Glossary entry (derived from question below)
English term or phrase:
one-family home/two-family home
English answer:
single-dwelling/two-dwelling building
English term
one-family home/two-family home
PRO (3): Charlesp, AllegroTrans, B D Finch
Non-PRO (2): Edith Kelly, Yvonne Gallagher
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Responses
single-dwelling/two-dwelling building
Duplex Housing means development consisting of a building containing only two Dwellings, with one Dwelling ...
https://webdocs.edmonton.ca/InfraPlan/ZoningBylaw/ZoningByla...
"Requirement F1 applies only to ... the spaces within any building containing two or more dwellings which are used solely or principally in connection with those dwellings; "
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1991/2768/schedule/1/mad...
Why a Housing Code? ... Every occupant of a single dwelling building (and every owner of a building containing two or more dwelling units) ...
co.st-johns.fl.us/CodeEnforcement/HousingCode.aspx
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Note added at 19 hrs (2018-08-14 11:39:27 GMT)
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The above solution has the advantage that it doesn't matter whether the two-dwelling building is split horizontally or vertically.
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Tony M
: For Asker's purposes of onward translation, I'm sure this is all that is needed.
3 mins
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Thanks Tony
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Shera Lyn Parpia
2 hrs
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Thanks Shera
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AllegroTrans
: Good thinking
1 day 13 hrs
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Thanks AT
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Jamaica
Translating the Ideas Behind the Words
Native in: English (Variant: British)
Works in: Spanish to English, English to Spanish, French to English, and 2 more.
single-family home/duplex (see definition below)
Definition of single-family detached home. single-family detached home. 1. A building that is occupied by one family and is not attached to another building, as opposed to a duplex which is a building that houses two families. Also known as a "single family home," "separate house" or "single detached dwelling."
How to Finance and Live in a Two-Family Home | Ask a Lender
https://www.askalender.com/.../how-to-finance-and-live-in-a-...
11 ene. 2017 - If you're looking to buy a home to live in, consider purchasing a **two-family home, also known as a duplex.** By renting out the other unit, you'll be ..
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Tony M
: While this may be OK for AE, note that what they seem to be talking about is what we would call a 'semi-detached' house in BE, while 'duplex' has a quite different meaning. And as BDF points out, best to avoid 'family'!
9 mins
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Thanks.
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Tina Vonhof (X)
: If the asker needs UK English, maybe someone else can provide that answer.
28 mins
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Thank you Tina.
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philgoddard
: It doesn't matter what you call it or which variety of English you use, since the asker is presumably translating into Vietnamese. A two-family home is a building that accommodates two families or households.
1 hr
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Thank you.
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Björn Vrooman
: Like Phil, I don't see the issue. I don't think this is a question about EN variants. Careful about "single-family housing," though (see d-box).
14 hrs
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Thank you Björn.
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Herbmione Granger
: The important part: one-unit or two-unit house. /Or single-unit and double-unit homes. A little weird: single-family and double-family homes. /Maybe single-household, double-household homes.
17 hrs
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Thank you.
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United Kingdom
Doctor of science - German to English
Native in: English 
Works in: German to English, Swedish to English, French to English, and 1 more.
detached or semi-detached (British English)
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AllegroTrans
: Correct for Br EN, not sure if this will help the asker though
29 mins
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B D Finch
: Unless it means something else, e.g. a detached house divided into two flats, or two separate dwellings with shared bathroom and/or kitchen. What country are these homes in? What would it mean in the context of that country/region?
1 hr
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Discussion
@Tony:
Since the Housing Act 2004:
"Generally a house in multiple occupation will be a property which has:
More than 1 household and more than 2 people
3 or more storeys (this includes cellars, basements, loft conversions and flats above pubs or shops)
Facilities such as bathrooms or kitchens are shared
Therefore, bedsits, shared houses and some self-contained flats may be HMO properties.
building regulation standards. This will, as a minimum, be the 1991 regulations.
The council may declare a property to be a HMO where there is significant usage of the property as a [sic] HMO."
http://www.rochdale.gov.uk/housing/landlords/landlord-licens...
A self-contained dwelling is now an HMO if occupied by three or more tenants who aren't a single family unit
@Tony
Thanks for the explanation!
RE HMO: I thought in HMOs, you share the bathroom, etc.--or as they put it, "share one or more basic amenities"?
https://www.basingstoke.gov.uk/hmo
Best
For the purposes of this document, I think it needs simply to be regarded as single-occupancy vs. multiple-occupancy dwellings / residential properties. In BE, we use the abbreviation HMO, see this Wiki article:
House in multiple occupation - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_in_multiple_occupation
Houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), also known as houses of multiple occupancy, is a British English term which refers to residential properties where ...
...since the crux of the matter appears to be a question of sound isolation.
'one family' definitiely implies a building that is separate from any other, while the implication of '2-family' is that it is 2 dwellings joined together.
As the headquarters is CH, it seems likely this is a dubious tranlsation into EN from the DE term as mentioned elsewhere.
This is why it was important to know the origin of the text, as I don't think this is necessarily following normal US practice.
"Property is split into two categories: landed properties, which are typically single-family homes; and non-landed homes, such as condominiums and apartments. Non-Singapore residents cannot buy landed property in Singapore without special approval, except in Sentosa Cove, the one area where foreigners are allowed to buy both landed and non-landed homes."
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/30/realestate/real-estate-in...
See also:
https://www.homify.sg/rooms/single-family-home
https://www.homify.sg/rooms/multi-family-house
what kind of house are they? a single storey house? a 02 storey house? are they standalone houses or multi house together?
"Single-family housing refers to properties with one to four units. [...] Multifamily housing refers to properties with five or more units."
https://www.fhfaoig.gov/Content/Files/WPR-2017-002.pdf
"'Single-family housing' means real property and improvements thereon consisting of a one, two, three or four unit dwelling, one unit of which is occupied as a principal residence by the owner of the units,..."
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/462C.02
However, at least in the U.S., there's no reason to change anything, despite what someone had said not that long ago. In German, there isn't any reason for it either.
I can find UK sources such as this one, though:
"It is proposed to split numbers 26 and 27 into two separate units at
lower ground to third floors, returning the property back to its original form as two family dwellings."
https://www.rbkc.gov.uk/idoxWAM/doc/Other-1270419.pdf?extens...
Also, I'm curious. I wouldn't call this a semidetached house (2nd family at the top): https://www.schwoererhaus.de/zweifamilienhaus
Would you?
Best
The following is an example of problems that can arise when translating across cultural contexts. Many years ago, an African friend told me he grew up in an orphanage because he didn't think I'd understand his situation of having been brought up in the compound that housed the extended family of his parents' friends, who took him in after his parents died and later adopted him. He'd got into the habit of telling people in England that he grew up in an orphanage and was then adopted, because it was easier than giving a long explanation to people who didn't know what a compound was like. It was only much later when I visited him in West Africa and met his family that he explained.
I suspect you are looking for EN-US, because a "two-family home" isn't something one tends to find in Britain, but it would be useful if you specified the version of English you want.
Apologies to Australians! I note that the terminology there is different again, as explained in the Wikipedia article above.