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How much you would need to earn to afford a house at a given price — modelled indicative income at 5%, 10% and 20% deposit, for a single applicant and a couple. Pick a price to see the full breakdown, including repayments and stamp duty for NSW, VIC and QLD.
These are modelled estimates for comparison, not a pre-approval or a lending decision. For your own numbers, use the Borrowing Power Calculator.
This calculator is not intended to be relied on for the purposes of making a decision in relation to a financial product. Before you make a financial decision, consider obtaining advice from someone who holds an Australian Financial Services Licence. We do not, and we cannot advise you.
Lenders do not assess you at the rate you will pay. They assess you at that rate plus a serviceability buffer, so these figures model a 6.5% loan tested at 9.5% — at least a 3 percentage point buffer, the minimum APRA requires banks to apply when checking you could still cope if rates rose. Many banks assess higher, and non-bank lenders sit outside APRA's remit and commonly buffer less.
The income shown is what a household needs so the assessed repayment stays within 30% of gross income, over a 30-year term. At every price and deposit published here, that 30% test is the one that actually sets the number — a living-expenses assumption is part of the model but does not move these particular figures.
Your own expenses, other debts, credit card limits and dependants still matter to a real lender, and a lender counts them differently again. Treat this as the shape of the requirement, not your number.
It is an estimate of the household income needed for the repayment to pass a standard serviceability test at this price and deposit. It is not a pre-approval, a lending decision or an offer, and a lender assessing you will use its own expense benchmarks, your credit history and the property itself.
Lenders test whether you could still make repayments if rates rose. These figures apply at least a 3 percentage point buffer, so a 6.5% loan is assessed at 9.5%. That buffer is the main reason the income needed looks high relative to the actual repayment.
No. LMI usually applies below a 20% deposit and can run to tens of thousands of dollars, often added to the loan. It is not in these figures, so open a card and look at the 5% and other smaller-deposit tiers with that in mind — they understate the real cost of buying with a small deposit.
Yes — the figure shown is household income, so it can be one earner or two combined. Lenders assess the household, though they also count each borrower's debts and commitments.
Estimates only. Not financial or tax advice. Full disclaimer for your rights and our limitations of liability.
This calculator exists to show you the arithmetic. It applies published Australian rates, thresholds and formulas to the numbers you enter and shows the working, so you can check it. That is all it does — it produces a number and describes what the number is. It does not recommend anything and it holds no opinion about any financial product.
What can move this result
This calculator is not intended to be relied on for the purposes of making a decision in relation to a financial product. Before you make a financial decision, consider obtaining advice from someone who holds an Australian Financial Services Licence. We do not, and we cannot advise you.