How much house can I afford on my salary?

It depends on your interest rate, existing monthly debts, and down payment far more than on income alone. The old two-and-a-half-times-income guideline was built for a different rate environment and assumed nobody carried student debt. Enter your real figures for an answer that reflects today.

What debt-to-income ratio do lenders require?

Conventional loans commonly cap total DTI between 36% and 45%. FHA routinely allows 43% and more with compensating factors such as cash reserves or a strong credit score. The calculator lets you set the limit directly so you can model both a strict and a generous lender.

Does the monthly figure include property tax and insurance?

No. The result is principal and interest only. Property tax, homeowners insurance, any HOA dues, and mortgage insurance below 20% equity all sit on top, so the price you can genuinely afford is lower than the headline figure. Subtract those before trusting it.

Does a bigger down payment increase the price I can afford?

Yes, in two ways. It adds directly to the price on top of the loan, and it lowers the loan needed for any given price, which lowers the payment. Crossing 20% also removes mortgage insurance from your monthly costs entirely.

Is the calculation based on gross or net income?

Gross income, before tax, because that is what lenders underwrite against. It is also exactly why an approved amount can feel unaffordable against your actual take-home pay, particularly in a high-tax state or with significant retirement contributions.

Should I include my partner’s income?

Only if that person will be named on the mortgage application. Lenders underwrite the borrowers on the loan, and adding a borrower means adding their debts to the calculation too, which sometimes reduces the approved amount rather than raising it.

How much buying power does existing debt cost me?

At 6.5% over 30 years, every $100 of monthly debt payment removes roughly $15,800 of loan you could otherwise support. A $600 monthly car and student loan payment therefore costs about $95,000 of buying power.

Does this account for closing costs?

No. Budget an additional 2% to 5% of the price in cash for closing on top of your deposit, and reduce the down payment figure you enter here by that amount, since money spent on fees is not available for the deposit.

House Affordability Calculator

Calculate how much house you can afford online free — based on income, down payment, rate and DTI ratio. No sign-up needed — works entirely in your browser.

100% Private — Runs entirely in browserInstant calculation & resultFree, no sign-up

How much house can you afford?

Annual household income ($)Down payment saved ($)Monthly debts (cars, student loans, cards) ($)Mortgage interest rate (%)Loan term (yrs)Max DTI ratio limit (%)

Maximum home price$518,811
Maximum loan amount$458,811
Estimated monthly P&I payment$2,900.00
Down payment applied$60,000
Front-end housing ratio31.64%
Back-end total DTI36.00%36% of gross income, minus your other debt payments.

Calculated in your browser — nothing you type is sent anywhere.

A house affordability calculator works backwards from what a lender will approve. Enter your income, savings, existing debts, rate, term, and a debt-to-income limit, and it returns the maximum price, the loan behind it, and the monthly principal and interest payment that consumes your borrowing allowance exactly.

How lenders decide what you can afford

Affordability is a ratio, not a feeling. A lender takes your gross monthly income, applies a maximum debt-to-income percentage, subtracts the monthly debt payments you already have, and whatever remains is the housing payment you qualify for. That payment then works backwards into a loan amount at your rate and term, and the loan plus your down payment gives the price. This calculator runs that chain in the same order, which is why the answer is not simply income multiplied by a factor.

A worked example

On $110,000 of household income with $60,000 saved, $400 of monthly debts, a 6.5% rate over 30 years and a 36% DTI limit: gross monthly income is $9,166.67, so the allowance is 36% of that less the $400 of debts, giving $2,900 a month. At 6.5% over 30 years that payment supports a loan of about$458,800, which plus the deposit gives a maximum price near $518,800. Drop the ratio to 28% and the same inputs give roughly $402,800 — the difference between what a lender permits and what most people should actually spend.

What the payment figure leaves out

This is the most important line on the page. The monthly result is principal and interest only. Four costs are not in it, and together they routinely add 25% or more to a real housing payment.

