What Is a Loan Affordability Calculator?
A loan affordability calculator tells you the maximum home loan amount a bank will sanction based on your income, existing obligations, and the lender's FOIR limit.
The question "how much home loan can I get?" has a precise mathematical answer. Banks do not approve loans based on how much you want to borrow. They calculate backward from your income and constraints to determine how much EMI you can safely service.
This calculator uses the same FOIR method that SBI, HDFC, ICICI, and Axis Bank apply internally. The only inputs banks look at are your take-home salary, existing debt obligations, the applicable interest rate, and the loan tenure you want.
How Much Home Loan Can You Get: The FOIR Formula
Every bank in India uses some form of the FOIR (Fixed Obligation to Income Ratio) method. The math has two steps.
Step 1: Calculate Maximum EMI Capacity
Max EMI = (Monthly Income x FOIR%) - Existing EMIsStep 2: Reverse-Calculate Eligible Loan
Loan = Max EMI x [ (1+r)^n - 1 ] / [ r x (1+r)^n ]r = monthly interest rate (annual rate / 12 / 100), n = tenure in months
Example: Rs 60,000 salary, 50% FOIR, Rs 5,000 existing EMI, 8.5% rate, 20-year tenure.
That Rs 28.8 lakh is what SBI or HDFC will sanction. To check what your monthly EMI will be once you know your loan amount, use the Home Loan EMI Calculator which shows the full amortization schedule.
Home Loan Eligibility by Salary in India
Below is how much home loan you can get at different salary levels with no existing EMIs, 50% FOIR, 8.5% interest, and 20-year tenure. These numbers match what SBI, HDFC, and Union Bank would typically approve.
| Monthly Salary | EMI Capacity (50%) | Eligible Loan | Est. Property Value | Down Payment (20%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rs 20,000 | Rs 10,000 | Rs 11.52 L | Rs 14.40 L | Rs 2.88 L |
| Rs 30,000 | Rs 15,000 | Rs 17.28 L | Rs 21.60 L | Rs 4.32 L |
| Rs 40,000 | Rs 20,000 | Rs 23.04 L | Rs 28.80 L | Rs 5.76 L |
| Rs 50,000 | Rs 25,000 | Rs 28.80 L | Rs 36.00 L | Rs 7.20 L |
| Rs 75,000 | Rs 37,500 | Rs 43.20 L | Rs 54.00 L | Rs 10.80 L |
| Rs 1,00,000 | Rs 50,000 | Rs 57.60 L | Rs 72.00 L | Rs 14.40 L |
| Rs 1,50,000 | Rs 75,000 | Rs 86.40 L | Rs 1.08 Cr | Rs 21.60 L |
| Rs 2,00,000 | Rs 1,00,000 | Rs 1.15 Cr | Rs 1.44 Cr | Rs 28.80 L |
At Rs 40,000 salary, the eligible amount is Rs 23 lakh, enough for a 1BHK in tier-2 cities like Pune outskirts or Coimbatore. At Rs 75,000, the Rs 43.2 lakh eligibility opens up 2BHK options in major metro suburbs. The Home Loan Eligibility Calculator also compares your eligibility across 10 banks simultaneously.
What Is FOIR and Why It Matters
FOIR (Fixed Obligation to Income Ratio) is the single biggest lever in home loan affordability. It is the percentage of your gross monthly income that can go toward all loan EMI payments combined.
Indian banks generally apply these FOIR limits based on income:
| Monthly Income | Typical FOIR (Salaried) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Up to Rs 25,000 | 40-45% | Lower FOIR due to tighter household budgets |
| Rs 25,000 - 50,000 | 50% | Standard FOIR applied by SBI, Canara, PNB |
| Rs 50,000 - 1L | 50-55% | HDFC and ICICI often allow 55% for this bracket |
| Above Rs 1L | 55-60% | HNI borrowers get higher FOIR at private banks |
If you already pay EMIs on a car loan or personal loan, those obligations come out of your FOIR allowance first. A Rs 10,000 car loan EMI on a Rs 60,000 salary reduces your available home loan EMI capacity from Rs 30,000 to Rs 20,000, which cuts your eligible home loan by roughly Rs 11.5 lakh. Paying off short-term debt before applying for a home loan has an outsized effect on eligibility. Use the Debt-to-Income Ratio Calculator to see exactly how your current obligations affect your borrowing capacity.
How to Get a Higher Home Loan Amount
If the calculator shows you qualify for Rs 35 lakh but the property you want needs Rs 50 lakh, these are the four levers that actually work.
- Close existing short-term debt. Paying off a car loan or personal loan before applying frees up FOIR capacity. A Rs 8,000 personal loan EMI on a Rs 50,000 salary is blocking approximately Rs 9.2 lakh of additional home loan eligibility.
- Extend the tenure. Moving from 15 years to 25 years reduces the monthly EMI by about 18%, which lets a larger principal fit inside the same FOIR cap. The tradeoff is more total interest paid.
- Add a co-applicant. A working spouse or parent with income added as co-borrower clubs both incomes for FOIR calculation. Rs 60,000 + Rs 40,000 = Rs 1 lakh combined income, nearly doubling the eligible amount. Both must be co-owners of the property for the bank to count the co-applicant income.
- Improve your CIBIL score above 750. A 750+ CIBIL score gets you the best rates. SBI's current best rate is 8.40%; a lower score might mean 8.80%. That 0.4% difference on a Rs 40 lakh loan costs Rs 1.1 lakh extra in interest and raises the EMI by Rs 960, which slightly reduces what you qualify for.
If you have multiple existing loans and are considering consolidating them, run the numbers through the Loan Balance Transfer Savings Calculator first. Sometimes refinancing at a lower rate reduces your existing EMI burden enough to unlock better home loan eligibility.
How to Use This Loan Affordability Calculator
This calculator gives you a bank-accurate affordability estimate in under a minute. Here is what each input actually does.
- Net Monthly Take-home Salary: Use your actual in-hand salary after TDS, PF, and other deductions. Do not include variable bonuses that you receive once or twice a year. Banks apply FOIR to the fixed monthly take-home. If you are self-employed, divide your last year's net profit from ITR by 12.
- Existing Monthly EMIs: Add up all EMIs you currently pay: car loan, personal loan, credit card minimum payments, education loan. Do not include rent. These are deducted from your FOIR capacity before the home loan EMI room is calculated.
- Interest Rate: Current SBI home loan rates start at 8.40%. HDFC at 8.35%. Use 8.5-9% if you are estimating before approaching a bank. Adjust this to see how a 0.25% difference in rate changes your eligible amount.
- FOIR and Age (More settings): FOIR defaults to 50%, which matches most banks. Increase to 55-60% if you are in a higher income bracket or applying to HDFC. Age auto-caps the maximum tenure so the loan ends before you turn 60.
Once you see the eligible loan, note the estimated property value and down payment. If the down payment is more than you have saved, use the SIP Calculator to work out how long it takes to accumulate the required down payment through mutual fund investments.