Calculator: How much mortgage might I qualify for? (2024)

FAQs

How to calculate how much of a mortgage you can qualify for? ›

Using a percentage of your income can help determine how much house you can afford. For example, the 28/36 rule may help you decide how much to spend on a home. The rule states that your mortgage should be no more than 28 percent of your total monthly gross income and no more than 36 percent of your total debt.

The annual salary needed to afford a $400,000 home is about $127,000. Over the past few years, prospective homeowners have chased a moving target: homeownership. The median sales price of houses sold in the U.S. stood at $417,700 in the fourth quarter of 2023—down from a peak of $479,500 in Q4 2022.

An individual earning $60,000 a year may buy a home worth ranging from $180,000 to over $300,000. That's because your wage isn't the only factor that affects your house purchase budget. Your credit score, existing debts, mortgage rates, and a variety of other considerations must all be taken into account.

On a salary of $36,000 per year, you can afford a house priced around $100,000-$110,000 with a monthly payment of just over $1,000. This assumes you have no other debts you're paying off, but also that you haven't been able to save much for a down payment.

How much do I need to make to buy a $300K house? To purchase a $300K house, you may need to make between $50,000 and $74,500 a year. This is a rule of thumb, and the specific annual salary will vary depending on your credit score, debt-to-income ratio, type of home loan, loan term, and mortgage rate.

Since many lenders don't want more than 28% of a person's income to go toward their mortgage debt, borrowers will generally need an annual combined household income of at least $120,000 to buy a $500,000 house.

If you follow the 2.5 times your income rule, you divide the cost of the home by 2.5 to determine how much money you need to earn annually to afford it. Based on this rule, you would need to earn $100,000 per year to comfortably purchase a $250,000 home.

Following the 28/36 rule, a guideline many mortgage lenders use to gauge how much you can afford, you'd likely need to earn at least $90,000 per year to afford a $350,000 house without spreading yourself too thin. Keep in mind that figure does not include upfront payments, like your down payment and closing costs.

If you make $70K a year, you can likely afford a new home between $290,000 and $310,000*. That translates to a monthly house payment between $2,000 and $2,500, which includes your monthly mortgage payment, taxes, and home insurance.

Using the 28/36 rule to calculate your home purchase budget

A mortgage might be good debt, but it's still debt and must be treated as such for budgeting purposes. If we're following the 28/36 rule, your mortgage payment with a 40K salary tops out at $933 each month, and your other debts are capped at $267.

What income is needed for a 200k mortgage? ›

What income is required for a 200k mortgage? To be approved for a $200,000 mortgage with a minimum down payment of 3.5 percent, you will need an approximate income of $62,000 annually.

According to the 28/36 rule, you should spend no more than 28% of your gross monthly income on housing and no more than 36% on all debts. Housing costs can include: Your monthly mortgage payment. Homeowners Insurance. Private mortgage insurance.

If you want to have a minimalist lifestyle, 36k/year is more then enough. If you want a home, family, car, insurance and some "toys", it's not going to be enough, at least in a majority of places in the U.S. But again, the term "decent" is pretty objective.

A $3,500 per month mortgage in the United States, based on our calculations, will put you in an above-average price range in many cities, or let you at least get a foot in the door in high cost of living areas. That price point is $550,000.

Lenders look at a debt-to-income (DTI) ratio when they consider your application for a mortgage loan. A DTI ratio is your monthly expenses compared to your monthly gross income. Lenders consider monthly housing expenses as a percentage of income and total monthly debt as a percentage of income.

The required income for a $250,000 mortgage depends on several factors, including existing debt, down payment size, and interest rate. With a 20% down payment and 7% interest rate, an income of $77,710 or more would qualify for a $250K mortgage, provided you don't have a lot of debt already.

The 28% rule

The 28% mortgage rule states that you should spend 28% or less of your monthly gross income on your mortgage payment (e.g., principal, interest, taxes and insurance). To determine how much you can afford using this rule, multiply your monthly gross income by 28%.

Lenders look for your monthly payment to be lower than 28% of your gross monthly income. A 100K mortgage payment at 7% interest on a 30-year term is $665.30. For this payment to be less than 28% of your monthly income, your monthly income needs to be over $2,376, assuming you have no debt.