The 4th House in Astrology: All Its Meanings and Influence

The fourth house governs over family relations, domestic matters and unconscious attitudes towards stability and protection in life, revealing where and how one feels safe.

Fourth house

The 4th house of the Western zodiac is related to home, family and the parent of the same sex with the native.

Therefore, planets that are residing here indicate how family-oriented a person is, how able to learn from past mistakes and how his or her mother or father was perceived by them.

The 4th house in a nutshell:

  • Represents: The home, the family and ancestry;
  • With positive aspects: Feelings of peace of mind when in the comfort of home;
  • With negative aspects: Trouble and distraction from what really matters in the family;
  • Sun sign in the fourth house: Someone who invests all their energy in their family.

The family dynamics

The 4th house is responsible with family and home, which means all the planets or signs gathered here have an immense effect over the natives’ childhood.

This is obviously happening because family and home are the most important things for a child. While the 10th house is responsible with career, the 6th one with work and the seventh with marriage, the 4th seems to very much influence natives during their childhood.

When little, all people are heavily affected by the houses starting with 1st and finishing with the 4th.

Everything that resides in this previously mentioned house describes how the atmosphere at home will be for a person and how much the native is relaxed or obsessed with power.

The life of an individual is very much influenced by parents and the home in which he or she has grown. Since parents can have a great impact over the life of a person, the planets in the fourth house are also indicating the relationship the individuals has had with these people, when young.

Therefore, every sign and planet in the 4th house determine what type of adult a man or a woman will be and how he or she perceives his or her parents.

Obviously, these feelings are unconscious, so it can be said the 4th house connection with the home and family will seem vague for any native.

Furthermore, the same house indicates a person’s attitude towards what happened at home, even if, when an adult, all the houses seem to have an influence over this aspect. However, the emphasis will still remain on the fourth house.

This is the same place for family heritage, so anyone should pay attention to the planets and signs present here, especially if interested in what has been inherited from their ancestors.

More than this, this house is about emotions and personal achievements that bring about great satisfactions. It doesn’t only present everything natives should know about their upbringing and where they grew up, it also indicates some of the most important problems with their parent of the same sex.

Therefore, the 4th house stands for everything people are holding dear, not to mention natives with a lot of activity in this sector prefer to stick to a routine and are very scared of changes as these would disturb their peace and make them feel like they’re not belonging to any place.

While sometimes mistaken for the house that rules over traditions, the fourth one is more about closeness. When it comes to tradition, this is more represented by Capricorn and the 10th house, which happens to oppose the 4th and to give anyone a sense of responsibility, respect for the seniors and for their ancestors.

It can be said the fourth house is, at its core, related to family traditions, especially the ones that are keeping relatives together, but individuals need to be very responsible in order to feel the effects transmitted from here.

Those who want to understand the 4th house better should pay attention to their relationship with their mother and those with whom they’re feeling good, caring, happy and relaxed, especially in their most difficult times.

The closest a planet is to the cusp of this house, the deeper natives with such a position will be impacted by their life’s stories.

In fact, the cusp is related to the ancestors and reveals everything about the karma of people, including details about their present incarnation.

The fourth house is responsible for the karma individuals are having in collectives and from their line age. It can indicate what influences ancestors had over an entire family.

By looking at this house, anyone can see information about the karmic debts their family has and how these debts could be repaid. This is a house governed by the Moon, so it represents the Mother as well.

It’s a place where natives are retreating for emotional comfort and where they’re feeling the most comfortable because it represents their family. It isn’t necessarily the representative of the mother as some people were raised by their father.

Therefore, the fourth house showcases the relationship natives are having with the parent who has taken more care of them, no matter if the mother or the father.

Since many astrologers associate this house with the father, it’s suggested for each person to read his or her chart and to determine which one of the parents is more suited for this sector.

This means it’s more about the first person someone thinks about when it comes to being cared for. The more people get older, the more this house starts to indicate where they’re seeking to retreat when the everyday life becomes overwhelming.

The 4th house can be called a sanctuary, the elements present here showing how natives want to get in contact with their inner self. Having the Cancer as its sign, it shows how individuals protect themselves from external attacks.

For example, the planets and signs gathered here can suggest how people will act when buying or selling a home or when renovating.

