Countless homeowners (as well as renters) are trying to learn more about the history of their homes. There are several reasons why one might want to do this, from the desire to feel more connected to the place they live in to assessing the historical significance of the property, hoping it might increase its value.
Regardless of why you want to learn the history of your house, we will explain how you can do this in this article. Continue reading to get our insights into discovering your house’s history.
Can I Find the History of My House?
It is more than possible to find the history of your house. You can take numerous actions to learn more about the past of your house. However, none of the actions you can take for this will reveal the whole picture, but rather pieces of it. Because of this, it is important to be realistic about what you can find out about the history of your house, one try after another.
How to Find the History of Your House
There isn’t just one way to find the history of your house. Here are some of the most effective ways for learning more about the history of your house, whether it is for legal reasons or simply satisfying your curiosity.
Visit Your County Recorder’s Office for Deeds and Titles
Your local county recorder’s office (or the land registry office) will have the deeds and title transfers of your house, which will give you a list of all the previous owners. You can then research the previous owners to get an idea of what might have occurred in the house. After all, there may be a significant event that will increase the property value more than you expect.
From the county recorder’s office, you can also get the parcel maps to see the property boundaries. If there have been any changes over time, you will know about them from these documents. Lastly, you can find out if any of the previous owners used a mortgage to purchase the house at the time, which can help you trace the ownership timeline.
Ask Neighbors, Longtime Residents, and Realtors in the Area
When most people think about the history of their homes, they sometimes forget that asking neighbors, longtime residents, and realtors in the area can be more successful than anything else. Simply ask about the previous residents and if there were any significant historical events to your next-door neighbor to find out if they know anything that involved your house.
In addition to people nearby, you can check your local community for historians and genealogy enthusiasts to find out if they know anything about the history of your house.
Run an Address Search Online
Another way to learn more about the history of your house is by running an address search online. However, you can’t just enter your house address on Google and expect it to spill out the history of it. You must use a specialized tool like UnMask.com’s address search in order to learn more about the history of your property.
Although exactly how these tools work varies, most use public records and publicly available web pages to put together a report about an address, which might include historical details. Since you will get a complete report about your house, anything historically significant will appear there, allowing you to investigate further.
History of My House: Your Questions Answered
Our article answered how you can find the history of your house. With every one of our tips, you will get closer to the true history of your house, learning something new about it every step of the way. If one doesn’t work for you, move on to the next one. For example, if neighbors or realtors in the area don’t know anything about your house, don’t just give up, thinking that there’s nothing worthwhile investing in.
Visit your local county recorder’s office and enter your address on a reliable address search tool like UnMask to discover the history of your house. Even if there isn’t anything historically significant that would appear immediately, you will at least get a full list of the previous owners to dig further.