Estimate how much home your income can support using the 28/36 guideline lenders commonly use
Estimate what you can afford
Enter income, debts, down payment, rate, term, and estimated taxes plus insurance to see an estimated max home price, max loan, and full monthly payment breakdown using the 28/36 guideline.
Mortgage Affordability Calculator
Estimate how much home your income may support using the 28/36 guideline. Every result below is an estimate, not a lender decision.
Estimate using the 28/36 debt-to-income guideline lenders commonly use. Not a loan offer or pre-approval.
Get your results by email
Want to keep a copy of your numbers? After you run the calculation, use the "Email me my results" button on this page to have your results sent to your inbox. When you request your results by email, we may also follow up with a short consultation about your situation and how the numbers could be improved — no obligation, and you can ignore or decline the follow-up at any time.
About this tool
House hunting gets expensive fast when you fall in love with a home before you know what your income can actually support. This Mortgage Affordability Calculator flips the order: start with your gross annual income and monthly debts, then apply the 28/36 guideline that lenders commonly use as a first screen. The rule says housing costs should stay near 28 percent of gross monthly income, and total debts including the new housing payment should stay near 36 percent, so existing car payments, credit cards, and student loans directly reduce what is left for a mortgage. From the tighter of those two limits, the calculator subtracts your estimated monthly property taxes and homeowners insurance, because lenders count those as part of your housing cost, leaving a principal and interest budget. It then works backwards through the standard loan amortization formula at the rate and term you choose - 30, 20, or 15 years - to find the largest loan that budget can carry, and adds your down payment to estimate a maximum home price. Try it with debts paid down, a larger down payment, or a shorter term to see which lever actually moves your price range and monthly payment the most before you talk to a lender.
How it works
- Enter gross annual income, total monthly debts, and your down payment, plus an interest rate and loan term to test.
- Add an estimate for monthly property taxes and homeowners insurance for homes in your target area and price range.
- The calculator applies the 28/36 rule: max housing is the smaller of 28 percent of gross monthly income and 36 percent minus your existing monthly debts, floored at zero.
- It subtracts taxes and insurance to get a principal and interest budget, converts that budget into a max loan with the amortization formula, and adds your down payment for an estimated max home price.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 28/36 rule?
It is a debt-to-income guideline lenders commonly use as an initial screen, not a guarantee of approval. Housing costs are compared to about 28 percent of gross monthly income, and all monthly debts including housing are compared to about 36 percent. Different loan programs, credit profiles, and lenders may allow different ratios, which is why this tool labels its output an estimate.
Why do my monthly debts matter so much?
Under the 36 percent side of the rule, every dollar of existing monthly debt - car loans, minimum card payments, student loans - subtracts directly from what can go toward housing. In the calculator, paying down a monthly payment can raise the estimated home price even if your income does not change, though paying down debt also uses cash that could have been a down payment.
Why are taxes and insurance subtracted before calculating the loan?
Lenders qualify you on the full housing payment, not just principal and interest. Property taxes and insurance are usually escrowed monthly and count toward the 28/36 limits. In high-tax areas that subtraction can be large, so using a realistic local estimate matters more than guessing a low national number.
Is this a pre-approval or a loan offer?
No. This is an educational estimate using one guideline and the numbers you enter. A real pre-approval involves credit checks, verified income and assets, property appraisal, and program-specific rules. Use this result to set a sensible search range and prepare questions for a lender, not as a commitment to lend.
How does loan term change affordability?
A shorter term, like 15 years instead of 30, has a higher payment for the same loan amount, so the same monthly budget supports a smaller loan and a lower estimated price, but you pay substantially less interest over the life of the loan. Try both terms in the calculator to see the tradeoff in monthly terms, not just total interest.