Step 1 :Given that the value of the house in 1985 was $118,000 and in 2005 it was $155,000, we can use the formula for exponential growth to find the annual growth rate. The formula is \(V = P * e^{rt}\), where \(V\) is the final value, \(P\) is the initial value, \(r\) is the rate of growth, and \(t\) is the time.
Step 2 :Substituting the given values into the formula, we get \(155000 = 118000 * e^{20r}\). Solving this equation for \(r\), we find that \(r\) is approximately 0.013637024622679095.
Step 3 :The annual growth rate is therefore approximately \(1.36\%\).
Step 4 :We can then use this growth rate to find the value of the house in 2010. Substituting the values into the formula, we get \(V_{2010} = 118000 * e^{25*0.013637024622679095}\), which gives us a value of approximately $165937.3388077908.
Step 5 :Therefore, the value of the house in the year 2010 was approximately \(\boxed{\$165,937}\).