Minnesota has a better claim to this style than most places. A higher share of Minnesotans report Swedish (7.6%) and Finnish (1.7%) ancestry than the people of any other state, and Minnesota has the second-highest share reporting Norwegian (13.9%), according to Census figures analysed by MPR News and the APM Research Lab in 2019.
Heritage explains why the look feels at home here. It does not make it a building type. “Scandinavian” on a house plan is a design brief, and most of what it takes is decided by the designer and the details, not by a specialist builder.
What the style is
The name is younger than most of the houses it gets applied to. Sweden’s Nationalmuseum puts it this way: “When it was coined in the 1950s and promoted worldwide, the term Scandinavian Design referred to contemporary design from the Nordic countries.”
Applied to a house today, it usually means:
- A simple form. A plain gable or a box, with little trim or ornament.
- Large windows placed for daylight, often floor to ceiling in the main rooms.
- Natural materials inside: pale wood floors and ceilings, white or warm-white walls, wool, stone.
- Wood outside: vertical boards or board-and-batten, often stained dark, sometimes left pale to weather.
- Fewer, well-used rooms: an open kitchen and living space, a proper entry for boots and coats, and often a sauna.
Our 2026 design-trends article covers how the interior side of this shows up in current Twin Cities homes.
What changes when you build it here
The look travels well. The details need adjusting for a Minnesota winter.
Glass is the weak point of the envelope. A window loses far more heat than the insulated wall around it, so the big windows that define the style are where the energy code and your heating bill push back. Choose the windows early, before the plan is final; our guide to energy-efficient windows explains the ratings to ask for.
A clean gable with no overhang needs careful water management. Eaves keep rain and meltwater off the walls; without them, the flashing around windows, a drained gap behind the cladding and the gutters do that job instead. See the building envelope and gutters and downspouts, and roof pitch for how a steep roof handles snow.
Wood cladding is a maintenance decision. Stained boards need refinishing on a schedule. Boards left to weather turn grey, and not evenly: the sunny and shaded sides age at different rates. Decide which you want before you choose the species and finish.
Plan the entry for winter. A Nordic plan and a Minnesota one agree on this: a closed entry between the cold and the living space, with room for boots, coats and a bench.
A sauna is easier built in than added. An electric sauna heater needs its own circuit, and the room needs a vapour barrier and ventilation. All three are simpler to plan in the build than to add afterwards.
Who builds it
We do not have a “Scandinavian” category, and no builder in our directory lists it as a specialty. One firm names the idea on its own site: Mark D. Williams Custom Homes describes its Mysa Hus project as “Inspired by Scandinavian philosophy” (mdwilliamshomes.com, read September 28, 2026).
Beyond that, this is a style you bring to a custom builder, usually with a designer or architect. Questions worth asking:
- Can we see a modern or minimal house you have built, not a rendering? A plain house shows every trim and flashing detail that a traditional one hides.
- Which windows do you use for large openings, and what are their ratings?
- How do you detail cladding with no overhang: the gap behind the boards, the flashing at the windows, the gutters?
- Have you built a sauna, and who does its electrical and ventilation?
- Who draws the plan: your designer, our architect, or a plan we bring?
Our builders by city and the luxury builders guide list firms with their licences and specialties. Or get matched free and name the style in your brief.