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Affordability

Home Affordability Calculator

How much house you can afford on full-PITI debt-to-income math: work from your income or from a monthly budget, pick your loan type, and see the lender maximum next to a livable budget.

From your income and debts, the most house the DTI limits allow.

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Common:
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Taxes, insurance & carrying costs

All folded into the payment and the DTI ratios. Enter each yearly or monthly; taxes and maintenance can be a percent of price. Leave a field blank to skip it.

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DTI limits

Set by the loan type above; nudge them to match your lender.

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Livable budget optional

What the lender ignores. We set these aside first, then size a comfortable price.

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A guideline, not a preapproval; lenders weigh credit, reserves, and property taxes that vary by home.

You can afford up to about
Bank maximum vs livable budget

The lender ceiling is the most the DTI limits allow. The livable budget sets aside your savings cushion and living costs first; most buyers should aim there.

Bank maximum
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Livable budget
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Debt-to-income at this price
Front-end (housing ÷ income)n/a
Back-end (housing + debts ÷ income)n/a
Monthly housing payment (PITI+)n/a
Principal & interestn/a
Property taxn/a
Insurance + HOA + floodn/a
Maintenancen/a
PMIn/a
Max loan that payment supportsn/a
Binding constraintn/a
What if the rate is different?

Same inputs, recomputed at nearby rates. Your current rate is highlighted.

Interest rateMax home price
Next step

See the payment on a specific loan in the mortgage calculator, estimate closing costs, or browse all the calculators.

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Common questions

What is the 28/36 rule (front-end vs back-end DTI)?

Two debt-to-income limits. Front-end is your full housing payment divided by gross monthly income, with a classic cap of 28%. Back-end adds every other monthly debt (cars, cards, student loans) on top and is capped around 36%. Whichever limit is lower binds you, and this calculator names it. Loan programs differ: FHA runs about 31/43, VA uses a single 41% back-end limit, and conventional loans can stretch toward 45% with strong credit and reserves.

Does it fold in the full PITI, PMI, HOA and maintenance?

Yes. The ratios use your whole monthly housing payment (principal, interest, property taxes, insurance, HOA, flood, maintenance and PMI), not just principal and interest. When your down payment is under 20% the calculator adds estimated PMI automatically (VA loans carry none), and every recurring cost can be entered yearly or monthly, or as a percent of price for taxes and maintenance.

What is the difference between the bank maximum and a livable budget?

The bank maximum is the most a lender’s DTI limits allow. The livable budget is lower: it sets aside a savings-rate cushion and your real monthly living costs (childcare, other expenses) first, then sizes the house to what’s actually left. The gap between the two is the difference between what you can borrow and what you can comfortably carry; most buyers should aim below the maximum.

Can I work backward from a monthly payment I'm comfortable with?

Yes: switch to budget-driven mode and enter the monthly housing payment you want. The calculator subtracts taxes, insurance and other costs, sizes the loan the remaining principal-and-interest supports at your rate and term, adds your down payment, and shows the price that budget buys along with the front-end and back-end DTI it implies.

How much does the down payment change what I can afford?

Dollar for dollar the max price is the max loan plus your down payment, but there is a second effect: crossing 20% down removes PMI, which frees up room in the ratios and lets the same income support a larger loan. Toggle the down payment between a dollar amount and a percent of price to see both.

Why is this only an estimate?

Because taxes and insurance vary by home, lenders weigh credit score, reserves and employment history, and DTI caps differ by program and by lender overlay. The math here is the honest core of the calculation, but a preapproval letter is the real number.