Home Affordability Calculator
The honest answer to "how much house can I afford" comes down to one number banks care about most: your income. In South Africa, lenders generally allow your home loan repayment to take up to 30% of your gross monthly income — and that single rule determines the price range you should be shopping in.
The income you need for different house prices
Here is roughly the gross monthly income required to afford common house prices, assuming a 20-year bond at around 11% interest and no deposit:
| House price | Monthly bond | Gross income needed |
|---|---|---|
| R750,000 | ~R7,740 | ~R25,800 |
| R1,000,000 | ~R10,320 | ~R34,400 |
| R1,500,000 | ~R15,480 | ~R51,600 |
| R2,000,000 | ~R20,640 | ~R68,800 |
| R3,000,000 | ~R30,960 | ~R103,200 |
Work out your own numbers in seconds:
Calculate what you can afford →What percentage of income should go to a home loan?
The widely used guideline in South Africa is the 30% rule: your bond repayment should not exceed 30% of your gross (before-tax) monthly income. Banks also look at your total debt — all your repayments combined should stay under about 36% of income.
Staying within these limits matters because a bond is a 20–30 year commitment. Stretching to 40% might get approved, but it leaves you "house poor" — owning a home but with no money for anything else.
Don't forget the upfront and hidden costs
- Transfer duty — a tax paid to SARS, 0% below R1.1m, rising on a sliding scale above that
- Bond registration & transfer fees — legal costs, often 8–10% of the price combined
- Deposit — a 10% deposit reduces your bond and monthly repayment significantly
- Ongoing costs — rates, levies, insurance and maintenance
A bigger deposit changes everything
Because your repayment is capped at 30% of income, the only ways to afford a more expensive home are to earn more, find a lower interest rate, or put down a larger deposit. A R200,000 deposit on a R1.2m home cuts your bond to R1m — dropping the income you need by thousands per month.
Once you know your price range, check whether renting might make more sense in the short term, and compare your rent affordability too.