Precolonial Ndebele homesteads (imizi) were organized along three-generational patrilinear agnatic lines. It seems that these might have extended into large localized lineages (iikoro) under the social and ritual leadership of the senior male member. During and after the indentured period, the three-generational homestead remained popular despite restrictions in size and number imposed by White landlords. The homestead consists of a number of houses (izindlu) representing various households and centered around a cattle enclosure (isibaya). Other structures in the homestead include the boys' hut (ilawu), various smaller huts for girls behind each house (indlu), and granaries. Each house complex was separated from the other by an enclosure called the isirhodlo. This enclosure was subdivided along gender lines into a men's section in the front and a domestic (cooking) area (isibuya) at the back.
Precolonial Ndebele structures were of the thatched beehive-dome type. Since the late 1800s, Ndebele have adopted a cone-on-cylinder type, consisting of mud walls and a thatched roof, while simultaneously reverting to a linear outlay, replacing the circular-center cattle pattern. In the current rural settlement pattern, the nuclear-family single house built on a square stand predominates, occasionally with provision for two or more extra buildings. A wide range of modern building material and designs have been introduced, including modern services and infrastructure.