How much do you need to make to afford a $250k house?
To afford a $250,000 house with $50,000 saved, 20% of the price, you need an income of about $87,000 a year at a 6.71% mortgage rate. The payment comes to about $2,029 a month with property tax and insurance, and $29,122 stays in the bank after closing.
Saving 20% of the price does not mean putting 20% down. Of the $50,000, $7,500 goes to closing costs and $26,097 is held back as a reserve, six months of what the house and the rest of life will cost. That reserve is our rule, not a lender's, and it caps the down payment at $16,403. At this income the lender's payment limit is met with $13,378 down, 5.35% of the price, so the other $3,025 stays in the bank as well. Below 20% down a lender adds mortgage insurance, about $168 a month here, and it is inside the payment above.
What sets the salary is the lender's payment test. At $87,000 a year, gross pay is $7,250 a month and this house takes $2,029 of it, 28%, right at the 28% ceiling lenders use. Earn less and that ceiling shrinks the loan a lender will offer, and the cash you have cannot cover the gap.
Savings move the salary more than most people expect. With half the price saved, $125,000, the income needed falls to about $78,000. With 15% saved, $37,500, no income reaches this house: the down payment, closing costs and six-month reserve need more cash than that. A lender might still approve that loan; the reserve is our rule, there so a repair or a lost job does not become a missed payment.
The rate matters too. With $50,000 saved, a 5% mortgage brings the income needed down to about $76,000, and at 7.5% it climbs to about $92,000. The table shows every combination, so you can find the row closest to your own savings.
These figures assume a 30-year mortgage at 6.71%, 1.2% property tax, 0.4% insurance, closing costs of 3%, household spending of 60% of gross income including the rent the house replaces, and no other monthly debt. A car payment or student loan comes straight off the 36% back-end ratio and raises the salary you need. Property tax varies a great deal by state, and it is inside every figure here.
Cash saved vs mortgage rate
Every combination, computed the same way — find your row and your column.
| Cash saved | 5% | 5.5% | 6% | 6.5% | 6.71%our default | 7% | 7.5% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $25,000 (10%) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| $37,500 (15%) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| $50,000 (20%) | $76,000 | $79,000 | $82,000 | $85,000 | $87,000 | $89,000 | $92,000 |
| $75,000 (30%) | $73,000 | $76,000 | $79,000 | $82,000 | $84,000 | $86,000 | $89,000 |
| $125,000 (50%) | $69,000 | $71,000 | $74,000 | $77,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 | $83,000 |
Each cell is the lowest salary a lender would need to see for this house. Read down a column to see what more savings is worth: more cash lowers the income needed. A dash means no income gets there with that much saved: the down payment, the closing costs and the six-month reserve we hold back need more cash than the row has. A lender might still approve the loan; the reserve is our rule, not theirs.
Assumptions
- Home Price
- 250000
- Cash Saved
- 50000
- Mortgage Rate
- 6.7%
- Mortgage Years
- 30 yr
- Property Tax Rate
- 1.2%
- Closing Cost Rate
- 3%
Frequently asked
What salary do you need to afford a $250k house?
About $87,000 a year with $50,000 saved, at a 6.71% mortgage rate. With half the price saved it falls to about $78,000.
Does saving 20% mean I can put 20% down?
Not once closing costs and a reserve are counted. Of $50,000, $7,500 goes to closing and $26,097 is held back as a reserve, which caps the down payment at $16,403. This page puts down $13,378, 5.35% of the price, because that is all the lender's payment limit needs at this income.
Is the income for a $250k mortgage the same as for a $250k house?
No. A $250k house with $50,000 saved needs a loan of about $236,622. A $250k mortgage is a bigger loan than that, so it takes a higher income than the figure on this page.
Should I wait for mortgage rates to fall?
At 7.5% the income needed is about $92,000; at 5% it is about $76,000. Saving more lowers it as well, and unlike the rate, that part is in your hands.
What about student loans or a car payment?
They come off the 36% back-end limit, so every $100 a month of other debt takes roughly $100 a month of mortgage payment away, and the salary needed rises to make up for it.
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