What starter home can you actually afford?
Enter your income, savings, and target metro to see a realistic price range built from current local home prices, property tax, and insurance — plus how mortgage rates, appreciation, and renting compare over 5 years.
How Nestulator works
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1
Enter your numbers
Add your annual household income, savings for a down payment, and any rental income you expect — like an ADU or basement unit.
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2
Pick your target area
Search and select a metro or town. Local starter-home prices, property tax, and insurance load automatically.
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3
Explore your range
Drag the gauge handle to model a specific price and watch your monthly payment and housing-cost ratio update live.
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4
Compare buying vs. renting
Check the 5-year outlook to see whether buying or renting-and-investing builds more net worth under your assumptions.
Your numbers
These drive every calculation on this page.
Sensitivity
See how rate and appreciation assumptions move the numbers.
Your affordability range
Drag the handle to model a specific purchase price.
Monthly payment breakdown
At your selected modeling price.
Buy vs. rent — 5 year outlook
Assumes you'd otherwise invest your savings and any monthly cost difference.
| Year 5 comparison | Buy | Rent + invest |
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Frequently asked questions
What is a starter home affordability calculator?
A starter home affordability calculator estimates the home price range you can comfortably afford based on your income, savings, and local costs like property tax and insurance. Nestulator models this using standard 28%/36% debt-to-income guidelines and current starter-home prices in dozens of U.S. metros.
How much income do I need to buy a starter home?
It depends on your target area and down payment, but as a rule of thumb, lenders consider a mortgage payment “comfortable” at or below 28% of gross monthly income, and a “stretch” up to 36%. Enter your income and metro above to see your specific price range.
What's the difference between “comfortable,” “stretch,” and “likely out of reach”?
These labels reflect how much of your gross income a home price would require for its monthly payment (principal, interest, taxes, insurance, PMI). “Comfortable” is 28% or less, “stretch” is 28–36%, and “likely out of reach” is above 36% — the threshold most conventional lenders use as a ceiling.
Does this calculator replace mortgage pre-qualification?
No. Nestulator provides planning estimates only. Actual rates, taxes, insurance, and closing costs vary by lender and property — talk to a lender for an accurate pre-qualification.
How is rental income factored into the calculation?
If you enter expected monthly rental income — for example, from an ADU or basement unit — it's subtracted from your net monthly housing cost and added to your effective budget, which shifts your affordability range and buy-vs-rent comparison.
What data does the calculator use for home prices and rates?
Starter-home prices come from Redfin's starter-home report, property tax rates from Bankrate and ATTOM Data Solutions, insurance costs from NerdWallet, rent benchmarks from Zillow, and the default mortgage rate from NerdWallet's mortgage rate tracker.