I would have said it is up to you, but you're in no obligation to let them in. When they gave you a bad phone number though, at that point I would say absolutely don't let them in.

I've lived in a lot of placed growing up. My mom has shown me the neighbourhoods she lived in when she was growing up and drove by her childhood home. But never have we thought it be appropriate to intrude on the people residing. These are homes. Not museums. Plus, house interiors get renovated so much, you're not going to see your furniture, so it's highly likely you're not going to get a good nostalgia feeling that you think you will. And depending on the tenancy laws where you live, you need to watch who you invite into your home. It can be harder to get them to leave if they refuse. They could be scoping out houses to rob, too. That's happened to me after an open house week. What me and my mom do is take photos of the homes we live in, both interior and exterior to look back on when we want. There's also Google Maps.

Personally I wouldn't trust strangers in my home. But for the person who said "if it meant that much ...shouldn't have sold it to me", that's cruel. I was forced to leave the only home I'd ever lived in when I got older because there was noooo wayyy I was going to rent from my abusive parents. But that was my home. I never wanted to leave, and I cry a LOT about how it looks now (ruined) and I always wanted to buy it back someday. My grandpa built that house. 17 years and I'm not over it, but I had no money and no chouce then. My parents sold my dream house so they could buy theirs.

that's why i stalk my old childhood homes on zillow. one did come up for sale at one point so had updated pictures. that satisfied my curiosity for a while. :)

We bought and renovated a run-down house when we were in our 20s. At one point, a group of women stood across the road pointing at the house, and it turned out they grew up there. We invited them in and spent a lovely time walking around the house and garden with them filling us in on what it was like growing up there. We had found some toy soldiers buried in the back yard, and it turned out they belonged to one of the women, who had buried them there when she was very young. It was wonderful hearing their stories of the house and the neighborhood. What a lost opportunity for the OP.

It happened to me once when I lived in Georgia. It was weird, but it was also special to share those memories of the community with someone firsthand. We stood on the front stoop just chatting. I lived in a rental shotgun house in the historic black neighborhood called "The Hollow" that was built up around a Presbyterian church. She was beautiful and sweet, and I enjoyed talking to her.

I think I’d be disappointed to see the house I grew up in, because it would look so different. I’d rather keep my memories of what it was.

Aquamarine1029 is clearly not a woman living alone. No concept.

I found someone on Facebook who grew up in the house I live in and invited her and her whole family over for a BBQ! She brought photos of the house from when she grew up and it was awesome. We're Facebook friends now. Other previous owners stopped by once and asked over the fence (we were in the backyard) if they could come and look. We invited them in and were happy to show them around. Their kids' handprints are in the patio in the back so it was cool to show them it was still there, even though the owners right before us had done a lot of remodeling. The only regret I have was not getting their contact info. I would have loved to have kept in touch. I feel such a strong connection to places that I love to learn the history from other people who've had the same connection. I would be thrilled to get such a note on my door.

My family often drive past places we used to live. One day, I might approach my Grandmothers old house they lived in. My grandfather had it built when he won the California Big Spin and there is a lot of fun trivia, history I could impart on the new owners if they were so inclined. I would also understand and respect their desire to not.

My brother and I were in our old neighborhood. I parked so we could walk by and look at the yard. The new owner opens the door and asks if he can help us. We said our family used to live there and we were just reminiscing. He calls my brother by his name and invites us I to see the renovations he has done. (My brother had delivered some appliance manuals that my Dad meant to leave at the house.) The new owner did an amazing job of updating the old house.

It is wierd but I have a friend who did this. They asked if they could get something they hid in a closet under a moveable piece of wood and the owners let him. It was some birth/adoption document that he hid there for safe keeping and forgot to take it when they moved. It was really cool of the owner to allow him and it was helpful that the new owner outsized my friend by alot so he felt safe letting this gangly guy enter

If I ever wanted to see my childhood home I have many photos of us as kids standing in front of it and an old driver license of my mom's to verify it, lol