Affordability-by-Salary Calculator (UK)
How much house can your salary actually buy? Enter income, deposit, debts and a lending multiple; the calculator returns your maximum property price with stamp duty netted off and a loan-to-value you can sanity-check against typical lender bands.
Max property price: —
Enter your numbers to see the affordability envelope.
This is a rules-of-thumb estimate. Actual lender decisions depend on affordability checks, stress tests, employment type, credit history and the specific product. Speak to a mortgage broker for a real agreement in principle.
How much can your salary buy?
Three things drive your maximum UK property price:
- Household income. Gross, before tax. Joint applications count both applicants; most lenders count bonuses at 50–100% depending on whether they're guaranteed.
- Income multiple. The cap on loan size as a multiple of income — 4.5× is the mainstream default in 2026.
- Deposit, minus stamp duty. Your cash goes into the deposit, but stamp duty is also paid from cash on completion — so the deposit that actually becomes equity is lower than the headline figure.
This calculator combines all three, reduces borrowing for monthly debt commitments the way lenders do, and nets stamp duty out of your deposit so the headline number is a realistic budget — not a mortgage-plus-gross-deposit overstatement.
Why the multiple matters
UK lenders cluster around 4.5× as the default cap. The income multiple is a first-gate test: the loan cannot exceed your income × multiple, full stop. Your actual offer is then narrowed by affordability (monthly outgoings vs stressed payment), credit score, employment type and deposit size.
- 4.0× (conservative). Lenders sometimes cap here for self-employed borrowers with limited track record, contractor profiles outside their comfort zone, or high pre-existing debt.
- 4.5× (typical). The default assumption for UK mainstream mortgages.
- 5.0× (stretched). Available from several lenders for higher earners, larger deposits, or professional borrowers (doctors, accountants, solicitors).
- 5.5× (specialist). Select lenders for specific high-income profiles — often subject to stricter stress tests.
If your shortlist pushes you to 5× or higher, get specific advice from a whole-of-market broker before committing emotionally to a property.
Why debt drags your budget down
A £200/month credit card minimum payment isn't just £2,400/year — to a lender, it signals a persistent claim on your income. The rule-of-thumb adjustment is to reduce your lendable income by roughly three years of annual debt commitments before applying the multiple. That's why paying off a car finance balance before applying can lift your max loan by five figures.
Don't forget the other costs
The headline price is the property price you can afford — not the total cash outlay. On top of the deposit + stamp duty already netted, budget for:
- Conveyancing and searches — £1,500–£3,000
- Survey — £300 (basic) to £1,200+ for a full building survey
- Mortgage product fee — £0 to £1,500+ (sometimes added to the loan)
- Moving — £500–£2,000
Plan these into cash reserves so you aren't short at completion.
Where Offrly fits
Once you know your ceiling, the question becomes: is the property worth the price? Offrly runs a free AI valuation on any UK property for sale — photo-aware reading of garden, condition and finish, combined with live comparables, returned in about 30 seconds. When an agent quotes a figure near your ceiling, Offrly tells you whether it's fair or a stretch.
Disclaimer: This calculator is for illustration only. It is not a mortgage offer and not financial advice. Actual lender decisions depend on a full affordability model covering employment, credit history, regular outgoings and lender-specific stress tests. For a formal decision in principle, speak to a whole-of-market mortgage broker. Stamp duty shown uses 2026 SDLT bands for a primary residence in England and Northern Ireland; first-time-buyer relief, the 3% second-home surcharge, Scottish LBTT and Welsh LTT are not modelled.
Know your budget, then price the shortlist properly
Offrly values any UK property for sale in about 30 seconds — photo-aware AI, live comparables, no signup. The fastest way to check whether the asking price matches what your budget should actually buy.
Value a property free →FAQ: Affordability-by-Salary Calculator (UK)
Why do lenders use an income multiple?
It's a fast top-line cap. Most UK mainstream lenders will not lend above 4.5× combined gross income. A few — for specific profiles (high earners, professionals, strong deposit) — will stretch to 5× or 5.5×. Your actual offer is then fine-tuned by a full affordability model covering outgoings, stress tests and credit score.
What's a 'stress test'?
Lenders check whether you could still afford payments if interest rates rose by a set margin above the initial rate (typically 1–3 percentage points). If stressed payments exceed roughly 40% of your gross monthly income, they'll reduce the loan or decline.
How does monthly debt reduce what I can borrow?
Rule of thumb: lenders reduce your lendable income by roughly three years of annual debt commitments. So £200/month in car finance and credit cards cuts your lendable income by about £7,200/year — which at a 4.5× multiple is about £32,000 off your max loan.
Why net out stamp duty?
Stamp duty is paid from cash on completion — it comes out of your deposit. If you treat the full deposit as going into the property, you'll overestimate the price you can afford by thousands of pounds. The calculator iterates once to find the price at which deposit + mortgage − stamp duty balances.
Is this the same as a Mortgage in Principle?
No. A Mortgage in Principle (MIP) is a soft credit check against a specific lender's own model. This calculator is a rule-of-thumb UK market view — useful for budgeting and shortlisting. Before offering on a property, get an MIP from a broker; estate agents ask for one.
Does the stamp duty calculation cover first-time buyers or buy-to-let?
No — it uses the primary-residence SDLT bands for England and Northern Ireland (2026). First-time buyer relief, buy-to-let surcharge, and the Scottish LBTT / Welsh LTT schedules differ. For a precise figure, run our [stamp duty calculator](/tools/stamp-duty-calculator).