Blog
Dating a residential property
Monday 23rd November 2020
Joshua Pearce Ba Hons
Location: Stanmore
Dating a residential property is an important part of conducting a survey. One of the best ways to do this is by looking at the bonding of the brickwork. The bond is the arrangement of brickwork by the pattern of headers (the shorter face of the brick) and stretchers (the longer face of the brick). The most common form of bond on historic buildings is Flemish Bond this was used right to the 50s but was replaced by modern cavity walls, which are built in the monotonous Stretcher Bond.
The stretcher bond first appeared in the 1880s and can be a common misconception that it wasn't used until the 60s. However, this bond was used in the 1930's housing boom, though not quite to the scale of the Flemish bond; the Stretcher bond with cavity construction can crop up in suburban areas such as Stanmore.
Furthermore, if properties have a render, cladding or anything obstructing the viewing of the brickwork, it is possible to use other methods of dating. Example of which is each era had different styles, construction practices used; understanding these it is possible to date the property. Naming a few of the most common eras found in London, Edwardian 1901 - 1918, Victorian 1837 - 1910 and Regency 1811 - 1820.
