There might be many reasons why we want to search for someone’s information based on a specific address. One common motive is to reconnect with a childhood friend. As illustrated in one forum post, a user was seeking online help in locating a long-lost friend with only their name and an address from 25 years ago¹.

Alternatively, you may want to find out who lives at a certain address. In one real-life case, a user discovered unclaimed funds for their deceased relatives; however, the associated address is unrecognized. Uncertain about the next steps in this complex situation, the user sought help on how to investigate the address through the forum².

In either case, you’d need to run a reverse address lookup. This post will guide you through how to use online resources for this purpose, step by step. Read on to learn more…

1. Search Public Records

If you want to know who owns a property that you’re interested in, you can also search for online public records. This may take some time and effort, but it’s totally free!

You can start with the county property assessor. Just Google your county name and property assessor to see if they have a website where you can search for property tax records.

For example, you can search for “la property assessor” in Google and go to the Los Angeles County Assessor website. Then type the address in the search field and hit SEARCH. This will give you the names of the people who own the house and how much tax they pay.

Similarly, you can also find the property owner by checking with the county clerk. The county clerk’s office has documents associated with the property, such as deeds, and other useful information.

2. Use Common Search Engines

If you know a few web tricks, a simple search with common search engines such as Google, Bing, and Duckduckgo can also bring up valuable information such as the property owner’s name, email address or even phone number.

Simply type the address into different search engines to see if you can find any useful information associated with it. While the information you found may not be 100% accurate or updated, this easy method can sometimes uncover information about the property – which can be extremely helpful when you’re considering buying the house.

3. Try a Reverse Address Lookup

Another way to look up someone based on an address is with a dedicated people search tool. These tools, designed specifically to search for people-related information, compile information from government records, social media, and other online public directories.

We’ve tested a dozen people search tools, and we’ve found both free and paid tools you can try. Let’s start with the best free reverse address lookup – True People Search.

True People Search

True People Search offers free people searches for anyone who is after basic information such as names, phone numbers, email addresses, and home addresses.

Using this tool is very easy – you don’t need to register an account to perform the search. However, be aware that ad sponsorships fund these free services, so the site contains numerous advertisements.

For example, below is a report I received from True People Search. It first displays property details such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, estimated value, and so on. This is very helpful for anyone who is looking to rent or buy a property. Following this, it reveals the owner’s name, address history, phone numbers, email addresses, property details, relatives, associates, and neighbors, all at no extra charge. For a free people search tool, the details you can get from True People Search are pretty impressive.

BeenVerified

BeenVerified is the best paid reverse address lookup during our test. It provided a treasure trove of information with just a few clicks, and almost never completely failed to find someone.

To find more detailed information on a property owner, type the address into the search engine. Look through the list of possible owners and click on the closest match.

A detailed BeenVerified background report might be able to reveal the person’s full name, age, contact details, court records, sex offender information, social media accounts, and many more when available.

Conclusion

There are many ways to conduct a reverse address search. It depends on whether you want to spend your time or your money finding the information. If you don’t have the time or patience to search through all the pages and you want accurate results, start with a reverse address lookup tool. If you prefer free methods, check out how to search for public records and use Google or social media to find the information you need.

1. Blumoon. (2007, Jun 4). What’s the best way to reverse trace 25yr old address? (location, records) [Online forum post]. CityData. https://www.city-data.com/forum/people-search/92376-whats-best-way-reverse-trace-25yr.html ↩︎
2. katnip kid. (2015, Aug 31). Help! How do I find out who lived at an address? (search, blood) [Online forum post] CityData. https://www.city-data.com/forum/genealogy/2438750-help-how-do-i-find-out.html ↩︎