Home Loan Affordability Calculator

Homebuying budget — not a refinance comparison

Estimate the home price your income and monthly budget can support

Use this before or while shopping for a home. It starts with income, other debt, down payment, your DTI limits, and recurring ownership costs, then works backward to a maximum home price.

Display currencyLabels only; entered values are not converted.

This calculatorPlanning a home purchase

Income + debts + down payment → maximum home price + all-in monthly housing budget.

Different taskEvaluating a cash-out refinance

Current balance + new loan + closing costs + cash out → new payment + equity position + total cost.

Use the Cash-Out Refinance Calculator

Released calculationFormula 1.0.0 · entered scenarios only · no lender approval

Purchase-planning inputs

Build one homebuying budget

The example percentages are editable scenarios, not lender limits.

3 steps

Set monthly guardrails

Income and other debt determine the two DTI-based budgets.

Annual gross household incomeHousehold income before taxes and payroll deductions.Other monthly debt paymentsMinimum recurring debt payments outside the new home.Housing DTI limit to test%Your scenario for total housing cost as a share of gross income.Total DTI limit to test%Your scenario for housing plus other debt as a share of gross income.Personal monthly housing capOptionalAdd a stricter all-in housing cap from your own cash-flow budget.

Add purchase financing

These assumptions turn the available P&I budget into principal.

Down paymentCash assigned to the down payment, excluding closing costs and reserves.Annual mortgage interest rate%Enter a fixed note-rate scenario; no live rate is fetched.Loan termyearsWhole years of equal monthly principal-and-interest payments.

Include recurring ownership costs

Use property-specific amounts when you have them.

How do you want to enter tax and insurance?

Known annual amountsBest for a property or local estimate.Percent of home priceUseful for a clearly labeled early estimate.

Annual property taxUse a property record or current local estimate when possible.Annual homeowners insuranceUse a current property-specific premium estimate or quote.Monthly HOA duesCondo, co-op, HOA, or other association dues.Monthly mortgage insuranceEnter an applicable monthly estimate; no premium is inferred.Other monthly housing costsMaintenance reserve, supplementary insurance, ground rent, or other recurring costs.

Your purchase budget

Home affordability snapshot

Price, loan, and monthly cost stay separate.

Estimate ready

Estimated maximum home price$152,054

for this entered purchase scenario—not a prequalification or approval

Modeled maximum loan: $132,054
Applied monthly housing budget: $950
Modeled all-in monthly cost: $950

Why this price?

The lowest budget controls

personal monthly housing budget

Housing-DTI budget: $10,000
Total-DTI budget after debt: $10,000
Personal monthly cap: $950

Modeled housing DTI: 9.5% · housing plus debt: 9.5%

All-in monthly estimate

See where the housing budget goes

$950

Principal & interest: $640
Property tax: $266.67
Homeowners insurance: $43.33
HOA dues: $0
Mortgage insurance: $0
Other entered costs: $0

See the calculation and boundaries

Apply only the two percentages entered by the user to entered gross monthly income, then subtract entered other debt from the total-DTI amount.housing budget = 10000 × 100%; total budget after debt = 10000 × 100% − 0
Use the lowest entered DTI-derived amount and optional personal housing cap, clamped at zero when other debt exhausts the total-DTI amount.applied monthly housing budget = 950; binding input = Entered personal monthly housing budget
Use the selected user-entered tax and insurance basis plus separately entered HOA, mortgage insurance, and other monthly housing costs.monthly property tax = 3200 / 12; monthly homeowner insurance = 520 / 12
Invert the fully amortizing end-of-month payment factor, using its exact zero-interest limit, and add only the entered down payment.a = 0.00484649732498; principal = 132054.13251778; home price = 152054.13251778
Rebuild the modeled total monthly housing cost and report both descriptive percentages without converting them into qualification decisions.housing cost = 950; housing/income = 9.5%; (housing + debt)/income = 9.5%

This is a planning estimate using values you enter. It is not prequalification, preapproval, underwriting, an eligibility decision, a commitment to lend, a property valuation, or a loan or insurance quote.

Formula finance.home-loan-affordability.v1, version 1.0.0. Values are calculated without intermediate rounding.

Start with the price ceiling. It is solved from the tightest monthly constraint you entered.

Check the all-in payment. Tax, insurance, HOA, and reserves reduce room for principal and interest.

