At What Point is a House Too Old

[Ernest Grindle]

Hello BP! In looking at buy and hold properties, I find a lot of old 1900's homes available that including repairs still have good cash flow. But I'm wondering at what point is a house too old. If I invest in rehabbing these older houses, should I expect the house to last another 100 years with the proper maintenance, or should I consider a house's life expectancy to always be on a downward trend because maintaining it is no longer cost-effective?

[Kerry Baird]

I was looking to buy a house that dated from the Black Plague.  It had a trap door at the top of the landing, so folks could lower the dead  bodies down, since the stairs were too tight once rigor mortis set in.  

Yes, we lived in England, and yes well-made houses are still standing from the Norman Invasion.  It is all relative.