Finding out when your property was built can be useful when getting a quote for a mortgage or for insurance purposes, as well as just for general interest. Here are the different ways that you can find out the age of your property.
How do I find out when a house was built?
If you want to find out when a house was built, the best thing to do is look at the title deeds. These deeds prove the ownership of the property and will also include details about when the property was sold to the first owner. If you currently own the property, you should already have received the title deeds from the conveyancer after the sale was completed.
Even if you do not own the property, there are still ways that you can find out the age of the property.
How can I find out when a house was built through HM Land Registry?
HM Land Registry is a national register of all owned land and property across England and Wales, keeping records of ownership for 87% of England and Wales’ landmass. For anyone wanting to buy a property, sell a property, or take out a mortgage, they need to register a chance of ownership status with HM Land Registry.
If you are looking for details about when a house was built, you can look at the HM Land Registry website; all you need to know is the property address. For any registered properties, you will be able to discover how old the property is by looking at the date of the first transfer. If the property is in Scotland or Northern Ireland, there are different land registries which work in the same way.
Searching for property information using HM Land Registry costs £3 and allows you to download the title register of the property. Payment can be made online using a debit or credit card.
In addition to finding out the property age, you can also discover the general land boundaries of the property and the property’s flood risk indication on HM Land Registry.
How else could I find out when the property was built?
On the off chance that the HM Land Registry does not have an answer for you, you could also find out when your property was built using your mortgage survey or by contacting your local authority. Mortgage surveys will typically indicate the date that the house was first built. Local authorities could also provide this information as they have access to planning permission grants.
If you live in a listed building, for example a Grade II or Grade II* listed building, you could refer to the National Heritage List for England. This is the official register of any nationally protecting historic buildings or land across England. If your property is listed there, there will be a record of the age of your property.
Can I find the previous owners of my house?
If you wanted to, it is also possible for the majority of properties to find information about the property’s previous owners using a historical title register. You can search the HM Land Registry database to find out who owned the property during certain dates.
Finding the previous owners of your home could be useful if you have questions about the property. For example, it can help you determine if problems you are experiencing have happened before which, in turn, could help you when finding a solution.
Previous owners could also help you discover the accurate age of the property in the case that you are struggling to find out the information.
