How to tell estimate house age in Rightmove ad

SunnyCat

I do understand that buying an older house doesn't immediately mean they were built with great care and indeed they come with their own issues. When we find a house we want to buy, we are planning to have a full survey done, etc.

Anyway, here's one link for you... how old do you think think house is? I'm thinking 1990s/2000s?

kinger101

Most likely between 1985 and 1995 I'd guess, but could be a few years either side.

I don't think 2000s as no developer would have those ghastly faked leaded windows after the 1990s. Ditto cream bathroom suite.

Mutton_Geoff

SunnyCat wrote: »

I do understand that buying an older house doesn't immediately mean they were built with great care and indeed they come with their own issues. When we find a house we want to buy, we are planning to have a full survey done, etc.

Anyway, here's one link for you... how old do you think think house is? I'm thinking 1990s/2000s?

I don't like those 1980s houses, even the brown timber windows were so badly constructed that the double glazed panes were held in by thin strips of wood fixed to the outside of the window frame so it was an easy job to pry them out to get access to the house!


At that age, it's going to be due a boiler, plumbing upgrades, the electrics will likely be one or two double sockets per room, the double glazing be at end of life with panels blowing. The insulation standards will be lower than today etc etc.


I wouldn't get too hung up on the age of a house particularly if you're talking anything mass contructed in the last 60/70 years, they will all have their quirks.


If you want to know the exact date it was built, pull the ashtray out and look at the date stamp underneath. Ooops, that's cars!

SuperMoose

SunnyCat wrote: »

I do understand that buying an older house doesn't immediately mean they were built with great care and indeed they come with their own issues. When we find a house we want to buy, we are planning to have a full survey done, etc.

Anyway, here's one link for you... how old do you think think house is? I'm thinking 1990s/2000s?

The sold price listings on Rightmove go back only to 1995.
Another property at Threshers Corner sold in 1995 so presumably the houses were built before then.

davidmcn

kinger101 wrote: »

Most likely between 1985 and 1995 I'd guess, but could be a few years either side.

Yes, I would have said it looks late 80s/early 90s - and if you look at the council's planning site, you'll find the planning consent for the development granted in 1989, so probably built shortly after that.

epinjy

https://maps.cdrc.ac.uk/#/metrics/dwellingage/default/BTTTFFT/10/-0.1500/51.5200/
Seems to give a reasonably accurate picture of the eras areas were built. It gives the most common property build date for an area - so obviously some houses in the area wont be built during that era but in those cases its usually quite easy to tell just by looking at the house. It's also fun to look at and see how towns have expanded over time!

SunnyCat

Brilliant, thank you all! I will share the link again if another one comes up!

Davesnave

epinjy wrote: »

https://maps.cdrc.ac.uk/#/metrics/dwellingage/default/BTTTFFT/10/-0.1500/51.5200/
Seems to give a reasonably accurate picture of the eras areas were built. It gives the most common property build date for an area - so obviously some houses in the area wont be built during that era but in those cases its usually quite easy to tell just by looking at the house. It's also fun to look at and see how towns have expanded over time!

Unfortunately, this doesn't work for my home town, which I left in 1968. There are only two categories shown: unknown age and 2000 to 2009, yet whole estates that existed in 1968 and well-established by then are shown in the latter category. There are certainly whole roads that are 50 years out.

Others may have a different experience of it to share, but all it does in my town is divide property into 'post war' and 'earlier.'

Tom99

epinjy wrote: »

https://maps.cdrc.ac.uk/#/metrics/dwellingage/default/BTTTFFT/10/-0.1500/51.5200/
Seems to give a reasonably accurate picture of the eras areas were built. It gives the most common property build date for an area - so obviously some houses in the area wont be built during that era but in those cases its usually quite easy to tell just by looking at the house. It's also fun to look at and see how towns have expanded over time!

That's an interesting map and based on the information the VOA hold on their system which will be a staff members view on age rather than definite build date information.
Seem fairly accurate in most places although one area of 1930's housing need me is coloured 2010-15 which is I suspect a slip of the highlighter pen rather than whats recorded on the VOA system

getmore4less

SunnyCat wrote: »

Is there a way to tell how old a house when looking at an advert online? Sometimes it's quite obvious, either the ad will say "1930s semi" or you can tell from the decor that the house hasn't been redecorated since 1970s so it must be at least that old... On the other hand, if the house is "in a popular development" or has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms or the houses next to it look identical, it's likely 2000s+ new build.

Other than this sort of detective work, is there a way to find out what decade the house is from?

I start with the planning portal, from that you can often do further research.

Recent stuff is easy there will be planning permissions, you can often find the developers promotion material is still around on-line or newspaper articles about the sites.

Older stuff you are looking for clues that may indicate something about the site you can google for archive material.