Stress the assumptions. Try a higher rate or cost and keep closing cash and emergency reserves outside the down payment.

Transparent homebuying constraint

Find a Home-Loan Budget From Two DTI Caps and a Personal Payment Limit

Affordability is not a lender's maximum approval. This calculator applies entered housing and total-debt constraints, a personal cap, and property-specific taxes, insurance, dues, rate, and down payment to a planning price range.

Key ideas · Transparent homebuying constraint

Key ideas in Find a Home-Loan Budget From Two DTI Caps and a Personal Payment Limit

Housing constraint: Limits the entered monthly housing components relative to gross income.
Total-debt constraint: Reserves room for declared recurring debt payments.
Personal constraint: An optional lower cash-flow cap can control even when ratio limits allow more.

Home affordability: assemble gross income and recurring obligations
Use documented gross annual income on a consistent borrower profile and list recurring debt payments separately. Do not count a debt twice or omit an obligation merely because it is almost paid. DTI is a lender-facing ratio using gross income, not take-home cash. CFPB's ability-to-repay rule allows creditors to consider DTI or residual income within documented standards rather than prescribing one universal threshold. The entered caps are therefore scenario choices, not approval criteria or safe-spending endorsements.
Home affordability: build the full candidate housing payment
Add principal, interest, property tax, homeowners and any required mortgage or supplemental insurance, association dues, and other recurring assessments. Use a property-specific quote or a clearly labeled placeholder. Maintenance, repairs, utilities, and moving costs may sit outside lender DTI while still affecting household cash flow. Verify one candidate price with the Amortization Calculator and audit entered financing charges through the APR Calculator; a monthly fit does not prove the closing funds are available.
Home affordability: let the tightest constraint control
The housing ratio, total-debt ratio, and personal cap can each imply a different maximum housing amount. Use the lowest permitted payment, then solve for a principal and home price under the entered rate, term, down payment, and costs. This makes the binding assumption visible. Run a lower personal cap based on actual take-home budget rather than treating an underwriting ceiling as a target. The Living Expenses Calculator offers a separate take-home cash-flow view when lender ratios are not the task.
Home affordability: stress taxes, insurance, rate, and repairs
Run a higher interest rate, updated property tax after sale, insurance renewal, association increase, and an explicit monthly repair reserve. Because a maximum price is solved from remaining payment capacity, small recurring-cost changes can materially alter principal. Also test reduced income or one-income conditions for a multi-income household. Do not offset uncertainty with assumed future refinancing or appreciation. The most useful output is a range tied to documented assumptions, not one precise price presented as permission to shop.
Home affordability: separate planning from underwriting
A lender will verify income, assets, debts, credit, property, program eligibility, and other factors. The available rate and insurance can differ from planning inputs. CFPB also emphasizes maintenance, repairs, utilities, emergency savings, and goals beyond the payment. Save every assumption with the date, obtain official Loan Estimates, and review the complete transaction. This page cannot prequalify a borrower, value a home, choose a loan, or provide individualized financial, tax, housing, or legal advice.

Find a Home-Loan Budget From Two DTI Caps and a Personal Payment Limit: Affordability is not a lender's maximum approval. This calculator applies entered housing and total-debt constraints, a personal cap, and property-specific taxes, insurance, dues, rate, and down payment to a planning price range.

Home affordability: assemble gross income and recurring obligations

Use documented gross annual income on a consistent borrower profile and list recurring debt payments separately. Do not count a debt twice or omit an obligation merely because it is almost paid. DTI is a lender-facing ratio using gross income, not take-home cash. CFPB's ability-to-repay rule allows creditors to consider DTI or residual income within documented standards rather than prescribing one universal threshold. The entered caps are therefore scenario choices, not approval criteria or safe-spending endorsements.

Home affordability: build the full candidate housing payment

Add principal, interest, property tax, homeowners and any required mortgage or supplemental insurance, association dues, and other recurring assessments. Use a property-specific quote or a clearly labeled placeholder. Maintenance, repairs, utilities, and moving costs may sit outside lender DTI while still affecting household cash flow. Verify one candidate price with the Amortization Calculator and audit entered financing charges through the APR Calculator; a monthly fit does not prove the closing funds are available.

Home affordability: let the tightest constraint control

The housing ratio, total-debt ratio, and personal cap can each imply a different maximum housing amount. Use the lowest permitted payment, then solve for a principal and home price under the entered rate, term, down payment, and costs. This makes the binding assumption visible. Run a lower personal cap based on actual take-home budget rather than treating an underwriting ceiling as a target. The Living Expenses Calculator offers a separate take-home cash-flow view when lender ratios are not the task.