Costs to subtract from your allowance before trusting the maximum price.
Cost	Typical range	Included here?
Principal & interest	The calculated payment	Yes
Property tax	0.4%–2.2% of value per year	No
Homeowners insurance	$800–$3,000+ per year	No
Mortgage insurance (under 20% down)	0.3%–1.5% of loan per year	No
HOA or condo dues	$0–$700+ per month	No
Closing costs	2%–5% of price, one-off cash	No

The practical workaround is to estimate those monthly costs for your area, then lower the DTI limit you enter until the allowance leaves room for them. If tax and insurance come to $600 a month on a $2,900 allowance, model the loan against roughly $2,300 instead.

The two ratios that gate approval

Front-end ratio. The housing payment alone against gross income, typically capped near 28%. The calculator reports this so you can see where you land.
Back-end ratio. Housing plus every other debt against gross income, usually capped between 36% and 43%, occasionally stretching to 50% for strong applicants.

Existing debt is the quiet killer of affordability. At 6.5% over 30 years, each $100 of monthly debt payment removes about $15,800 of loan you could otherwise support, so a $600 car and student loan payment costs roughly $95,000 of buying power. Clearing a car loan before applying often moves your price ceiling more than saving for another year does.

Qualifying is not the same as affording

The number a lender approves is the maximum risk they will accept, not the amount that leaves your life intact. It takes no account of retirement contributions, childcare, commuting, or the fact that a house consumes roughly 1% to 2% of its value in maintenance every year. Plenty of buyers deliberately target 70% to 80% of their approved figure. Run this twice — once at 36% for the lender's view and once at 28% for the comfortable view — and buy somewhere between the two.

Related calculators

Once you have a target price, the mortgage calculator models the payment in detail, and the amortisation calculator shows how each payment splits between principal and interest. If you are still deciding whether to buy at all, therent vs buy calculator compares the two paths, and thedown payment calculator helps set a savings target. Estimates for planning only, not lending offers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much house can I afford on my salary?
It depends on your interest rate, existing monthly debts, and down payment far more than on income alone. The old two-and-a-half-times-income guideline was built for a different rate environment and assumed nobody carried student debt. Enter your real figures for an answer that reflects today.
What debt-to-income ratio do lenders require?
Conventional loans commonly cap total DTI between 36% and 45%. FHA routinely allows 43% and more with compensating factors such as cash reserves or a strong credit score. The calculator lets you set the limit directly so you can model both a strict and a generous lender.
Does the monthly figure include property tax and insurance?
No. The result is principal and interest only. Property tax, homeowners insurance, any HOA dues, and mortgage insurance below 20% equity all sit on top, so the price you can genuinely afford is lower than the headline figure. Subtract those before trusting it.
Does a bigger down payment increase the price I can afford?
Yes, in two ways. It adds directly to the price on top of the loan, and it lowers the loan needed for any given price, which lowers the payment. Crossing 20% also removes mortgage insurance from your monthly costs entirely.
Is the calculation based on gross or net income?
Gross income, before tax, because that is what lenders underwrite against. It is also exactly why an approved amount can feel unaffordable against your actual take-home pay, particularly in a high-tax state or with significant retirement contributions.
Should I include my partner’s income?
Only if that person will be named on the mortgage application. Lenders underwrite the borrowers on the loan, and adding a borrower means adding their debts to the calculation too, which sometimes reduces the approved amount rather than raising it.
How much buying power does existing debt cost me?
At 6.5% over 30 years, every $100 of monthly debt payment removes roughly $15,800 of loan you could otherwise support. A $600 monthly car and student loan payment therefore costs about $95,000 of buying power.
Does this account for closing costs?
No. Budget an additional 2% to 5% of the price in cash for closing on top of your deposit, and reduce the down payment figure you enter here by that amount, since money spent on fees is not available for the deposit.