Great day to be retired.............

[W2R]

Olders homes are probably not as well insulated. For instance, my house, built in 1985, uses 6" studs for the outer wall, allowing a bit more insulative value. Also, the windows are double-pane.

Other possible disadvantages include lead-based paint, asbestos, old and under-powered electrical systems (i.e. a 60A fusebox), old and underpowered (not to mention inefficient) HVAC and appliances, etc....

That makes sense. I hadn't really thought of asbestos, either - - an older home could have that, and it could be pretty expensive to have it removed. Thanks! It's good to know a little more about what to expect.

For some reason, I thought that 1960's houses might have better insulation than 1980's houses. Sometimes older homes seem to have more soundproof walls than newer homes. But then, good insulation has become more and more important to buyers as years go by.

Thanks. See? I KNEW that somebody here would know about these things.

 

[Goonie]

Of course, W2R, you might come across an old house like ours. It was built in the VERY early 1900's (the aughts or teens) with NO insulation. However, NOW it's loaded with insulation! The walls and attic were insulated when the folks remodeled in the late 1950's. The house was wrapped and had insulated siding put on in the early 70's. In the late 70's or early 80's I put another 12" of insulation in the attic. We have thermo-panes all the way around plus storm windows, as well as insulated entry doors. Had new electric service installed about 5 years ago. New plumbing was installed, along with new energy efficient furnace & water heater, in the late 90's.

So sometimes older is better!

 

[W2R]

Of course, W2R, you might come across an old house like ours. It was built in the VERY early 1900's (the aughts or teens) with NO insulation. However, NOW it's loaded with insulation! The walls and attic were insulated when the folks remodeled in the late 1950's. The house was wrapped and had insulated siding put on in the early 70's. In the late 70's or early 80's I put another 12" of insulation in the attic. We have thermo-panes all the way around plus storm windows, as well as insulated entry doors. Had new electric service installed about 5 years ago. New plumbing was installed, along with new energy efficient furnace & water heater, in the late 90's.

So sometimes older is better!

What a great house! I'll remember it when I am looking, and I'll look for upgrades like that. I love the older homes.

 

[Rambler]

W2R
you can find those very old homes that have been updated (as Goonie mentions). If you were looking for something newer (i.e., with better electrical service, tv cabling, etc) as well as the better insulation, I think you would probably want to look at 1980+. I did insulation for new homes in a cold part of Utah in anout 1980. I think there were some Fed laws passed not too long before that mandating certain levels of insulation. Back then, 2x4 walls were R11, and 2x6s were usually insulated to R19. You can always have attic insulation blown in (assumes you have an attic-you cannot insulate if you have no attic, unless you add a lower ceiling), and it is reasonable in ROI terms, but redoing walls to insulate is an expensive proposition, that CAN lead to unsightly scars on your walls. One way to check is to pull the cover off of an electrical outlet on an outer wall, measure the depth of the wall stud, and check for fiberglass. It should be pretty tight around the electrical outlet., and if it is not you may end up with drafts or cold spots.

hope this helps.

R

 

[W2R]

W2R
you can find those very old homes that have been updated (as Goonie mentions). If you were looking for something newer (i.e., with better electrical service, tv cabling, etc) as well as the better insulation, I think you would probably want to look at 1980+. I did insulation for new homes in a cold part of Utah in anout 1980. I think there were some Fed laws passed not too long before that mandating certain levels of insulation. Back then, 2x4 walls were R11, and 2x6s were usually insulated to R19. You can always have attic insulation blown in (assumes you have an attic-you cannot insulate if you have no attic, unless you add a lower ceiling), and it is reasonable in ROI terms, but redoing walls to insulate is an expensive proposition, that CAN lead to unsightly scars on your walls. One way to check is to pull the cover off of an electrical outlet on an outer wall, measure the depth of the wall stud, and check for fiberglass. It should be pretty tight around the electrical outlet., and if it is not you may end up with drafts or cold spots.

hope this helps.

R

That is a TREMENDOUS help!!! Thank you so much. Yes, I was concerned about the outer wall insulation mostly, since attic insulation is easily added.

I don't care so much about the TV cabling (my present home is vintage 1972, and I had cable TV brought into the house from the street and a cable outlet installed in every room by the cable company for just $150 in 2002 - - pretty cheap, so I expect that even with inflation I could afford to have that done in the new house).

I'd rather avoid the aluminum wiring that my present house has, though, which I believe would mean avoiding many of the houses built in the 1970's. That's why I am thinking 1960's vs 1980's.

Sounds like what I want is a house built in the 1980's, probably. That may be a little tougher to find in the neighborhoods I am thinking of, but I could probably find one.

 

[myself]

That is a TREMENDOUS help!!! Thank you so much. Yes, I was concerned about the outer wall insulation mostly, since attic insulation is easily added.

I don't care so much about the TV cabling (my present home is vintage 1972, and I had cable TV brought into the house from the street and a cable outlet installed in every room by the cable company for just $150 in 2002 - - pretty cheap, so I expect that even with inflation I could afford to have that done in the new house).

I'd rather avoid the aluminum wiring that my present house has, though, which I believe would mean avoiding many of the houses built in the 1970's. That's why I am thinking 1960's vs 1980's.

Sounds like what I want is a house built in the 1980's, probably. That may be a little tougher to find in the neighborhoods I am thinking of, but I could probably find one.

Houses in the built 1990's did NOT have asbestos (it was outlawed by then).
Houses in the 1970's (or before) might have had paint.

We're finishing up rehabing a house that was built in the late 1800's or early 1900's (no real record of it's construction date). It had plaster walls with no insulation and limited heating, and no A/C (in the NorthEast, that makes things a lot more comfortable). Suprisingly enough when we had it tested, there was no lead paint, and no asbestos flooring. It did have 1 electrical outlet upstairs (which was supposedly good enough for 3 bedrooms.

 

[W2R]

Houses in the built 1990's did NOT have asbestos (it was outlawed by then).
Houses in the 1970's (or before) might have had paint.

We're finishing up rehabing a house that was built in the late 1800's or early 1900's (no real record of it's construction date). It had plaster walls with no insulation and limited heating, and no A/C (in the NorthEast, that makes things a lot more comfortable). Suprisingly enough when we had it tested, there was no lead paint, and no asbestos flooring. It did have 1 electrical outlet upstairs (which was supposedly good enough for 3 bedrooms.

Sounds like you have your work cut out for you!! I love the built-ins, molding, and woodwork in older homes, but I just don't have the skills or motivation necessary to upgrade a late 1800's or early 1900's home to modern standards. Plus, I should qualify that by saying I love them but not their bathrooms! I am no fan of clawfoot tubs, probably because I am old enough to remember when many homes had them.