The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced that the maximum conforming loan limits for mortgages acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2013 will remain at existing levels. In high-cost areas such as California, the loan limit is $625,000 for one-unit properties. The loan limits are established under the terms of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) and are calculated each year.
The law sets loan limits as a function of median home values in local areas. While some counties saw increases in home prices in 2012, no loan limit increases were evident after other HERA terms such as the statutory ceiling and floor were taken into account.
A list of the 2013 maximum conforming loan limits for all counties and county-equivalent areas in the country can be found here. The maximum conforming loan limits for one-unit properties, which generally have applied to loans originated since October 1, 2011, are $417,000 in most locations, but are as high as $625,500 in certain high-cost areas in the contiguous United States.
A detailed description of how the 2013 loan limits were determined can be found in the attached addendum. Questions regarding loan limits can be sent to [email protected].
