Equal houses

Definition

Equal houses are the astrological system in which each of the twelve houses measures exactly thirty degrees of the zodiac, counted from the degree of the Ascendant. The cusp of each house lands thirty degrees after the previous one, with perfect mathematical symmetry. Classical astrology used the system as a geometric simplification of the house layout, and modern astrology keeps it as an alternative to Placidus in extreme latitudes where other systems produce stretched and uneven houses.

In context

If your Ascendant lands at fifteen degrees of Virgo, the second house in this system begins at fifteen degrees of Libra, the third at fifteen degrees of Scorpio, and the pattern continues with a fixed step of thirty degrees per house all the way around the zodiac wheel. Unlike the whole-sign houses (where each sign forms a complete house) the equal-houses system keeps the thirty-degree width but anchors the cusp of the first house exactly at the degree of the Ascendant. It is an intermediate alternative between classical simplicity and modern geometric precision.

To go deeper

Equal houses belong to the catalog of structural systems:

• House system: category that contains them.
• Whole-sign houses: neighboring classical system.
• Cusp: the starting degree of each house.