How do i find the original blueprints for my house

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When homeowners decide to build a new house, it is critical to consider the original plan. There are specific reasons why this is important to any homeowner. First, the building plan of any house is essential as it shows different parts of the home. It also shows the size and the specifications of every detail, and they are necessary during remodeling projects. It will be required to buy your plan before any renovations in your home or find an expert to get it for you.

However, not all houses have blueprints, especially those which are built in rural areas. Therefore you should not strain to look for a blueprint that does not exist. But you may be asking yourself, where is the right place to find the blueprints for my house? Or you may be wondering how easy it is to find building plans for my house. If you are sure your home has an original plan, here are some of the places where you need to look for it.

1. Local Municipality Office

One best way to launch your search is by visiting the local municipality office. However, it depends on when and who created the plans. Old house plans are not likely to be in the local municipality, but sometimes you may be lucky. But your local municipality office is helpful because you can get beneficial information about your home to help you in your search.

Some city and county governments have their policies regarding blueprint online. It is possible to find that information online. When searching for that information, it is advisable to use the word property records or home records for fast results.

2. Former Owner

If you are not the first buyer of the home, another way of getting the information you want is by contacting the former owner. Sometimes you may find that the former owner of your home has those documents, making the work very easy. If the former owner does not have the architectural design, then ask them whether they have contacts of the architect or the engineer who may be having the plan. Sometimes the former owner may have gotten a loan from the bank to build the house, and the bank may still be keeping the plan.

3. Your Realtor

Your realtor or the estate agent who you worked with while purchasing your home may hasten the process for you. If the house in question is not more than 50 years, you may get the plan through a realtor. However, sometimes the house in question may have slight variations with what the realtors have.

4. Neighbours

You can also talk to your neighbors and find out what they know. In most cases, you will find houses in your neighbourhood looking familiar. The reason may be that they were designed and build by the same people. Looking at your neighbour’s house may give you the original floor plan of your home.

5. Fire Insurance Maps

In your city hall, you may find the fire insurance maps for your area. Some of the city halls have records dating many years back. You can learn a lot about your home using the fire insurance maps. Sometimes, these maps may reveal specific details like the shape and position of doors, windows, and more. If you find this job more involving than you can afford, hiring an expert to do the work for you may be the best option.

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Finding blueprints or other architectural documents for a home is a challenge even for a savvy local history researcher. However, you may be able to track down the blueprints for your home from local governments, construction firms, or architects. Even if your home is a century old and your blueprints are nowhere to be found, you can commission an architect to put together plans of your house as it currently exists. Before long, you will have access to the wealth of information contained within a set of blueprints of your home, whether new or old.

1
See if there is a local web page devoted to property records. Many city and county governments describe their policies regarding blueprints online.[1] You can find this information by searching for the name of your locale along with the words “property records” or “home records”.[2]
- The site will likely have a section about blueprints or building plans. If the webpage does not list any information about blueprints, try to locate the phone number for the city or county clerk’s office.
- Having the city or county clerk's phone number will allow you to ask about blueprints, as well as inquire about the property record that lists the builder of your home.
2
Call your local clerk’s office to ask about architectural documents. They will know whether the plans have been archived or destroyed. If they do hold onto residential blueprints, there are likely administrative fees associated with obtaining a copy.[3]
- In many places, the city or county will not have the blueprint on file, so be prepared to move on to contacting the agency that built your home.
- In Los Angeles County, for example, building plans are only kept for 90 days following the completion of a building project.[4]
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3
Ask the clerk’s office to share the name of your home’s builder. The property records for your home will almost certainly include details about what firm or firms designed and built your home. Accessing this information will allow you to contact them and request the documents.[5]
- If the clerk's office does not have this information, your mortgage company, real estate agent, or the city's zoning office may have it.

1

Locate the phone number for the builder of your home. A quick web search should reveal whether the firm is still in business, as well as how best to contact them.[6] Typically, this will be an architectural firm, a contracting firm, or a development company.[7]
- If the builder of your home is no longer in business, you will most likely have to commission a contracting firm to draw a set of plans of your home, depicting the building as it currently exists, called “As Built” plans.
2
Call the office of your home’s builder to ask about blueprints. They will need your address and at least a rough estimate of the construction date of your home, as well as whatever documentation local law requires.[8]
3
Request the blueprints if they are available. You will most likely have to submit a paper request and wait for the plans to be processed and retrieved. A local firm may ask you to pick them up, but a national company may simply mail a copy of the plans to you.[9]
- A recently built home is almost guaranteed to have a set of digital blueprints which can be sent to you via email.
- If you had success asking the firm that built your home for a set of blueprints, they may ask for a fee to share them with you. This practice is more common if you requested the plans from an architectural firm rather than a building company.

1
Find a local firm that draws up plans “As Built”.[10] This information will most likely be listed online, but it is a good idea to confirm with a phone call. As Built plans are blueprints depicting your house as it was built, including any renovations and work done since the initial construction.[11]
- As Built plans are often the best chance you will have to obtain a set of complete or partial blueprints of your home.
- Contractors may be cheaper than architects, but architects may produce more detailed plans.
- If you are planning to begin a project as soon as you have the plans, a contracting firm will likely also be able to give you a quote on the project.
2
Commission plans for your home, or part of your home. The contractor or architect will measure and locate major structural details of the area you have commissioned and either model it in drafting software or draw a 2D scale of the area on architectural paper.[12]
- The price of these plans may be high, with a common rate being roughly $0.50 USD per 1 square foot (0.093 m2), but it is typically more cost effective than attempting a large scale project without proper documentation of your home's structure.
- If you only need a particular section of your home to be drawn up in blueprint form, you will save the time and money it would take for a contracting firm to do a commission of the entire building.
3
Draw a plan of your own if “As Built” plans are too costly. It is possible to draw a simple floorplan or blueprint of a section of the house yourself, particularly if you are only planning on doing a minor remodeling project. You will measure all of the walls and fixtures and use grid paper to scale them. [13]
- Be sure to include the thickness of walls and insulation in a blueprint, as well as electrical outlets and estimates of the location of major pipes and wires. You can use a stud finder to locate beams in the walls if necessary.
- Drawing your own plans by hand is tricky, and requires a great deal of precision. Be careful that you accurately depict your home's structure in the blueprints.

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Reader Success Stories

William Holliday
Dec 26, 2019
"I was in a rental house that I loved, so I decided to buy some property and build my own to live in. The info I got..." more