Rent Affordability Calculator

Determining a safe rental budget is the single most important financial decision for a tenant. Getting this wrong leads to being "house poor," where excessive housing costs cannibalize funds needed for food, healthcare, and savings. Accuracy is critical here because landlords strictly enforce affordability ratios during the application process.

This tool goes beyond simple multiplication. It accounts for your pre-existing debts (student loans, credit cards) and distinguishes between Gross Income (what you earn) and Net Income (what you keep). It also calculates the hidden barrier to entry: the Upfront Move-in Costs, including security deposits and broker fees.

Whether you are a student, a professional relocating to a high-cost city like New York or London, or negotiating a salary to match a dream apartment, this utility provides the mathematical ceiling for your housing expenses using industry-standard algorithms like the 30% Rule and the 40x Rent Rule.

The calculator uses two primary methods depending on the strictness required. The most common standard is the DTI-adjusted net income model:

For the 40x Rule (common in major metropolitan hubs like NYC), the calculation ignores debt and looks purely at Gross Annual Income:

To estimate Net Income from Gross (when the user selects Gross), we apply a simplified progressive tax curve approximation: