VA loans in Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia County figure on this page is a county reference only, not an address-based lookup for Philadelphia. Confirm the property's county before relying on it.
Philadelphia County reference value. County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties.
Source: FHFA Full County Loan Limit List for 2026 (HERA-based, final). One-unit limit; applies to mortgages acquired in calendar year 2026. Source checked 2026-09-16. · Philadelphia County (FIPS 42101)
County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties. Look the property's county up at FHFA.
What the county figure means here.
A borrower with full VA entitlement does not have a VA loan limit, subject to lender approval, ability to repay, and the appraised value or purchase price. The FHFA one-unit county conforming loan limit matters primarily when calculating remaining bonus entitlement for a borrower who does not have full entitlement, and it may affect whether a down payment is required.
Philadelphia County carries a $832,750 one-unit conforming loan limit value for 2026, and that is the county figure we reference for Philadelphia. County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties. Whichever county your property is in, the value is used in remaining-entitlement calculations — including on a 2–4 unit property — and is not a cap on what a fully-entitled buyer can finance.
Planning around BAH? Rates vary by pay grade, dependency status, and ZIP-based Military Housing Area — verify yours on the official DoD BAH calculator.
This site does not publish current rates or APRs. Your rate and terms depend on your credit profile, income and assets, the property, market conditions, lock timing, points or lender credits, underwriting, and final lender approval. Request a personalized quote from Bolt Home Loans LLC.
Estimate a payment with your own rate assumptionPhiladelphia Homestead Exemption: apply once, but a deed change — including some refinances — means reapplying
The City of Philadelphia says owners who live in their home as a primary residence are eligible for the Homestead Exemption, which reduces the taxable portion of the assessed value. New homeowners qualify, as do owners with a mortgage. Once accepted, you don't reapply unless your deed changes — for example, when a refinance or adding or removing a co-owner changes the deed.
Properties with a 10-year residential tax abatement are not eligible until the abatement ends, and a removed abatement cannot be restored. The City also describes a conditional exemption for tangled titles. Practical step: check the Property Search estimator after closing, and ask whether any abatement affects your choice. If the exemption amount later changes, the City says you do not need to reapply to receive the new amount.
Philadelphia's Atlas shows permit, license and inspection history for any address
The City's Atlas site lets anyone search by address, intersection, property assessment account number or Department of Records registry number. For a given address it shows the history of permits, licenses and inspections, real estate information such as property values and zoning, document archives, recent nearby activity such as 311 requests, and historical imagery.
Practical step: before an inspection deadline on a Philadelphia rowhouse, search Atlas for Licenses & Inspections violations and permits tied to the address, check the zoning shown for any plan to add a unit, and review the recorded documents list for the deed chain.
- FHFA — Conforming loan limit values
- City of Philadelphia — Get the Homestead Exemption
- City of Philadelphia — Atlas
- VA — Home loan entitlement and limits
Sources checked 2026-09-24. Educational information only, not legal, tax or underwriting advice.
Owner-occupied 2–4 units are eligible.
VA allows purchases up to four units as long as you occupy one of them. Whether any projected rental income counts toward your qualifying ratios is a lender and VA underwriting decision, not an automatic allowance. The one-unit county value above is still the figure used in entitlement calculations on a 2–4 unit property.
Run the house-hack calculatorVA loan programs available in PA.
$0 down in Philadelphia. No PMI.
Lower your rate. Minimal paperwork.
Up to 100% LTV — conventional caps at 80%.
$0 down above conforming.
Finance repairs into your purchase.
Roll energy upgrades into the loan.
Widows and widowers of PA veterans qualify.
Zero down, no PMI, and a 100% funding-fee waiver on a home in Philadelphia, subject to eligibility verification and Certificate of Eligibility issuance.
Surviving spouse guideDisabled veteran? Stack the SAH grant on your Philadelphia purchase.
Up to $126,526 in FY 2026 toward a VA-approved plan to acquire, construct, or adapt a suitable home. VA approves eligibility and use; the grant is separate from your VA home loan.
SAH grant guideVA loans in Philadelphia — answered.
FHFA sets conforming loan limit values by county, not by city, and there is no single published figure for a city as such. The county we reference for Philadelphia is Philadelphia County (FIPS 42101), whose official 2026 one-unit value is $832,750 per the FHFA Full County Loan Limit List. County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties. The figure only matters for remaining-entitlement calculations — with full entitlement there is no VA loan limit, subject to lender approval, ability to repay and appraised value.
BAH varies by pay grade, dependency status, and ZIP-based Military Housing Area, and DoD updates rates annually. Check your exact rate on the official DoD BAH calculator. Lenders may count BAH as qualifying income, subject to underwriting.
A VA-eligible borrower with full entitlement may be able to pursue a primary-residence purchase in Philadelphia with no down payment and no monthly PMI. Eligibility, credit, income, the VA appraisal, and final lender approval all apply, and closing costs and prepaids are still due.
An unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who died in service or from a service-connected disability may qualify for the full VA benefit in Philadelphia — zero down, no PMI, and a 100% funding-fee waiver, subject to eligibility verification.