Is There a Limit to How Old a House Can Be?

by Eileen
(Stuarts Draft, VA)

We are interested in purchasing a home that was built in 1860. Is there an age limit as to how old a house can be to still qualify for an FHA loan?

====ANSWER====

Hello Eileen,

Thank you for visiting my website and asking such a great question. I love meeting new people here and doing my best to help them get answers to questions that are hard to find.

The age of the house is not nearly as important as the condition of the house. FHA will do an appraisal/inspection on the home before a mortgage is created. They have certain FHA Appraisal Guidelines they follow.

The main things they look for is safety and structural integrity. So they will look at the wiring to see if things are up to code, also they check the roof for any moisture problems like leaks etc.

In short, you could save yourself some time and money by looking for things like;

• Handrails on the stairways
  
• GFI plugs in the kitchen and bathrooms
  
• Smoke detectors
  
• Age of the roof
  

Of course it is much more extensive than that, however this gives you a basic idea.

If I were buying a home that old, I would certainly have a home inspection done. This could be some good money spent to protect your investment before buying the home.

You can find home inspectors in your area by searching at Google or in the yellow pages.

I hope this helps,

Kind Regards,

Jeff Ragan