Find the maximum home price you can afford from your income, debts, down payment and rate, with a full monthly payment breakdown and three debt-to-income scenarios.
Each preset loads typical income, debts, cash and rate, then you can adjust any value below.
Lenders cap housing cost (front-end ratio) and total debt (back-end ratio) as a share of gross income. A looser scenario buys more house but leaves a thinner safety margin.
Advanced: taxes, insurance, PMI and a manual DTI
Enter a home price you have in mind and see the gross income it would require under the selected scenario, keeping your debts, cash and rate.
| Scenario | Max home price | Monthly housing (PITI) |
|---|---|---|
| Conservative 28 / 36 | - | - |
| Standard 31 / 43 | - | - |
| Stretch 36 / 45 | - | - |
For beginners: how to read this result
Start with a preset or enter your own numbers: gross income (annual or monthly), monthly debt payments, cash for the down payment, the mortgage interest rate and the loan term. Then pick a debt-to-income scenario and read the maximum home price at the top.
How the maximum price is found
Lenders cap your housing budget with two ratios. The front-end ratio limits the monthly housing payment as a share of gross income; the back-end ratio limits the housing payment plus all other debt. The smaller of the two becomes your housing limit.
Maximum housing payment equals the lower of front-end ratio times monthly income, or back-end ratio times monthly income minus existing debts. From that limit the calculator subtracts property tax, home insurance and PMI to find the principal and interest you can afford, converts it into a loan amount with the standard amortisation formula, and adds your down-payment cash. The result is the maximum home price. Because property tax depends on the price itself, the calculation iterates until it settles.
The three scenarios
- Conservative 28 / 36: a roomy budget that stays comfortable through job or rate changes.
- Standard 31 / 43: a common qualifying limit with less cushion for surprises.
- Stretch 36 / 45: the upper limit many lenders allow, with a heavy payment burden.
The advanced section lets you set property tax percentage, annual insurance, the PMI rate and a manual front/back ratio override.
Payment breakdown and the reverse check
The PITI block splits the monthly housing cost into principal and interest, property tax, insurance and PMI. PMI is included only while the down payment is below 20 percent of the price. The reverse check works the other way: enter a target home price and see the gross income it would require under the chosen scenario.
What is not included
This is an estimate, not a loan offer. It does not account for credit score, employment history, verified assets, closing costs, homeowners association dues, maintenance, exact local tax rules or a lender’s specific underwriting overlays. A real pre-approval amount may be higher or lower.