The question that comes most often when you start the house buying process is how much can I borrow for a mortgage The main factor that determines such a situation is that how much mortgage payment you can handle depending on your monthly income and your monthly debt or obligations.
How much can you borrow?
When you ask yourself the question of “how much can I borrow for a mortgage”, it will depend on the following major factors:
• Monthly income: Usually housing expenses do not exceed 25% – 28% of the homeowner’s gross monthly income. The housing expenses include monthly mortgage payments with interest, property taxes and home owners insurance, if any. You can also consider the overtime bonus and commissions, income from self employment, interest and dividend income, rental income, as income, if not your steady employment.
• Debts: Your monthly debts and obligations will also be taken under consideration by the lenders. Your housing expenses and your long term debts should not exceed 33% – 40% of your gross monthly income. Long-term debt is usually considered by the lenders as monthly expenses. So it is advisable that you pay off as much debt as possible before you apply for a mortgage.
• Down payment and closing costs: Lenders will expect you to have enough money available to make the down payment, which is usually 20% of the price for the house. They also expect to get closing costs which is 3% – 6% of the loan amount. The sources for a down payment may be savings, stock and bonds, mutual funds, etc. There are some mortgage programs that allow using a gift of money or grants, (which need not be repaid), as a part of your down payment.
• Credit score: If your credit score is not good, then you will not get the approval of getting a mortgage from the lenders.
So, answering the question, “how much can I borrow for a mortgage” is not as easy as one might think. It depends mainly on your current financial situation. You have to calculate your monthly expenses and income to calculate the maximum mortgage payment that you can afford. There are also many other factors that lenders take into consideration. You should fully understand those factors in order to determine how much mortgage you can really afford to take.
