There's a building trend across the country and right here in Bismarck/Mandan, that the creation of shop condos. That's building commercial space on the ground level with a living area up above. That way you can have your business downstairs and when it's time to go home you just head upstairs.

The shortest commute ever

But there are also residential building trends that utilize the same concept, but the workspace can also be for hobbies, recreational activities or whatever sort of obsession floats your boat. These are primarily single-family homes.

While barndominiums were originally barns converted into homes, shouses are often standard single-family homes with an attached workshop.
However, many barndominiums and shouses are now built from the ground up to meet the needs of new homeowners.

Shouses? Barndominiums? I would think someone was just making this stuff up, but since there is a website called Barndominumlife.com it must be true. This sort of multi-purposing goes back hundreds of years. Think of blacksmiths or barbers or that Asian restaurant where I dined in their entryway.

These structures generally feature pole frame construction.

These bigger frames give home builders flexibility with open living spaces and more customizable floor plans. Unique floor plans like the one you're about to see at 3420 County Road 139, Mandan North Dakota. It's a single-family home with just one bedroom and 2 baths but man does it have space for a whole lot of other things. I'm sure you could sneak another bedroom in there easy enough.