Estimate mortgage affordability using income, deposit, commitments, interest rate, term, and neutral planning assumptions.
Use a planning multiple alongside a monthly affordability check. Mortgage outputs are indicative only because real lender decisions depend on underwriting, product rules, credit profile, commitments, deposit, and LTV.
| Tax/source year | 2026/27 |
|---|---|
| Region | England/Wales/Northern Ireland |
| Tax code basis | 1257L where the page uses PAYE defaults |
| Pension basis | No pension deduction unless this example says otherwise |
| Student loan basis | No student loan unless selected in this example |
| Deposit and debts | Deposit size, existing credit commitments, childcare and other bills can matter as much as gross income. |
|---|---|
| Rate and term | Interest rate, term, fees and lender policy can change the repayment pressure. |
| Can I compare this with take-home pay? | take-home comparison |
|---|---|
| How would bills affect affordability pressure? | budget pressure |
| What is not decided here | PayBreakdown does not decide payroll correctness, lender approval, benefit entitlement or employer compliance, and does not give regulated financial, mortgage, debt, tax, payroll or legal advice. |
|---|
Every affordability decision reduces to two tests, and this tool models both. The first is a cap on the loan itself: lenders set their own income multiples, and the Bank of England's flow limit restricts the share of a lender's new lending that may sit at or above 4.5 times income — which is why quoted multiples cluster near that figure without it being a rule you can rely on. The second is a monthly test: whether the repayment fits alongside your commitments after tax, usually stressed at a rate above the one you would start on, under the FCA's responsible-lending rules. You can pass one test and fail the other — a large deposit does not fix stretched monthly finances, and a comfortable monthly budget does not raise a loan cap.
The inputs are not equal. In rough order of leverage on the outcome:
Interest rate, term, fees, deposit and the credit commitments you already have all move the result, and a lender applies its own affordability policy and credit checks on top. Treat the number as a way to see whether a repayment looks comfortable or stretched, not as an offer — and read it against your real bills, savings and any income change you expect. See how each deduction is worked out.
No. It is a planning estimate only. Lender affordability checks can be lower or higher once full case details are assessed.
Income multiples can help with broad planning, but they are only assumptions and should not be treated as a lender promise, offer, or recommendation.
Last updated 2026-08-28. Checked by Sean Elsmore. Rates last checked against GOV.UK on 2026-08-07. Estimates are for planning and should be checked against official records where the decision matters.