Can a couple making $60,000/year afford a $158,000 house?

Question

Can a couple making $60,000/year afford a $158,000 house?

Answer 1

Probably, but much of the answer depends on how other finances are involved.  Is there a car or car payments?  Is there credit card debt ?  Are there student loans which need to be paid off ?

Contact a qualified lender to find out what your monthly outlays will be, when all is said and done.  If you've got nothing left over or close to nothing left over, it won't be pretty.

Answer 2

yes but why not wait the market on housing is still coming down.We got a house that was sell for 500,000 for 175,ooo  the housing market still going down

Answer 3

yes  

Answer 4

I completely agree with Bubbles. Me and my wife make a combined 103K a year and purchased a condo for 187K and it is rough. Make sure you take into account vacations,trips,pet bills everything prior to making a big commitment.

Answer 5

NO, are you nuts?  If you own your cars, have no dept and no loans you'll still being eating rice ever night.  I personally won't do it- we make 150,000 a year- our mortgage is 170,000 and it's a $1,355 payment, plus water, plus heat, plus electric and food, car payments, gas and then you need padding in-case the water heater brakes... or the roof leaks.  We are penny pinches and we can only save 10,000 a year which if you ask me- is not nearly enough.

Write it all out on paper and sit down with someone who owns a house and get estimate from them on their heating and etc.  You don't want to be house broke for the rest of your life.  I also think that 1 person salaries should be able to cover the mortgage payment.  This way in-case anything bad happens- like someone lose a job, your still safe.  Don't stretch yourself too thin buy smaller and cheaper.

Answer 6

i guess

my family is $60,000/year our house was bought for $205,000

Answer 7

possible but u must save a lot of money in the process

Answer 8

based on other debt, YES  you actually are at the correct number of 25% of your gross income going towards mortgage.

Answer 9

In So. California, someone making that usually buys a home worth $400-$600k.  Then again, many do not choose a 30 yr fixed loan.  They go for a 5 yr fixed then move.

Answer 10

it is hard to find a 158K home these days.

but absolutely no problem but you need to set a budget for it.

your mortgage payments will be approx. $900 monthly and that would be about average for rents too.

you may need to trim the fat from other frivolous spending to accommodate the new expenditure.

Answer 11

If would say not likely; but it is close.  The general rule of thumb is that you can afford a house that is 2.5 times your salary (meaning you could afford up to $150,000).  However, it also depends on how much other debt you have, how much you have saved up for a down payment, whether or not you have children and how tight you want your spending to be.  If you have little or no debt, a 20% downpayment and don't mind being tight on money until future raises come along; then you can probably afford it.  But otherwise, I think it might be too much of a stretch and you won't be able to live a comfortable lifestyle.  You can always go to a bank to apply though to see what they think; since they will look at your entire financial situation.  Good luck!