Firefighters were called to the blaze at the Kostadt St home about 8.15pm.
CFA District 22 commander Pete Dedman said the southern half of the house was well alight when firefighters arrived.
Firefighters took less than an hour to bring the blaze under control, with two rooms in the southern half of the home destroyed, as was the roof cavity.
The rest of the two-bedroom weatherboard home was severely damaged by smoke and heat.
Mr Dedman said about 20 firefighters from Nathalia, Numurkah and Waaia CFA brigades did a great job to put the fire out in trying conditions.
“The weather conditions made it interesting for the firefighters — it was raining at the time,” Mr Dedman said.
“They would have been uncomfortable conditions for firefighters.”
The eaves had asbestos material in them, meaning firefighters had to don respiratory protection while fighting the fire and had to be decontaminated afterwards.
Mr Dedman said the fire started in the lounge room of the house.
It has been deemed an accidental fire, with no suspicious circumstances, he said.
One man was home at the time of the fire and was outside trying to put it out when firefighters arrived.
Ambulance Victoria said the man in his 60s was taken to Goulburn Valley Health by ambulance in a stable condition, suffering smoke inhalation.
Mr Dedman said firefighters remained on scene for a couple of hours.
Brigade members returned the following morning to ensure the fire was fully extinguished, and put water on a hotspot while they were there.
Mr Dedman praised firefighters for their efforts to extinguish the fire before it burned the house down completely.
However, he said the extensive damage meant the home would probably have to be demolished.
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