House Affordability Calculator
Estimate how much house you can afford using the 28/36 DTI rule from your income, debts, down payment, rate, and term. Free and accurate.
Calculator by Toolsloft ↗- Max home price
- $482,990.29
- Max loan
- $442,990.29
- Max monthly payment
- $2,800.00
This calculator estimates the home price you can afford from your income, existing debts, down payment, mortgage rate, and term. Use it before house hunting to set a realistic budget and to see how paying down other debts raises your ceiling.
How this is calculated
It applies the 28/36 rule, capping the payment at the lower of 28 percent of gross monthly income and 36 percent of income minus existing debts, then finds the largest loan that payment supports at your rate and term and adds your down payment for the max price.
How to use
- Enter your annual income and total monthly debt payments.
- Enter your down payment, the annual interest rate, and the loan term in years.
- Read the max home price, max loan, and max monthly payment you can afford.
Examples
- $120k income, $500 debts:
max home price $482,990.29 - High debts:
$30k income, $5,000 debts → not affordable
FAQ
- What is the 28/36 rule?
- A common lending guideline: your housing payment should not exceed 28% of gross monthly income (the front-end ratio), and your total debt payments, housing plus other debts, should not exceed 36% of gross monthly income (the back-end ratio). The calculator uses the lower of the two limits.
- How is the front-end ratio used?
- The front-end ratio caps the mortgage payment at 28% of gross monthly income (annual income ÷ 12 × 0.28), independent of your other debts.
- How is the back-end ratio used?
- The back-end ratio caps total debt at 36% of gross monthly income (annual income ÷ 12 × 0.36). Your existing monthly debts are subtracted from that limit, and the remainder is what is left for the mortgage payment.