SimpleAPR
Guide

What salary for a $300k house?

Roughly $80k–$90k — but your rate, down payment, and taxes move it a lot. Here's the math.

Rough answer: somewhere around $80,000–$90,000 a year — but the real number depends heavily on your rate, down payment, and local taxes. Here's how to find yours.

The quick estimate

Start with the monthly payment on a $300,000 home. With a 20% down payment ($60,000), you'd borrow $240,000. At about a 7% rate over 30 years, that's roughly $1,600/month in principal and interest. Add property taxes and insurance — call it $350/month — and your full payment is around $1,950/month.

Now apply the 28% rule in reverse: lenders like housing to stay near 28% of gross monthly income. So $1,950 ÷ 0.28 ≈ $7,000/month, or about $83,000 a year.

What changes that number — a lot

  • Interest rate: a lower rate shrinks the payment and the income you need; a higher rate raises both.
  • Down payment: putting more down means a smaller loan and a lower required salary.
  • Property taxes & insurance: these vary widely by location and can move the number by hundreds a month.
  • Other debts: car loans or credit cards eat into the 36% total-debt limit, raising the income you need.

Don't forget the cash up front

Salary is only half the picture. You also need the down payment plus closing costs (often another few percent of the price) saved before you buy.

"Can afford" vs. "comfortable"

The 28% rule is what a lender will allow — not necessarily what leaves you breathing room. Many buyers deliberately aim below it so the payment doesn't crowd out everything else.

Plug in your real down payment, rate, and debts in the affordability calculator to get your own number instead of this rough estimate.
FAQ

Common questions

What salary do you need to afford a $300,000 house?

Very roughly $80,000–$90,000 a year with a typical down payment and rate — but it swings a lot based on your interest rate, down payment, property taxes, and other debts. Use an affordability calculator with your own numbers.

How is that estimate calculated?

Estimate the full monthly payment (loan plus taxes and insurance), then apply the 28% rule in reverse: divide the payment by 0.28 to get the gross monthly income you'd need, and multiply by 12.

What lowers the salary you need?

A larger down payment, a lower interest rate, lower local property taxes, and having little or no other debt all reduce the income required to afford the same home.