December 5, 2016
The FHA official site has announced higher FHA loan limits for 2017.
According to a press release on the official site, The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) today announced the agency’s new schedule of loan limits, and due to an increase in housing prices, most areas in the country will see a slight increase in loan limits in 2017 These loan limits are effective for case numbers assigned on or after January 1, 2017, and will remain in effect through the end of the year.
The announcement includes word of a higher FHA national loan limit “ceiling”, which is set to increase to $636,150, up from 2016s $625,500 limit. The “floor” is also scheduled to increase in 2016 to $275,665, which is up from the previous years $271,050.
Recent changes in housing prices, plus the new changes to FHA’s floor”and ceiling limits will result in the maximum loan limits for forward mortgages increasing in nearly 3,000 counties in the new year. Furthermore, the FHA official site states, There were no areas with a decrease in the maximum loan limits for forward mortgages though they remain unchanged in 286 counties.
The FHA minimum national loan limit floor is set, according to FHA.gov, at 65 percent of the national conforming loan limit of $424,100. The floor applies to those areas where 115 percent of the median home price is less than 65 percent of the national conforming loan limit.
Any areas where the loan limit exceeds the “floor” is considered a high cost area. The maximum FHA loan limit “ceiling” for high-cost areas is 150 percent of the national conforming limit.
If you need a complete list of FHA loan limits, areas at the FHA ceiling, areas between the floor and the ceiling, or a list of areas with loan limit increases, you can get this information at the FHA Loan Limits Page. The FHA has also announced, the maximum claim amount for FHA-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs), or reverse mortgages, will increase to $636,150. This amount is 150 percent of the national conforming limit of $424,100.