To discover the age of your house you need to look at the visual clues and the documentary evidence
If you are a home owner and  interested in finding out the age of the house you are living in you may already have lots of information about it.
Start by looking at the title deeds and the bundle of documents your solicitor gave you when you moved in to your home. which should (but not always) contain details of past transactions.
​ If you don’t have them, they may be held by your mortgage provider or solicitor. Check to see if they have got any papers relating to your home. You can request a copy of your title deeds from the Land Registry - request a copy here
Your local library or history Centre may have some information.
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Next talk to your neighbours to see if someone has more information or has already researched their house or the area. See if they know more about the history of the street or village.
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lf you cannot  find any of the information listed above it is time to broaden the search. Go to the Trace my House website for more details ​​

For Visual Clues click here

Free to View Records

Findmypast has almost 1 billion records that are free to view! Explore Census Records, Parish Records and Military Records from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Search the 1881 Census to find the history of your or your ancestor's house. If you would like to access these free records simply  click here 

Other ways to discover the
​age of  your house

If you live in
​RENTED PROPERTY

If your home is rented it doesn't mean you cannot find out more about it. You will not have access to the title deeds or any other documentary evidence, but there are ways round this.
Firstly, get in touch with the landlord. He may have already looked at the history or be willing to share what he does know with you. 
If not you can still get some  information from the Land Registry. For more  about how to do this follow the link to the  Trace my House website
  • ​Your deeds if you have them could give you information about the history of the house. If you do not have them ask your solicitor or your landlord.
  • You should try the land registry to find out if they have deeds and title registry information
  • If you have a mortgage, your survey may say how old the building is, but be aware surveyors can get this wrong.
  • Your local authority may have a record of when planning permission was granted.
  • Ask neighbours in the same sort of properties if they know the age of theirs.
  • If your house is old it may be found in the  1862 Act Register on HM Land Registry’s digital archives. This contains information on 2,000 properties, which are free to search.
  • Look at the architectural style and features of the house, particularly the roof and position of windows Help is provided on this site click here.
  • Look at census returns made at ten-year intervals between 1841 and 1911 to find a first mention of the address.The 1891 census is free on Find my Past 
  • Check your Parish Records, County Record offices or your local library which may have local archives.
  • Check historical editions of Ordnance Survey maps.
  • Contact a local history society to see if they can help you.​
All of this and more is covered in the free to use Trace My House website
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