Auvergne farmhouses are built with local materials. Foundations are made up of local stones. The very particularity of Auvergne is the Lauze or lava tiles found on roofs, as well as some tiled roofs. Those stone materials were used to cover roofs, either with schist, volcanic tuff, limestone or sandstone – all local materials prepared on building sites after being carted there from working sites, quarries, outcrops and various rocky massifs. Because sloping roofs in schistose Lauze slates are very heavy and need sturdy frames, alternative solutions in the form of limestone arches and domes are frequent in vernacular buildings in Mediterranean Europe.
These Auvergne properties are often organized around a square front farmyard. They are of rectangular shape. The farmyard is originally closed, a wide wooden gate allowing access for large vehicles. Nowadays most courtyards have vanished and a garden replaces them. Farming and breeding animals was the main activity of the original inhabitants and thus the architecture was adapted to their needs.
The living area is often located on the first floor of these French traditional houses, that can be accessed via outside stone stairs. The front façade of the farmhouse is made of stone and Pisé (rammed earth). Windows are of medium dimensions with small window-panes.