- 1). Look at the flooring for clues on the age of the house. Asphalt tile flooring became popular in homes from the 1920s to the 1960s. From 1930 to about 1976, vinyl became the choice for flooring. Linoleum sheet flooring was used extensively between 1890 and 1960. In more recent times, Pergo flooring was first used in the United States in 1994 (www.inspectapedia.com). Flooring is a great indicator of when a house was built as long as the flooring has not been redone.
- 2). Determine the house's architectural style. Understanding what style of home you have will help you determine the era in which the house was built.
- 3). Check out the house's meter reader. There will be the year in which the meter was placed on the home. Unless the meter has not been changed or updated, you will be able to determine a good estimate of when the home was built.
- 4). Talk to neighbors. Many of your neighbors may have a lot of knowledge regarding the homes in the neighborhood. The house could have been the house that they grew up in, it could have been handed down to them from an older generations, or they may have already done the work in finding the age of their home. Since most homes on one block are built within a year or two of each other (unless it's an old farm house and a neighborhood was built around it), knowing a neighboring house's age will tell you a close estimate of the age of your house.
- 5). Check public records for the specific age of your house. The construction and building of homes is public record. You can go to your county's Assessor's office or the county courthouse and find all the details of your home. With a little help from the workers, you can find not only the age, but the previous inhabitants as well.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -