The various types of local houses to be found in the Loire Valley are determined by local building materials, local needs and customs.

On the plateaux and in the wooded plains - In the Beauce, a wheat-growing plain, the farms are built round a closed courtyard with an imposing entrance. In the towns the houses are rough-cast and roofed with flat tiles.
In the Dunois and the Vendomois the houses are decorated with a chequered pattern of alternating stone and flint.
The long low cottages of the Sologne are roofed with thatch or flat tiles; the older houses are built of timber frames filled with cob while the more modern are of brick.
On the plateaux between the Cher, the Indre and the Vienne the country houses are often surrounded by clumps of walnut or chestnut trees. Flat tiles predominate in the country while slates are more common in town. The big house in any locality is usually recognisable by its hipped roof.
Between the Sologne and the Loire one often sees red brick buildings with white tufa facings.
In Anjou there are two distinct types of building: those constructed of limestone in White Anjou in the east and those constructed of schist in Black Anjou in the wooded farmland of the Mauges, Craonnais and Segreen.
The fine blue-black slates are found throughout the province except in the Mauges. In Maine the houses are built of limestone in White Maine on the River Sarthe and of granite or schist in Black Maine in the Mayenne Valley.

In the river valleys In the valleys of the Loire and its tributaries the typical vine-grower’s house consists of the living quar- ters, the storeroom and the stable under one roof with an external oven and an outside stair beneath which is the entrance to the cellar. A peculiarity of the valleys is the troglodyte dwelling which is hollowed out of the limestone tufa and has a chimney protruding at ground level. Often deco- rated with flowers and trel- lises and sheltered from the wind, it is cool in sum- mer and warm in winter.