How much income do I need for a $500K home?
There is no single income number because the answer changes with rate, down payment, taxes, insurance, mortgage insurance, HOA dues and your other monthly debt.
Two different questions
What can I qualify for? asks what the loan program and AUS may approve based on total debt, credit and reserves. What feels comfortable? is a household-budget question. MortgageDadOf3 uses 27% of gross income as a planning benchmark for a more comfortable housing payment—not an underwriting limit.
The math to run
Start with the estimated monthly principal and interest, then add property taxes, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance when applicable, HOA dues and any other required housing expense. Then add car loans, student loans, credit cards and other recurring debts for the underwriting DTI calculation.
Use the calculator instead of a stale rate example
Mortgage rates change. Rather than hard-coding a rate that can be outdated tomorrow, use the site calculator with the current rate and your actual down payment, state, taxes, insurance and debts.