Quick answer
With 20% down and a 6.5% 30-year mortgage, a $300,000 house needs about $80,548 in gross annual income. The estimated monthly housing cost is $1,879 before HOA dues or unusual local fees. That's about $26,849/year more than a $200,000 house needs. For context, the required income is about 1.1x the roughly $75,000 US median household income.
That monthly cost breaks down to roughly $1,517 in principal & interest on the $240,000 loan, plus about $275/month in estimated property tax and $88/month in estimated insurance.
$300,000 house income table
This table shows the approximate gross annual income needed at common down payments and mortgage rates, using a 28% housing debt-to-income guideline.
| Down payment | 5.5% rate | 6.0% rate | 6.5% rate | 7.0% rate | 7.5% rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5% down | $92,186 | $96,126 | $100,161 | $104,284 | $108,492 |
| 5% down | $90,994 | $94,874 | $98,845 | $102,905 | $107,047 |
| 10% down | $87,023 | $90,698 | $94,461 | $98,306 | $102,231 |
| 15% down | $83,051 | $86,522 | $90,076 | $93,708 | $97,414 |
| 20% down | $73,937 | $77,204 | $80,548 | $83,967 | $87,455 |
| 25% down | $70,287 | $73,350 | $76,485 | $79,690 | $82,960 |
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Open affordability calculatorHow the estimate works
- Mortgage: 30-year fixed principal and interest on the $240,000 loan (20% down) comes to about $1,517/month on this $300,000 house.
- Property tax: estimated at 1.1% of the home price - about $275/month here.
- Insurance: estimated at 0.35% of the home price - about $88/month here.
- PMI: estimated when the down payment is below 20%.
- Income rule: housing cost should stay near or below 28% of gross monthly income - 28% of the $80,548 required here is about $1,879/month, matching the total monthly cost above.
Lower the income required
On this $300,000 house specifically: dropping the rate from 7.5% to 5.5% lowers the required income by about $13,518/year, and raising the down payment from 3.5% to 25% lowers it by about $23,676/year (smaller loan, and PMI drops off at 20%). You can also compare the payment directly on the $300,000 mortgage payment table.
This table focuses on income, down payment, mortgage rate, property tax, insurance, PMI and housing debt-to-income math.