— Mortgage & Property
Home Affordability Calculator
Not the most a bank will lend — the most you can comfortably spend. This factors in your down payment, closing costs, an emergency fund kept aside and a comfort budget, then shows a realistic price range and the cash you’ll need at closing.
Comfortable home price
$384,498
- Lender-maximum price
- $424,891
- Gap to lender max
- $40,393
- Estimated monthly payment (PITI)
- $2,500
- Loan amount
- $316,033
- Down payment
- $68,465
- Closing costs
- $11,535
- Cash needed at closing
- $80,000
- Loan-to-value
- 82.19%
- Comfort budget set by
- Comfort DTI of 25%
— Affordable price by home savings
| Home savings | Affordable price | Loan amount | Cash at closing |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $350,456 | $320,970 | $40,000 |
| $60,000 | $367,477 | $318,501 | $60,000 |
| $80,000 | $384,498 | $316,033 | $80,000 |
| $120,000 | $418,540 | $311,096 | $120,000 |
| $160,000 | $452,582 | $306,159 | $160,000 |
— Affordable price by home savings
Download— How it works
Comfortable housing payment = the lowest of your comfort-DTI target, your desired payment, or what’s left after living expenses. Net out closing costs and reserves from your savings, then back-solve the price: more cash down buys more house at the same payment. The lender maximum (28/36 DTI) sets the top of the range.
Comfortable is not the same as the maximum
A lender will tell you the largest loan you qualify for. That number — driven purely by debt-to-income limits — is a ceiling, not a target, and buying at it leaves no room for the rest of life. This calculator answers the more useful question: what can you comfortably afford? It anchors to a conservative comfort budget rather than the lender’s cap, sets aside an emergency fund, accounts for the closing costs that eat into your down payment, and presents the result as a range — from the comfortable price up to the lender maximum — so you can see the gap and decide where in it you want to sit.
The comfortable payment is the lowest of whatever limits you set: a conservative DTI target (25% by default, against the lender’s 28%), an explicit desired payment, or what is left after your living expenses and debts. Whichever is tightest wins, because comfort is defined by your real constraints, not the loosest one.
Worked example — $120,000 income, $80,000 saved, $500 of debts, 6.5% over 30 years: At a comfortable 25% of income ($2,500/mo) the price is about $384,000. A lender’s 28/36 limits would stretch to roughly $425,000 — a $40,000 gap you can choose to leave on the table. Closing costs take about $11,500 of your savings, leaving the rest as the down payment.
Cash is the other constraint
Affordability is not only about the monthly payment — it is also about the cash you can put on the table. Your savings have to cover both the down payment and the closing costs, and a sensible buyer keeps an emergency fund untouched. This calculator splits your savings accordingly: reserves come off the top, closing costs (a percentage of the price) come next, and whatever remains is the down payment. The cash-needed figure is exactly what leaves your account at closing.
Because more cash down means a smaller loan for the same price — or more house for the same payment — your savings directly move the affordable price. The table and chart show that lever explicitly: as the home-savings pool grows, the comfortable price rises while the monthly payment stays put. It is the clearest argument for saving a little longer before buying.
Rates, PMI and the down-payment threshold
Two thresholds are worth watching. The first is 20% down: below it you usually pay PMI, which is folded into the monthly payment here and quietly lowers the price you can reach. Crossing 20% removes it and frees up budget. The calculator applies PMI automatically whenever the down payment works out under a fifth of the price, and shows the loan-to-value so you know where you stand.
The second is the interest rate. A higher rate means more of every payment goes to interest, so the same comfortable budget buys less house — which is why affordability falls in a rising-rate market even when incomes do not. Adjust the rate to see how far your range shifts, and remember that the comfortable end of the range is the one designed to survive a surprise.
— Reader questions
How is this different from a mortgage affordability calculator?
A lender-style calculator gives the maximum loan your debt-to-income ratios allow. This one gives the price you can comfortably afford — anchored to a conservative budget, net of closing costs and a kept-aside emergency fund. It shows both: the comfortable figure and the lender maximum, as a range, so you can see how much cushion you are choosing to keep.
What share of my income should go to housing?
The conventional lender limit is 28% of gross income for housing, but many advisers suggest keeping it lower — around 25% or less — so a job change, a rate rise or an emergency does not derail you. This calculator uses a 25% comfort target by default, which you can adjust, and also lets you set an explicit payment cap or a living-expenses budget.
How do closing costs affect what I can afford?
They come out of the same cash as your down payment — typically 2–5% of the price — so they reduce the amount left to put down, which lowers the price you can reach. The calculator subtracts them from your savings before working out the down payment, and the cash-needed figure includes them.
Should I spend all my savings on the down payment?
No — keep an emergency fund. Enter it under reserves and the calculator sets it aside before computing the down payment, so the affordable price reflects only the cash you are genuinely willing to spend. Buying a home with nothing left in the bank is how a small surprise becomes a crisis.
Does a bigger down payment let me afford more?
Yes. More cash down means a smaller loan for a given price — or, at the same comfortable monthly payment, a higher price. The table and chart show exactly how the affordable price rises as your home savings grow, which is often the strongest reason to save a little longer before buying.
Why is the comfortable price below the lender maximum?
Because the comfortable price uses a more conservative budget (a lower DTI, your desired payment, or your living-expenses headroom) and keeps reserves aside, while the lender maximum stretches to the full 28/36 limits. The gap between them is your safety margin — money a lender would let you borrow but that you may be wise not to.