How Much House Can I Afford?

The old formula that was used to determine how much a borrower could afford was about three times the gross annual income. However, this formula has proven to not always be reliable. It is safer and more realistic to look at the individual budget and figure out how much money there is to spare and what the monthly payments on a new house will be. When figuring out what kind of mortgage payment one can afford, other factors such as taxes maintenance, insurance, and other expenses should be factored. Usually, lenders do not want borrowers having monthly payments exceeding more than 28% to 44% of the borrower’s monthly income. For those who have excellent credit, the lender may allow the payments to exceed 44%. To aid in this determination, banks and websites like this one offer mortgage calculators to assist in determining the mortgage payment that one can afford. For your convenience, here is a rate table displaying current mortgage rates in your area & the associated monthly payment amounts. If you adjust the loan amounts and hit the search button, the monthly payment numbers will automatically update.