Home Affordability Calculator
Find out how much house you can afford — based on your income, debts, and down payment using the lender 28/36 rule.
Your Finances
Household income before tax
Car, student & credit-card payments
Cash you'll put toward the home
FHA loans allow a higher debt-to-income ratio (43% back-end), so they qualify you for more — at the cost of mortgage insurance.
Loan & Housing Costs
Condo HOAs often $200–$600/mo; single-family $0–$200
Rough starting rates by credit score — pick one, then fine-tune the rate above. Actual rates vary by lender and the day.
Annual, as a % of the home's value
Annual, as a % of the home's value
Home You Can Afford
$342,205
$282,205 loan + $60,000 down
Your price is capped by the front-end (28%) housing limit. Lenders cap the housing payment at 28% of gross income regardless of your other debts.
This $2,240/mo housing payment is about 35% of estimated take-home pay. That's a stretch — many advisers suggest keeping housing under 35% of take-home, since the lender's limit is set on gross (pre-tax) income.
ℹ️At this price your $60,000 down payment is 17.5% — below 20%, so the lender will likely require private mortgage insurance (PMI). A larger down payment removes it. Plan your down payment →
💡This is the lender's ceiling, not a target. Many buyers deliberately spend below it to keep room for savings and emergencies. Compare renting vs buying →
Monthly Payment (PITI)
$2,240
Principal, interest, tax & insurance
Principal & Interest
$1,784
The mortgage portion alone
Front-End DTI
28.0%
Housing ÷ income · limit 28%
Back-End DTI
33.0%
All debt ÷ income · limit 36%
How to use this calculator
The calculator has two modes — switch with the toggle at the top:
- How much house can I afford? — enter your income, and it solves for the most expensive home you can buy.
- What income do I need? — enter a target home price, and it solves for the income required.
Then:
- Enter your other monthly debts — car loans, student loans, credit-card minimums. Do not include rent or current housing.
- Enter your down payment — the cash you’ll put toward the home.
- Choose a lending standard — Conventional (28/36) or FHA (31/43).
- Set the interest rate — or pick a credit tier to suggest one — along with the loan term and housing-cost rates.
The calculator shows the result, the monthly payment behind it, which DTI limit is binding, and how the payment compares with your estimated take-home pay.
How it works
Affordability is the lender DTI rule worked backwards:
- Front-end limit — your full housing payment (PITI) may not exceed a set share of gross monthly income (28% conventional, 31% FHA).
- Back-end limit — housing plus all other monthly debts may not exceed a set share of gross income (36% conventional, 43% FHA).
Whichever ceiling is lower is the one that limits you. If you carry a lot of other debt, the back-end limit binds first; with little other debt, the front-end limit binds. In “how much house” mode the calculator solves for the affordable price numerically (property tax and insurance scale with the price, so there is no closed form). In “what income” mode the housing payment is fixed by the target price, and the calculator inverts the DTI rule to the income required.
The lending standard and your take-home pay
FHA loans allow higher DTI ratios (31/43) than conventional loans (28/36), so the same income qualifies you for a more expensive home — at the cost of mortgage insurance. The toggle lets you compare.
The DTI limits are measured against gross income, but you pay the mortgage from take-home pay. The calculator estimates your after-tax pay with real federal tax and FICA figures and shows the housing payment as a percentage of it — a reality check the lender’s gross-income limit does not provide.
The limits of an estimate
This is an estimate of what a lender would likely approve. Every lender weighs your credit score, employment history, savings and the loan type alongside DTI. It is an excellent starting point for setting a budget — but get pre-approved by a lender for the figure you can actually rely on, and remember that the maximum is a ceiling, not a target.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much house can I afford on my salary? ▾
Lenders cap your housing payment using the 28/36 rule. Your full housing payment — principal, interest, property tax and insurance (PITI) — should not exceed 28% of your gross monthly income, and all your debt payments together should not exceed 36%. From those two ceilings, your down payment and the current interest rate, this calculator works backwards to the most expensive home you can afford. As a rough guide, many buyers can afford a home priced around 3 to 4 times their gross annual income, but your debts and down payment shift that significantly.
What is the 28/36 rule? ▾
The 28/36 rule is the standard lenders use to judge affordability. The '28' is the front-end ratio: your monthly housing payment should be at most 28% of your gross (pre-tax) monthly income. The '36' is the back-end ratio: your housing payment plus every other monthly debt — car loans, student loans, credit-card minimums — should be at most 36%. A loan that satisfies both is considered comfortably affordable. Some lenders stretch the back-end limit to 43% or higher, but 28/36 is the conservative target.
Does my down payment affect how much house I can afford? ▾
Yes, in two ways. A larger down payment means a smaller loan, so the same monthly payment buys a more expensive home. It also affects whether you pay private mortgage insurance: put down less than 20% and the lender adds PMI, a monthly fee that eats into the payment budget the 28/36 rule allows. This calculator lets you change the down payment and see the affordable home price move in response.
Should I borrow the maximum amount I qualify for? ▾
Usually not. The figure this calculator shows is the lender's ceiling — the most they will let you borrow — not a recommendation. It leaves no margin for emergencies, rising property taxes, maintenance, or saving for other goals. Many financial advisers suggest targeting a housing payment closer to 25% of your take-home pay rather than 28% of gross. Treat the maximum as the top of the range and choose a home you are comfortable carrying.
Do lenders use gross or net income for affordability? ▾
Lenders use gross income — your pay before tax and deductions. That is why the 28/36 percentages are applied to gross monthly income in this calculator. Your actual take-home pay is lower, so a payment that is 28% of gross can feel closer to 35–40% of what actually lands in your account. Keep that gap in mind when deciding how much of the lender's maximum you want to use.
What costs are included in the monthly housing payment? ▾
The housing payment lenders measure is PITI: Principal and Interest on the mortgage, plus property Tax and homeowner's Insurance. If the home has homeowners-association (HOA) fees, those count too. This calculator includes all of them, with property tax and insurance entered as annual percentages of the home's value so they scale with the price. PITI — not just principal and interest — is what the 28% front-end limit applies to.
What income do I need to afford a $500,000 house? ▾
It depends on your down payment, mortgage rate, other debts and property taxes — but as a rough guide, a $500,000 home with 20% down at a typical rate needs a household income somewhere around $120,000–$140,000 a year under the conventional 28/36 rule. This calculator's 'What income do I need?' mode solves it exactly: enter the target home price and your other figures, and it returns the gross income required, working the DTI rule backwards from the home's housing payment.
Can I afford more with an FHA loan? ▾
Often, yes. FHA loans allow a higher debt-to-income ratio than conventional loans — roughly 31% front-end and 43% back-end, versus 28/36 for conventional — so the same income qualifies you for a more expensive home. This calculator has a lending-standard toggle so you can compare the two. The trade-off: FHA loans require mortgage insurance, including an upfront premium and an annual one, which adds to the monthly cost. A higher qualifying limit is not free.
How much of my take-home pay should go to housing? ▾
The lender's 28% limit is measured against gross (pre-tax) income, but you pay your mortgage out of take-home pay, which is smaller. A payment at 28% of gross can be 35–40% of take-home. Many financial advisers suggest keeping housing under about 35% of take-home pay to leave room for savings and emergencies. This calculator estimates your after-tax pay using real federal tax and FICA figures and shows the housing payment as a percentage of it — a reality check the lender's gross-income limit does not give you.