How we research our Phoenix historic home guides

At a glance

Step 1: Find the questions people ask

Each guide starts with what people search for about historic homes in Phoenix, using keyword data from Ahrefs, and with the pages that already rank for those searches. Those pages set the minimum each guide has to cover, and the questions in Google's "People also ask" box are answered on the page.

Step 2: Gather the facts from the source

District boundaries, designation dates and the rules for exterior work come from the City of Phoenix Historic Preservation Office. Tax rules come from Maricopa County and the State of Arizona, and National Register listings from the National Park Service. Each page lists its sources at the end.

Step 3: How we use AI

AI-assisted research tools search for sources, read official documents, pull out the figures that matter and compare them across sources. That lets each guide go deeper than research by hand could. The tools do not decide what is true: every figure traces to a source that was opened and is listed on the page, and a figure that cannot be confirmed is left out or written as a check for you to make.

Step 4: Check every figure

Before a guide goes live, its key facts are checked against the primary source, and automated checks confirm that it lists its sources, meets Fair Housing standards, does not repeat another page and that every link works.

Step 5: Review

Every guide is reviewed by Joe Janus, and each page shows the date it was last reviewed.

Standards and corrections

Districts are described by their homes, lots, rules and costs, never by the people who live there. Yearly figures name their year. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. If a figure looks wrong, get in touch with the page and the source you are looking at.