Counties with the oldest homes in Georgia

Written by:
September 25, 2025
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Counties with the oldest homes in Georgia

There's an undeniable charm that comes with pre-World War II American architecture, characterized by high ceilings, crown molding, hardwood floors, and ornate details. In fact, 11.4% of all housing units in America were built in 1939 or before, showing the popularity of the preservation of these units. Owning a piece of history can sometimes come with a cost: Many old homes come with asbestos, lead piping, knob-and-tube wiring, and other outdated building styles that can rack up a hefty price tag to modernize. However, with more and more modernized pre-war homes on the market, generally located just outside bustling downtown metros, investing in property that has withstood the test of time is an attractive prospect.

Stacker compiled a list of the counties in Georgia with the oldest homes using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Counties are ranked by median year the structure was built according to 2023 5-year estimates. Ties broken by the highest percentage of homes built before 1939.

The country's domestic architecture is perhaps best characterized by a rugged individualism as opposed to the hybridization of disparate architectural elements. As Maya Angelou once perceptively observed, "the ache for home lives in all of us," a phrase that has meant very different things to different people.

Modest or palatial, there is no shortage of noteworthy homes in the U.S. Log cabins constructed by industrious pioneers have dotted the landscape alongside traditional Native American dwellings ever since immigrant Swedes introduced them to the New World in 1638. The unprecedented personal fortunes amassed by the so-called "Robber Barons" at the close of the 19th century gave way to the construction of a staggering number of Gilded Age estates.

The ravages of time spared neither the sumptuous nor the humble. Stately mansions, often prohibitively costly to maintain in the modern era, were frequently neglected; simple structures were forgotten, discarded by their owners, and damaged by natural elements. However, the tireless efforts of architectural preservationists and local historical societies have saved many of these homes from demolition, leading to their inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places and thereby safeguarding them for future generations.

Keep reading to learn more about which counties in Georgia have the oldest homes.

#50. Early County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.3% (408 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.2% (10 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,933

#49. Stewart County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.6% (181 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.6% (13 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,113

#48. Johnson County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.4% (334 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (39 homes)
- Total homes built: 3,571

#47. Troup County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.5% (2,770 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.5% (452 homes)
- Total homes built: 29,255

#46. Meriwether County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 10.4% (998 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.7% (63 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,642

#45. Crisp County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.0% (299 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.2% (119 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,902

#44. DeKalb County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.2% (10,499 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (3,755 homes)
- Total homes built: 328,614

#43. Stephens County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.8% (475 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.3% (40 homes)
- Total homes built: 12,344

#42. Wilkinson County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.3% (226 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.3% (15 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,298

#41. Polk County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 10.9% (1,883 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.1% (24 homes)
- Total homes built: 17,301

#40. Bleckley County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 2.7% (139 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.6% (29 homes)
- Total homes built: 5,235

#39. Wheeler County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 2.7% (66 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,434

#38. Pulaski County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.8% (245 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.2% (52 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,240

#37. Treutlen County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.3% (193 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.9% (23 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,652

#36. Washington County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.8% (762 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (45 homes)
- Total homes built: 8,696

#35. Screven County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.5% (625 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (70 homes)
- Total homes built: 6,545

#34. Jefferson County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.8% (699 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.0% (72 homes)
- Total homes built: 7,165

#33. Dodge County

- Median year homes built: 1981
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.3% (283 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.0% (83 homes)
- Total homes built: 8,584

#32. Emanuel County

- Median year homes built: 1981
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.0% (795 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.3% (29 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,990

#31. Irwin County

- Median year homes built: 1981
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.4% (352 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.4% (16 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,185

#30. Ben Hill County

- Median year homes built: 1981
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 10.4% (843 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.2% (14 homes)
- Total homes built: 8,135

#29. Seminole County

- Median year homes built: 1980
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.2% (160 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.2% (9 homes)
- Total homes built: 5,061

#28. Richmond County

- Median year homes built: 1980
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.7% (7,112 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.3% (1,245 homes)
- Total homes built: 92,652

#27. Dooly County

- Median year homes built: 1980
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 10.7% (515 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.3% (60 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,796

#26. Randolph County

- Median year homes built: 1980
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 16.7% (597 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 3,573

#25. Jenkins County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.2% (228 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.6% (28 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,427

#24. Clinch County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.8% (177 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (34 homes)
- Total homes built: 3,031

#23. Mitchell County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.4% (665 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.3% (29 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,042

#22. Elbert County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.5% (795 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (100 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,370

#21. Warren County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.9% (229 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.8% (20 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,572

#20. Sumter County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.1% (1,222 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 13,499

#19. Macon County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.2% (476 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.1% (5 homes)
- Total homes built: 5,148

#18. Miller County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.8% (164 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.4% (12 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,851

#17. Muscogee County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 6.2% (5,629 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (487 homes)
- Total homes built: 91,288

#16. Walker County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.8% (2,296 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.0% (283 homes)
- Total homes built: 29,452

#15. Wilcox County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 11.6% (402 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.2% (6 homes)
- Total homes built: 3,457

#14. Baker County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 13.0% (185 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.4% (5 homes)
- Total homes built: 1,419

#13. Chattahoochee County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 16.3% (473 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,902

#12. Ware County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.8% (764 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (83 homes)
- Total homes built: 15,926

#11. Floyd County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.7% (3,155 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.6% (258 homes)
- Total homes built: 40,763

#10. Telfair County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.3% (394 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,756

#9. Chattooga County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.4% (909 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.6% (171 homes)
- Total homes built: 10,883

#8. Calhoun County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 11.1% (226 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 2,033

#7. Turner County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 13.7% (539 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.7% (26 homes)
- Total homes built: 3,921

#6. Bibb County

- Median year homes built: 1976
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.9% (6,424 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.7% (472 homes)
- Total homes built: 71,869

#5. Wilkes County

- Median year homes built: 1976
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.7% (503 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (0 homes)
- Total homes built: 5,210

#4. Upson County

- Median year homes built: 1976
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 14.4% (1,783 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.1% (18 homes)
- Total homes built: 12,373

#3. Dougherty County

- Median year homes built: 1975
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.5% (1,438 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.3% (133 homes)
- Total homes built: 40,631

#2. Terrell County

- Median year homes built: 1975
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 14.6% (619 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (20 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,241

#1. Taliaferro County

- Median year homes built: 1975
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 15.5% (153 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (5 homes)
- Total homes built: 984

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