Learn · Guides · Last reviewed 2026-10-17
How much house can I afford?
How the affordability calculator turns gross income, debts, and optional cash into a planning price.
Site editorial notes. Written to explain how this site’s calculators work. Not a review by a licensed mortgage professional, and not a recommendation to borrow.
A planning price, not an approval
The affordability calculator searches for a home price whose estimated monthly housing cost fits the budget for the scenario you select. Comfortable, moderate, and stretch each use ratios you can edit. Stretch is an upper illustration. It is not a statement that a lender will approve that price.
Income is gross, not take-home pay. The amount you type is interpreted in the frequency you select. Additional income and a co-borrower are included only as annual amounts you enter. A monthly override, when it is not zero, replaces that total.
What sets the price
The monthly housing budget is the lower of the housing-ratio cap and the room left under the total-obligation ratio after the debts you enter. Groceries, utilities, and other living costs are not added to that debt total. An optional household amount can lower only the comfortable budget.
Cash can also limit the price when you turn that constraint on. Cash to close includes the down payment and the closing costs you enter. If you have not itemized those costs, the calculator uses the illustrative percentage on the form. That percentage is not a closing disclosure.
Try the same scenario in the mortgage calculator
The result names the loan amount, down payment, principal and interest, and the other housing costs. Opening that price in the mortgage calculator shows the schedule and cash to close for the same assumptions. Changing the rate, the down payment, or the debts changes the price. The page does not check credit, verified income, or a property.
Questions
Does a higher income always raise the price?
Higher qualifying income raises the housing payment that fits a given ratio, which can raise the estimated price. Debts can offset that room when the total-obligation ratio is the tighter limit.
Try it in a calculator
Related guides
- Understanding debt-to-income ratios
- How down payments affect mortgages
- How mortgage payments are calculated
Written to explain how this site’s calculators work. Not a review by a licensed mortgage professional, and not a recommendation to borrow. These notes are not financial, tax, or legal advice.