{"id":1371,"date":"2025-04-14T18:27:32","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T18:27:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/?p=1371"},"modified":"2025-04-11T18:27:59","modified_gmt":"2025-04-11T18:27:59","slug":"how-much-house-can-i-afford","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/how-much-house-can-i-afford\/","title":{"rendered":"How Much House Can I Afford?\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
If you’ve made the decision to purchase a home, one of your first questions may be, “How much house can I afford?” By knowing in advance what you can comfortably afford, you will better be able to navigate the process of purchasing your new house. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Don\u2019t forget to budget for affordable home insurance<\/a>. Your mortgage lender will require you to have it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You can make the dream of homeownership a reality if you crunch the numbers first to ensure you can meet the monthly mortgage payment. You don’t want to get in over your head and struggle financially. Assessing your income and expenses using home affordability calculators will give you the answer to how much you can spend on a mortgage and other housing-associated costs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Using a financially sound plan will help you turn your dreams into reality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One way to assess home affordability is referred to as the 28\/36 rule. This method takes your gross monthly income and states you shouldn’t spend more than 28% on housing costs and no more than 36% on all other debts. This calculation can help determine how much of a home you can afford based on your salary. Here’s how it works in action. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If your monthly gross salary is $6,000, you would multiply that by 0.28 (which represents 28%). This comes out to $1,680. Let’s say your housing costs meet this requirement. You still need to make sure your overall debts do not exceed 36%. <\/p>\n\n\n\n To determine if your debt exceeds that amount, you need to add up all your debts, including the mortgage. Instead of multiplying your gross salary by 0.28, use 0.36. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Using the example above for salary, the amount you could spend on debt to stay within the parameters of 36% is $2,160. So, if the mortgage is $1,680, you would only have $480 left for other debt like credit cards, a car payment, etc. In that case, it might be a little tight to manage. If your “other” debt is $500, you could safely get a mortgage for $1,660. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the key components that factor into your buying power is your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio. Lenders like to see a DTI ratio of about 28%. Determining DTI involves comparing your monthly gross income with your total monthly debts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, if your monthly mortgage payment, with taxes and insurance, is $1,600 a month and you have a monthly household income of $6,000 before taxes, your DTI would be 26% (1600 \/ 6000 = 0.26).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n During the home buying process, it’s important to remember other potential costs you’ll incur related to the house. These include taxes and homeowners insurance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Taxes can vary based on the property’s location, size, and value. Sometimes, purchasing a home a few miles from another property can bring the taxes down. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Insurance costs can vary based on a few factors. Did you know your home’s location can play a part in your homeowners insurance cost<\/a>? Your deductible, carrier, and the type of coverage you secure are other determining factors. Be sure to shop around for affordable coverage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some people also have to pay private mortgage insurance (PMI) if they have less than 20% for a downpayment. Certain types of loans allow homebuyers to put less money down, but lenders often require PMI. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, if you live in certain communities that have common areas and rules for the neighborhood, you may have to pay an HOA fee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You can enhance your home-buying budget in three simple ways: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the common pitfalls that can hinder you from making the home purchasing process a reality include the following: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Getting a high interest rate<\/strong>: The Federal Reserve influences mortgage rates, which in turn affect your monthly payment. However, your credit score, debt, and down payment also play a part in what rate lenders will give you. Having a good credit score lowers your rate and decreases your monthly payment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You can take steps to ensure your credit score is accurate by requesting a free copy of it and reviewing it. If you see any errors, contact the credit reporting company and let them know. If it’s low due to high debt or other factors, work to increase your score by paying down your debt on time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Not having much for a down payment<\/strong>: Lenders look at how much you can put down on your new home. A hefty down payment can encourage lenders to give you a better rate, thus decreasing your payment. If you don’t have enough right now, you could save a little while longer. However, it’s a good idea to discuss your options with an experienced agent. They may have insight into future interest rates and the housing market. This input can help you make the right decision. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Paying too much for insurance<\/strong>: If you don’t have the best policy and coverage, you could end up overpaying for your insurance. Find out what every homeowner needs to know about purchasing a policy<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Knowing the answer to “Can I afford a house?” will help you make your dream of home ownership a reality. Talk to an insurance advisor at Acceptance to find out about the cost of a home insurance policy. Get all your home insurance FAQs answered<\/a>. Getting the best rates for your coverage ensures that you keep your costs down. At Acceptance, we will provide you with a free, no-obligation quote for the protection you require. Take advantage of the competitive rate we offer when purchasing a policy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Reach out to an experienced agent today to receive your free auto insurance quote. Find an affordable plan that fits your budget. Contact us by phone at (877) 405-7102<\/a>, visit one of our many locations<\/a>, or get a quote online<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you’ve made the decision to purchase a home, one of your first questions may be, “How much house can I afford?” By knowing in advance what you can comfortably afford, you will better be able to navigate the process of purchasing your new house. Don\u2019t forget to budget for affordable home insurance. Your mortgage […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":1373,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,19],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1371"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1371"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1371\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1374,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1371\/revisions\/1374"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1373"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1371"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.acceptanceinsurance.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Turning Homeownership Dreams into Reality with Financial Responsibility<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Assessing Affordability Before House Hunting<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Key Components That Influence Buying Power<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Additional Costs to Consider in the Home-Buying Process<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Tips to Enhance Your Home-Buying Budget<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Start Your Calculations with a Quick Home Insurance Quote From Acceptance<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n\n\n\n