Affordability
How much house can I afford?
Start from what you earn rather than what you hope to spend. This works backwards from the two ratios a lender actually uses.
1. Your income
2. Your cash
3. The loan
4. Qualifying ratios
Conventional loans commonly allow up to 45%, and as high as 50% with strong compensating factors. FHA can stretch further. These are the levers a lender actually pulls.
You could qualify up to
$565,000
With $60,000 down, that's a $505,000 loan and a monthly payment of $4,650 including taxes and insurance.
What's actually stopping you
Your housing ratio is the limit
Lenders cap the housing payment at roughly 31% of gross income. Yours is the binding constraint, so more down payment raises your price — reducing other debts will not.
Monthly cap
$4,650
Room left
$0
Where the payment goes
- Principal & interest
- $3,192
- Property tax
- $989
- Insurance
- $200
- Mortgage insurance
- $219
- HOA
- $50
- Total monthly
- $4,650
Notice how much of that is not the mortgage. In Collin County, taxes and insurance often run $1,189/mo — the reason a Texas payment surprises people moving here from elsewhere.
Disclaimer: This is a qualification estimate, not a pre-approval. Lenders verify income, assets and credit, and guidelines differ between them — one may allow a debt ratio another will not. Property tax and insurance vary by address, and MUD or PID districts can add meaningfully to both. Not a commitment to lend.
Custom Analysis
Want this verified rather than estimated?
A real pre-approval checks your actual income documents and credit, and I can tell you which lender's guidelines give you the most room.
- Your scenario is attached automatically
- Reply within one business day
- No credit pull to get a quote
Loans by Vai
How lenders decide
Two ratios, and whichever binds first is your real ceiling.
The housing ratio
Your full housing payment — principal, interest, taxes, insurance, HOA — against gross monthly income. Commonly capped near 31%, though it flexes with credit and reserves.
The total debt ratio
Housing plus every other monthly obligation. Conventional loans usually allow 45%, sometimes 50% with strong compensating factors. A car payment costs you real purchase price.
Texas changes the math
Property tax near 2–2.9% of value means taxes and insurance can be a third of the payment. A number that works in California buys less house here than people expect.
An estimate is not an approval.
Let me verify your income and assets and tell you which lender gives your file the most room.