I've looked at a 1977 C-152 that had 10,500 TTAF about 2000hrs since the last major overhaul and a damage history in 1982 Emergency landing , ran into a fence and nosed over "substantial damage".
The high airframe time would not bother me at all. Nor the damage history, (It has been flying since 1982 so obviously things were fixed properly.) That 2000 hours on the engine is getting up there, but still 400 hours until just recommended overhaul. And the engine still should go through at least one more top overhaul before a major is required. So no major red flags in my book if it passes a good annual inspection by a mechanic that YOU know and trust. Though, I think I would try to dicker the seller down a couple thousand........
