Home Affordability Calculator (Income, Debts & 28/36 Rule)
Calculate maximum affordable home purchase price and monthly mortgage capacity.
TL;DR: Home Affordability Calculator determines your maximum affordable home purchase price using your income, existing monthly debt, down payment, and mortgage underwriting rules (28/36 DTI).
How Much House Can You Afford on Your Income Using the 28/36 Rule?
Under standard mortgage underwriting (the 28/36 Rule), your monthly housing payment (PITI) should not exceed 28% of your gross monthly income (front-end DTI), and your total monthly debt payments (housing + car loans + student loans + credit cards) should not exceed 36% (back-end DTI).
How to Use the Home Affordability Calculator
Our Home Affordability Calculator performs high-precision mathematical operations directly in your browser with zero latency and complete client-side privacy.
- Enter your Gross Annual Household Income.
- Input your Total Cash Down Payment savings.
- Enter your Total Monthly Debt Payments (student loans, auto loans, credit cards).
- Input the current Mortgage Interest Rate (APR) and Loan Term (30 years).
- Review your maximum home purchase price, recommended loan amount, and monthly PITI.
Mathematical Formula & Equations
Determines affordable home purchase price based on gross household income, monthly debt obligations, down payment, and 28/36 debt-to-income (DTI) rules.
Calculation Example
A household earning $120,000/year ($10,000/month) with $600/month car payments can qualify for up to $2,800/month mortgage payment, affording a home valued up to ~$480,000 with 10% down.
100% Client-Side Privacy & Data Security
All calculations, amortization schedules, variables, and sensitive numerical datasets execute 100% locally in your web browser memory. Your financial, medical, and personal values are never transmitted, logged, or uploaded to any external server.
Frequently Asked Questions
- DTI is the percentage of your gross monthly income that goes toward paying monthly debts. Lenders use front-end DTI (housing only) and back-end DTI (all debts combined) to qualify borrowers.
- With a $100,000 salary ($8,333/month), standard 28% DTI permits a $2,333/month housing budget. With 20% down and ~6.5% interest, this translates to a home price of approximately $350,000 to $400,000.
- A larger down payment reduces the required loan balance, lowers monthly payments, eliminates PMI requirements (at 20% down), and qualifies you for higher-priced homes.
- In addition to PITI, budget for closing costs (2%–5% of purchase price), moving expenses, property maintenance reserves (1%–2% of home value annually), and HOA fees.
- Yes. FHA loans permit back-end DTIs up to 43%–50%, and conventional loans with strong credit scores may qualify up to 45%–50% DTI.
- Mortgage underwriters standardly target a 28% front-end ratio (housing costs) and a 36% to 43% back-end ratio (total monthly debt payments including credit cards and auto loans).
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