The Higashiyama-dono villa included large-scale buildings such as meeting houses or noble family residences and, although it was not as large as Yoshimitsu ASHIKAGA's Kitayama-dono villa (that later became Rokuon-ji Temple), it also had a certain political function.
東山殿には会所、常御所（つねのごしょ）などの大規模な建物が建ち、足利義満の北山殿（後の鹿苑寺）ほどではないが、ある程度政治的機能ももっていた。