Industry
Historic building materials: five lessons restoration crews keep learning
Five lessons about old-house materials: learn from other building types, match softness, source early, keep offcuts, and record what you cannot identify.
Desk
Research Desk
Dating a house and finding what it looked like.
Maintenance
Historic Home Materials Maintenance by Season
A historic home materials maintenance routine by season, with masonry, metal and wood checks, repair priorities, coating care, and safe-cleaning guidance.
Rules
Old-House Restoration: Canadian Heritage and CRA Tax Rules
A Canadian guide to old-house restoration: how heritage designation works, who keeps the register, and which CRA forms and rules apply.
Costs
What plasterers, carpenters, window specialists and masons charge for a historic home in Canada
Price ranges in Canada for plaster, carpentry, window and masonry work on a historic home, with unit rates, regional differences and CRA tax treatment.
Maintenance
3 inspection seasons for prairie old houses in Calgary and Winnipeg
Plaster-wall repair in Calgary and Winnipeg starts with knowing how prairie temperature swings crack plaster and rot wood, and when to inspect.
Guides
Heritage Home Renovation Grants Canada: Alberta and Toronto
Heritage home renovation grants in Canada, worked through Alberta's conservation grants and Toronto's Heritage Grant: caps, owner shares, forms, deadlines.
Costs
Historic Home Tax Credit: What Renovation Costs Qualify?
Historic home tax credit renovation costs depend on which expenditures qualify and whether the building produces income. Here is how the 20 percent credit works.
Rules
What Lead Paint Rules Apply When Renovating an Old House?
Lead paint rules for old house renovation: who certifies the firm, what triggers the EPA RRP rule, and what happens when a crew skips the rule.
Rules
Old House Asbestos Inspection Rules Canada: Ontario, BC & MB
Old house asbestos inspection rules Canada vary by province. Here’s what applies in Ontario, British Columbia, and Manitoba, from surveys to clearance testing.
Guides
Restoration Costs Checklist: Which Records to Keep
A restoration costs checklist for old-house owners: the bids, contracts, permits, payment records, lien waivers and closeout paperwork worth keeping.
Features
Old house projects timeline: slower than owners expect
An old house projects timeline: the review cycles, permit queues, material lead times and seasonal windows that stretch the work, and how to plan around them.
Rules
Old house projects rules: permits and approvals
Old house projects rules vary by location. Learn common building, trade, zoning and historic-district approvals, plus when federal Section 106 review applies.
Guides
Old House Projects Planning: Scope Through Closeout
Old house projects planning, from written scope and investigation to permits, historic review, job sequencing, protection, and closeout records.