The 2026 FHA limits for the five counties
HUD sets FHA limits by metro area, and Philadelphia, Bucks, Montgomery, Delaware, and Chester counties all share the Philadelphia figure. For case numbers assigned on or after January 1, 2026 the limits are:
| Units | Philadelphia area | National floor |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $630,200 | $541,287 |
| 2 | $806,750 | $693,050 |
| 3 | $975,200 | $837,700 |
| 4 | $1,211,950 | $1,041,125 |
The $630,200 figure covers most of the housing stock in Northeast Philly, Delco, and Lower Bucks with room to spare. It runs out in Lower Merion and around Rittenhouse Square, where a conventional loan goes to $832,750 and a jumbo loan takes over after that.
Down payment and credit
FHA’s rules are the same in Kensington and Kennett Square. A decision credit score of 580 or better gets you in at 3.5% down. A score from 500 to 579 needs 10% down. Under 500 is out. Many lenders add their own floor somewhere between 600 and 640, and part of our job is knowing which ones don’t.
Debt-to-income runs 31% for housing and 43% overall on a manually underwritten file, and the automated system approves higher ratios when there are strong compensating factors. On a $300,000 rowhome, 3.5% is $10,500 down. Your half of the city’s 4.578% transfer tax is another $6,867, which is the number that catches people.
The mortgage insurance, in dollars
FHA charges an upfront premium of 1.75% of the loan, rolled into the balance, and an annual premium paid monthly. The annual rate depends on the down payment. For loan amounts in the range most Philadelphia buyers use, on a 30-year term:
| Down payment | Annual MIP | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Under 5% | 0.55% | Life of the loan |
| 5% to under 10% | 0.50% | Life of the loan |
| 10% or more | 0.50% | 11 years |
On that $300,000 rowhome with 3.5% down, the base loan is $289,500. The upfront premium is $5,066, financed. The annual premium is 0.55% of the balance, about $1,592 in the first year or roughly $133 a month, falling slowly as you pay down. Larger loans pay 0.20% more in each tier above a threshold HUD indexes to the conforming limit, and the lender will tell you where the line sits for your file.
These rates have been unchanged since March 2023. The insurance at 3.5% down never drops off on its own, so the plan for most buyers is a refinance into a conventional loan once the equity is there.
What the appraiser flags in a 1925 rowhome
FHA appraisals in Philadelphia have a personality. The appraiser checks the house against HUD’s minimum property standards, and a city where most of the stock predates 1978 gives them plenty to look at. The usual flags:
- Peeling or chipping paint anywhere on a pre-1978 house, inside or out, including the porch rail and the basement window frames.
- Missing or loose handrails on stairs, which in a trinity is most of the house.
- A flat roof at the end of its life. Rowhome roofs get a hard look.
- Exposed wiring, open junction boxes, knob-and-tube that’s still live.
- Broken windows, a furnace that won’t fire, a water heater without a relief valve.
Repairs get finished before closing or set up in a repair escrow, and who pays is negotiated in the Agreement of Sale. Sellers of estate rowhomes in South Philly often won’t lift a brush, which is why the loan type belongs in the offer. The rowhome appraisal guide has the full list and how to prepare for it.
Two, three, and four units
FHA insures one- to four-unit properties as long as you live in one unit, move in within 60 days of closing, and stay at least a year. That makes it the usual route into a Fishtown duplex or a West Philly triplex, with rent from the other units helping you qualify. Three- and four-unit buildings must pass a self-sufficiency test: 75% of the appraiser’s market rent for all units, including yours, has to cover the full monthly payment. Two-unit buildings skip it. More in duplex and triplex loans.
PHFA on an FHA loan
PHFA’s Keystone Government Loan runs an FHA first mortgage through the state agency with no PHFA income or price limits and no first-time-buyer requirement. It pairs with the Keystone Advantage second, up to $6,000 at 0% repaid over ten years, which is enough to cover most of the transfer tax on a $300,000 city purchase. Borrowers with a score under 680 take a homebuyer course first. See the PHFA guide.
On a house built before 1978, flaking paint on one porch spindle can hold up an FHA closing. If the listing photos show it, price the scrape-and-paint into the offer or get the seller to handle it before the appraiser visits.
Start with one call
One call. Tell us the block and the year the house was built, and the lender you get does FHA on 1920s rowhomes and knows what the appraiser will write before the appraiser does. Call us.