MortgageCalcFast

Budget calculator

Home Affordability Calculator

Turn your pay, your debts and your savings into a real price range instead of a rule of thumb.

Your budget

Income and monthly commitments

$
$
$
%
%
Taxes, insurance, PMI & HOA +
%/yr
%/yr
%/yr
$/mo

Estimated affordable home price

$448,500

Estimated loan: $368,500

Housing budget$3,100/mo
Estimated payment$3,099/mo
Total DTI36.0%
Cash down used$80,000
Planning estimate, not loan approval.

Lenders consider credit, reserves, loan type and other factors. Choose a DTI target that leaves room for your real-life spending and savings.

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This link carries your income and monthly debts. Anyone who receives it, or anyone who can see the browser history or server logs of a machine it is opened on, can read those figures. Share it only with people you would tell them to directly.

A sensible starting point

How the estimate is worked out

First it takes your monthly pay before tax and the share of it you are willing to spend on debt, which is your target debt-to-income ratio. Then it takes off what you already pay each month. What is left is your housing budget. From there it works backwards through the rate, the term, tax, insurance, mortgage insurance and any association fee to reach a price.

What you can afford is your call, not a formula's

A lender might approve more. That does not make it comfortable. Income tax, retirement savings, childcare, repairs, power bills and money set aside for emergencies all come out of the same pay. Treat this number as a ceiling to think about, not a target to hit.

An example

Say you earn $120,000 a year and want no more than 36% of it going to debt. That is $3,600 a month. If your car, student loan and cards already take $600, you have about $3,000 left for the home. The tool then works out which price fits that.

What moves the number

  • A higher rate buys you less house for the same payment.
  • A bigger down payment means a smaller loan, and at 20% you skip PMI.
  • Property tax, insurance and association fees can pull the price down a long way.
  • Closing costs and the savings a lender wants to see are separate again.

Primary source

Fannie Mae Selling Guide: debt-to-income ratios

Keep exploring

Calculate your total paymentCheck your debt-to-income ratioEstimate cash needed at closing

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

What does debt-to-income ratio mean?+

It is the share of your monthly pay that goes to debts, counting the home payment you are planning. Lenders use your pay before tax, not what lands in your account.

Does 36% mean I will be approved?+

No. It is a planning target, not a rule. Different loans allow different numbers, and lenders also look at your credit, your savings and the home itself.

Why count tax and insurance?+

Because you pay them every month too. Leave them out and the price you think you can afford comes out too high.