Home affordability: stress taxes, insurance, rate, and repairs

Run a higher interest rate, updated property tax after sale, insurance renewal, association increase, and an explicit monthly repair reserve. Because a maximum price is solved from remaining payment capacity, small recurring-cost changes can materially alter principal. Also test reduced income or one-income conditions for a multi-income household. Do not offset uncertainty with assumed future refinancing or appreciation. The most useful output is a range tied to documented assumptions, not one precise price presented as permission to shop.

Home affordability: separate planning from underwriting

A lender will verify income, assets, debts, credit, property, program eligibility, and other factors. The available rate and insurance can differ from planning inputs. CFPB also emphasizes maintenance, repairs, utilities, emergency savings, and goals beyond the payment. Save every assumption with the date, obtain official Loan Estimates, and review the complete transaction. This page cannot prequalify a borrower, value a home, choose a loan, or provide individualized financial, tax, housing, or legal advice.

Important limitations

Home Loan Affordability Calculator uses the rates, dates, fees, and assumptions entered or explicitly cited by this formula. It does not replace a current quote, eligibility decision, filing calculation, contract, or professional financial advice.

This formula passed its registered engineering tests and is published under an explicit site-owner policy authorization. No independent expert, QA, editorial, legal, or third-party review is claimed. Verify consequential results with a qualified professional.

This subject may affect health, finance, tax, legal, or other consequential decisions. It has not received an independent domain-expert review; consult a qualified professional before relying on it.

Transparent homebuying constraint

Find a Home-Loan Budget From Two DTI Caps and a Personal Payment Limit

Key ideas · Transparent homebuying constraint

Key ideas in Find a Home-Loan Budget From Two DTI Caps and a Personal Payment Limit

Housing constraint: Limits the entered monthly housing components relative to gross income.
Total-debt constraint: Reserves room for declared recurring debt payments.
Personal constraint: An optional lower cash-flow cap can control even when ratio limits allow more.

Home affordability: assemble gross income and recurring obligations
Use documented gross annual income on a consistent borrower profile and list recurring debt payments separately. Do not count a debt twice or omit an obligation merely because it is almost paid. DTI is a lender-facing ratio using gross income, not take-home cash. CFPB's ability-to-repay rule allows creditors to consider DTI or residual income within documented standards rather than prescribing one universal threshold. The entered caps are therefore scenario choices, not approval criteria or safe-spending endorsements.
Home affordability: build the full candidate housing payment
Add principal, interest, property tax, homeowners and any required mortgage or supplemental insurance, association dues, and other recurring assessments. Use a property-specific quote or a clearly labeled placeholder. Maintenance, repairs, utilities, and moving costs may sit outside lender DTI while still affecting household cash flow. Verify one candidate price with the Amortization Calculator and audit entered financing charges through the APR Calculator; a monthly fit does not prove the closing funds are available.
Home affordability: let the tightest constraint control
The housing ratio, total-debt ratio, and personal cap can each imply a different maximum housing amount. Use the lowest permitted payment, then solve for a principal and home price under the entered rate, term, down payment, and costs. This makes the binding assumption visible. Run a lower personal cap based on actual take-home budget rather than treating an underwriting ceiling as a target. The Living Expenses Calculator offers a separate take-home cash-flow view when lender ratios are not the task.
Home affordability: stress taxes, insurance, rate, and repairs
Run a higher interest rate, updated property tax after sale, insurance renewal, association increase, and an explicit monthly repair reserve. Because a maximum price is solved from remaining payment capacity, small recurring-cost changes can materially alter principal. Also test reduced income or one-income conditions for a multi-income household. Do not offset uncertainty with assumed future refinancing or appreciation. The most useful output is a range tied to documented assumptions, not one precise price presented as permission to shop.
Home affordability: separate planning from underwriting
A lender will verify income, assets, debts, credit, property, program eligibility, and other factors. The available rate and insurance can differ from planning inputs. CFPB also emphasizes maintenance, repairs, utilities, emergency savings, and goals beyond the payment. Save every assumption with the date, obtain official Loan Estimates, and review the complete transaction. This page cannot prequalify a borrower, value a home, choose a loan, or provide individualized financial, tax, housing, or legal advice.