<p>Owing to differences in rigidity, the responses of buildings and Greenfield conditions to tunnelling are inherently distinct. Conventional methods for assessing building damage, rooted in Timoshenko's beam theory, focus on deflection ratios in hogging and sagging zones but are constrained to buildings aligned perpendicularly to tunnels. To address this limitation, this study proposes an elastic continuum solution based on Mindlin–Reissner plate theory, enabling analysis of buildings with diverse alignments. The method integrates structural components—such as floor slabs, rafts, walls, and columns—into equivalent bending and shear stiffness, while accounting for soil stiffness via average shear strain from ground volume loss. Validation through centrifuge tests and case studies demonstrates the model’s robustness in capturing soil–structure interactions, with masonry buildings exhibiting markedly higher stiffness than framed structures. A design chart is developed to relate building deflection ratios to relative stiffness, incorporating variations in geometry, alignment, soil profiles, and settlement trough shapes. Parametric analyses underscore that enhanced building stiffness significantly reduces differential settlements, particularly for perpendicular alignments, though total tilt remains governed by proximity to the tunnel—a critical consideration for urban reinforcement strategies.</p>