When getting into astrology, it seems impossible to get a hold of all of the information needed to truly grasp the entirety of how to interpret what your chart means, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed beyond the basics. Once you understand your signs and the planets, what’s next? The houses of the Zodiacs are super important but are really hard to understand when a lot of the resources out there aren’t great for beginners, so I’m here to help!
There are twelve houses, and each represents a part of your life and personality. No one has a sign in every house, and that’s not a bad thing! Any house you have a placement in just means that that part of your life is highlighted, and if you don’t have a placement don’t worry – that doesn’t mean that part of your life won’t be important, amazing, and wonderful, but that that specific house isn’t as influenced by a sign. To interpret the houses, take the sign that falls into the house and apply the traits to what the house represents!
The First House
The first house is at the beginning of the wheel and will always be paired with your rising sign. This house represents a lot of firsts in life, how you make first impressions, appearance, and the body, as well as how you take leadership roles and how you feel about new beginnings, and how likely you are to take chances.
The Second House
The second house represents your work ethic, how you handle money, daily routines and habits as well as priorities, and the value you give material possessions.
The Third House
The third house rules all forms of communication, like how you talk and think in person and even how you communicate online with strangers, friends, and professional emails. The third house also rules relationships with siblings and less personal relationships like neighbors and co-workers.
The Fourth House
The fourth house is known as the foundation based on where it falls on the wheel, this house represents how you run your house, as well as your parents, and even how you’ll parent.
The Fifth House
The fifth house is what rules your self-expression, reactions, creativity, and your view on romance, and what you find fun.
The Sixth House
The sixth house rules organization in all facets. How you schedule your life, how you eat and how strict you are with diets and exercises. The sixth house gives an idea of how helpful you are and how you serve others.
The Seventh House
The Seventh house is all about relationships and rules marriage and love and your relationships with your friends! (Remember, if you don’t have a sign in this house it doesn’t mean you won’t get married, I promise!)
The Eighth House
The eighth house is deeper bonds, sharing secrets, sex, birth, death, and transformations. All about how the higher self connects to Earth and with people at a soul level.
The Ninth House
The ninth house rules travel, adventure, inspiration, and optimism. This house influences your connection with your own culture as well as the curiosity of other cultures and countries and your willingness to learn more, about everything from the people around you to religion and philosophy.
The Tenth House
The tenth house is known as the Midheaven and gives astrologers a clue into your potential career path, as well as how you deal with authority figures and bosses. What sign falls into your tenth house also gives an idea of how you set boundaries and how strict they are.
The Eleventh House
The Eleventh house rules social justice and teamwork as well as rules originality, surprises, how you see outer space, and shows what your own personal rebellion looks like.
The Twelfth House
The final house, the opposite of the first, represents the ending of cycles. This house is a dynamic house that covers a lot of different parts of life, This house covers tying up loose ends, your view on the afterlife, getting old, and losing your freedom. It also rules institutions and jails, your own hidden agendas, and potential enemies. And it also rules the imagination, the subconscious mind, and the arts.
There are a lot of houses and a lot of traits to keep track of, so I hope that these simple descriptions help you begin your journey on learning your chart and the ways the stars affect all of these different parts of your life.