The house that I am living in/working on was built long before 4X8 anything was on the market. The studs are full sized 2X4 red oak and it has the old beadboard overlay inside and shiplap outside. 8"3" ceilings make it a bitch to add new drywall and studs.

My question to the board is, when did the housing industry go to 16" centers and 4X8 sheet materials?

I will be helping my in laws house hunt this weekend and would like to know a general cutoff date for construction so we can cull the houses that are suspect.

Thanks.

No building experts out there?

How about norman74? I think he's an architectual engineer.

I actually think it varies by area. Here in Kansas, I need to be rated for X amount of wind, but certainly not earthquakes or hurricanes. (As an example)
Your best bet will be to go talk to your local court house building code inspectors or talk to a home inspector to see what laws apply to your specific area, and when those laws took effect.

I am actually a project manager for a commercial conctractor that happens to have a BA in architecture and an MS is construction management.

With that said, I have no idea when it was standardized.  A good bet though would be to measure things like floor to ceiling height as you mentioned.  You could find a house built after the "cutoff" that's still got whacked dimensions.  Especially if you go back a bit and things have settled and shifted.

If this is really a concern for you, you're opening a whole can of worms.  Window can be another nightmare.  Houses built as recently as the '70s can have windows that are not sized to today's standards.  Which makes buying blinds and other window coverings, as well as replacement window, a custom prospect (meaning more expensive).