Our first home was a "Split Level Home". These homes are also described as "Split Foyers" and sometimes "Raised Ranch". They offer an efficient and effective use of square feet.
The lower level, commonly known as the basement is raised to allow for larger windows on the front as well as the back of the house. It makes a more pleasant living space than a typical basement.
When we built this home we didn't have a lot of moneyso I designed our "Split level" with an apartment in the lower level. The apartment has its own entrance on the side of the house and takes up about 2/3 of the lower level. That leaves a nice sized room with a sliding glass door to the backyard.
Financially it made more sense to build this new home with an apartment, than to buy an older home without an apartment.
Some of the features of this home include: (1) the main level has 1200 square feet (2) Three bedrooms and one bath on the main level (3) One bedroom apartment on lower level (4) an attached two car garage.
The home I'm describing fit nicely on a gently sloping lot. The deepest part of the lower level was about 4' in the ground on the front of the home. The back and the side have walkouts at grade level.
We lived in this home for 7 years. The rental income made this design work for us quite well while we lived in it.
This style is often used for starter homes. From my experience I think they're a very good choice.