending out from the home. Many have walled courtyards or patios. More traditional Pueblo Revival houses are a red earthen color, though they can also be painted white or even bright colors.

Monterey

The Spanish-style homes found in Monterey are fairly unique, and can often be traced back to one man. Thomas O. Larkin’s homes were first built in 1835, predating the Spanish Revival period by half a century. His homes, however, typify much of what we expect from a revival design: borrowing references across time and culture to make something that feels truly unique. Inspired by English and French homes as well as Spanish, Larkin’s homes had adobe walls and a flat roof. Unlike many other Spanish-style homes, however, they also feature upper and lower balconies, typical of French homes. The exteriors are also symmetrical, which is more common in English Colonial style-homes.

Floridian

Wherever Spanish colonizers built homes, they used local building materials, giving Spanish colonial buildings in Florida a different look and feel from similar structures in California. Similarly, different leaders of the Spanish Revival movement in different parts of the country-influenced local building trends. In Florida, you will often see fewer of the simple, stucco structures of the Southwest. Instead, Florida Renaissance homes (and those that came after it) borrow more heavily from Baroque and Moorish influences. Decorative columns, geometric window shapes, and ornate facades typify this type of house.

Spanish Eclectic

Modern constructions pull from all previous periods of Spanish Revival and are often grouped together under the umbrella term “Spanish Eclectic.” These homes can have the split-level shape of a ranch house, but with terracotta roof tiles and stucco walls. Other elements that have historically been rare in Spanish-style architecture, like bay windows or brich, can be found. Often, these homes pull inspiration from Renaissance, Baroque, Puebla, Moorish, and even previous Revival styles all at once, making them truly unique.

10 Spanish-Style Homes That Are Warm and Inviting

Sarah Lyon is a freelance writer and home decor enthusiast, who enjoys sharing good finds on home items. Since 2018, she has contributed to a variety of lifestyle publications, including Apartment Therapy and Architectural Digest.

Sarah Scott is a fact-checker and researcher who has worked in the custom home building industry in sales, marketing, and design.

A Spanish-style home generally features stucco walls, a red terracotta roof, decorative wrought iron elements, arched windows or doorways, dark wood beams, and tiled designs. These homes often include detailed landscaping and feature courtyards or outdoor entertaining areas. To give you an inside look at Spanish-style homes and their main elements, we spoke with designers who weighed in on the common characteristics of this popular style.

Meet the Expert

• Laura Roberts is the founder of Laura Roberts Interiors in Los Angeles.
• Raymond Jimenez is the founder and creative director at Raymond Nicolas in Miami.
• Allison Knizek the founder of Allison Knizek Design in Los Angeles.

Thoughtful Architectural Details

Spanish-style homes often feature stucco walls, terracotta roof tiles, and inner courtyards which were “designed originally to keep homes naturally cool,” says designer Laura Roberts. “Other details like wooden [support beams on] ceilings, doors, and windows, as well as ornamental iron work are found in Spanish-style homes,” she adds.

Adaptable Designs

Even if you aren’t constructing a home from scratch, there are plenty of ways to incorporate Spanish-style influences on the exterior. “Neutral white or beige stucco on the exterior walls, highlighted with terracotta and/or patterned tiles around a window frame, on stair risers, or on the walkway will bring a Spanish flair to any exterior,” says Roberts.

Colorful Elements

Bring on the colorful touches when designing a Spanish-style home, says designer Raymond Jimenez. “Adapting a Spanish style to the exterior of your home boils down to a few very simple principles: You’re looking to embody a rich, timeless aesthetic, and you’re not afraid to experiment with color. These colors like terracottas, blues, yellows, white, black, and of course green are usually not synonymous with ‘timeless’ but when done in such a way, they evoke a very luxe and classic look.”

Indoor-Outdoor Living

This Spanish-style home truly blends indoors and out, encouraging maximum relaxation. “This style of architecture is very much laid-back and creates the feeling of always being on vacation,” Jimenez says. “It inherently warms you up and calms you down.”

Iron Accents

Iron detailing, as showcased above, is also commonplace when it comes to Spanish style exteriors. “It can be used for gates, stair railings, or in Spanish-style exterior light fixtures,” Roberts notes. Designer Allison Knizek points out that touches of wrought iron such as a handrail or a Juliet balcony instantly evoke an old world Spanish mood. “Typically painted black, an updated take is to paint them a color, she says. “Same goes for wrought iron furniture—glossy color is an instant update.”

Interior Elements

When it comes to modern Spanish-style interiors, Roberts says that details “like smooth plaster walls, arched cutouts between rooms, vibrant accents, and the use of linen in furniture and window treatments all contribute to a true Spanish look.”

Lush Landscaping

Many Spanish-style homes boast impressive landscaping and outdoor spaces. “Spanish style homes must be surrounded by thick, lush greenery and landscapes to really make you feel like you are escaping into your own personal paradise,” says Jimenez.

Tons of Terracotta

If your home doesn’t feature a signature red tiled roof, Knizek offers an innovative solution. “A collection of terracotta pots against a bright white stucco wall does the trick,” she says. “Add some vibrant pink bougainvillea and you instantly achieve that blinding, sun kissed, Spanish hacienda look.”

Beautiful Tiles

Beautiful tile lines this outdoor bench, and similar designs can be incorporated indoors, too. “Tile is the best way to infuse a little Spanish mood and decorative tiles are plentiful at the moment at every price point,” Knizek says.

All the Arches

Curves and arches, like the ones seen here, are a common characteristic that Knizek incorporates into her spaces. “I introduce arches or semicircles into every home I’m working on,” she says. “A softly arched doorway can stand on its own especially if the door is painted an accent color to complement the room and surroundings.”

What are the key features of a Spanish-style home?

Spanish-style homes typically feature white stucco walls, terracotta roof tiles, decorative wrought iron stair railings, arched windows or doorways, dark wood beams, and tiled flooring and finishes. These homes often include detailed landscaping and feature courtyards or outdoor entertaining areas that emphasize indoor-outdoor living.

What are the different styles of Spanish-style homes?

There are several types of Spanish-styles homes in the U.S., including:

• Spanish Colonial Revival houses became popular in North America during the early 20th century, based on the Spanish Colonial style architecture that originated in Spain in the 1500s.
• Mission Revival homes are typically found in California and the Southwest, a late 19th-century style built to emulate elements of Spanish missions that include features like arched entryways, stucco walls, tiled roofs, and bell towers.
• Pueblo Revival (also called Santa Fe Style) is a 20th century variation on 18th- and 19th-century Adobe style houses that render the rounded forms of the original style using modern materials such as brick or concrete.
• Spanish Eclectic is a blanket term for homes that incorporate various Spanish elements to create a modern mashup that can be applied to many of the Spanish-style homes found throughout the U.S. today.