Rent Calculator
Calculate a recommended maximum monthly rent from your gross income and existing debt, using the 30% rule and a 36% debt-adjusted cap.
How It's Calculated
Formula
\text{Rent}_{30\%} = \text{Income} \times 0.30 \qquad \text{Rent}_{\text{debt-adj}} = \max(0,\ \text{Income} \times 0.36 - \text{Debt}) \qquad \text{Max} = \min(\text{Rent}_{30\%},\ \text{Rent}_{\text{debt-adj}})This calculator applies two common financial-literacy conventions for how much rent is affordable, neither of which is a jurisdiction rule or a landlord/lender's actual approval cutoff. The first is the widely cited '30% rule': keep rent at or below 30% of gross monthly income. The second accounts for existing debt: keep total monthly housing plus other debt payments at or below 36% of gross income (the same 36% back-end guideline used in debt-to-income calculations), then subtracts current debt payments to see how much of that 36% budget is left for rent. The recommended maximum rent is whichever of the two figures is lower — existing debt can only push the affordable rent down from the flat 30% figure, never above it.
Worked Examples
Low debt: $6,000/month income, $300/month other debt
- 30% rule: 6,000 × 0.30 = $1,800
- Debt-adjusted cap: 6,000 × 0.36 − 300 = 2,160 − 300 = $1,860
- Recommended max rent: min($1,800, $1,860) = $1,800 — the 30% rule is the binding limit here
Higher debt: $6,000/month income, $1,500/month other debt
- 30% rule: 6,000 × 0.30 = $1,800 (unchanged — debt doesn't affect this figure)
- Debt-adjusted cap: 6,000 × 0.36 − 1,500 = 2,160 − 1,500 = $660
- Recommended max rent: min($1,800, $660) = $660 — existing debt is now the binding limit
Frequently Asked Questions
Why two different rent figures?
The 30% rule alone ignores other debt entirely, so someone with heavy car and credit card payments could still be told they can 'afford' 30% of income in rent, even though total obligations would then be dangerously high. The debt-adjusted cap fixes that by keeping total housing plus debt at or below 36% of income. The recommended figure is always the more conservative (lower) of the two.
What if the debt-adjusted cap is negative?
It's shown as $0, not a negative number — if existing debt payments alone already exceed 36% of income, this method indicates no additional rent fits the 36% guideline at all, which is itself a meaningful signal about the household's current debt load.
Are 30% and 36% official or legally required limits?
No. Both are commonly cited financial-literacy conventions, not government regulations or a specific landlord or lender's real qualification threshold. Actual rental approval and mortgage-lending standards vary and may use different percentages.
Does 'other monthly debt' include existing rent or a mortgage?
No — this field is for debt obligations OTHER than the housing payment being solved for here (auto loans, credit cards, student loans, and similar recurring debts). Don't include a current or prior rent/mortgage payment.