Furthermore, it reveals how they want their ideal home to be. The 4th house shows how individuals are dealing with problems and reflecting, especially when helped by the Moon, what they can’t control in their life, what is the heritage of the family in which they’ve been born.

A birth chart with plenty of planets in the fourth house

This house can indicate what natives want to do with what they’ve inherited. When planets and signs representing creativity are present here, people with such placements are very easy to impress when being shown pictures from their childhood or told stories from those times.

It may take many individuals an entire lifetime to solve their family issues, so it’s suggested for them to look into their 4th house and to see what advantages or challenges they may have to deal with, when questioning their own development and wondering about how much their ancestors can influence them.

Some people give a lot of importance to their home because they know that not making repairs to their house can lead to this place to crumble in front of their own eyes.

As a matter of fact, this is also how relationships between members of the same family are working.

As long as individuals are not ready to keep up with what’s happening with their loved ones, it’s very likely for their relationships to go to waste.

One thing the fourth house does is remind natives to be attached to their family and to keep the connection with these people as strong as possible.

Of course, it doesn’t force anyone to call second-grade relatives every week, but it surely makes natives aware of the fact that they should talk with their parents and siblings every week, if possible.

After all, these people have been by their side ever since the moment of their birth, not to mention no one can take their family away from them.

Therefore, parents and siblings shouldn’t be taken for granted and cherished just like the Fourth house indicates.

The theme of tradition is also present in this area, so the signs and planets gathered in this house will influence how people want to progress and to make changes, without forgetting where they’re coming from.

In other words, it reminds natives to pass on what they’ve learned from their parents and ancestors.

For example, it doesn’t matter how advanced and technology-based this world tends to become, parents will always teach their children to celebrate holidays and to make a future for themselves.

It isn’t suggested to exaggerate with matters of the fourth house and to insist on tradition, but these values need to forever remain important.

What to remember about the 4th house

The 4th house is related with everything about home. It can show how this place looks like, the relationships happening here and even its location.

Furthermore, it also rules over people who will come around to visit or to give a hand with renovations. This house is also presenting how natives are bringing harmony into their domestic life.

Family is as well strongly connected with the fourth house, the same as property, the way natives are dealing with real estate and even with renting. As said before, it indicates how people get along with their parents and if their childhood has made them really happy.

Last but not least, 4th house is presenting what kind of lifestyle natives will have when older, being an interesting metaphor for how the day is ending for everyone.

The self has to be at peace with the entire world and very much centered. People are looking to feel great, from both a physical and psychological point of view.

For this reason, they’re making their home comfortable for this is the place where they’re feeling protected, surrounded by solemnity and relaxed.

Those having their own family will very much struggle to offer their loved ones a perfect home. Here, individuals are feeling they’re integrating with their own self, not to mention the house they were brought up in is very important for whom they seem to be today.

Many natives with a strong 4th house will work hard to have a place of their own, a home where they can feel comfortable and nurtured, just like they did when children.

Of course, the family history and the rules they had to respect when little are very important to them as well.

Thankfully, the roots and the ancestry are also represented by the 4th house, so it won’t be difficult for anyone to incorporate feelings and the atmosphere from when they were children into the home they’re owning as adults.

As a matter of fact, people with a powerful Fourth house could never feel comfortable and safe in a new place that doesn’t remind them in any way of their childhood.

The parents are playing a crucial role in the way adults are creating their own home. As said before, the 4th house reminds natives of how they’ve been cared for as well, so their need for comfort can’t be influenced by anyone else but their parents.

Analyzing things by looking at them from a tangible perspective, the 4th house is also about physicality because it influences how people are dealing with property and anything relating to homes, from renovation to buying furniture.

But all in all, this house is all about family, inheritance and tradition, elements that are vital for how an individual manages to develop.


Explore further

Moon in Houses: What it Meants for One’s Life

Planets in Houses: How They Determine One’s Personality

Rising Signs: Uncover the Hidden Meanings Behind Your Ascendant

Sun-Moon Combinations: Exploring Your Personality

Planetary Transits and Their Impact From A to Z

Written by Denise

Denise is an experienced practitioner of astrology, interested to discover and share with everyone how astrology can inspire and change lives. She is the Editor in Chief at The Horoscope.