The income you need to buy a home is set by two lender rules: the mortgage stress test and a cap on how much of your income can go to housing. This calculator applies both to your price, down payment and costs, and the table below shows the result for common prices.
Income needed by home price
| Home price | Minimum down payment | Income needed, minimum down | Income needed, 20% down |
|---|---|---|---|
| $300,000 | $15,000 | $70,700 | $61,100 |
| $400,000 | $20,000 | $92,700 | $79,900 |
| $450,000 | $22,500 | $103,800 | $89,300 |
| $500,000 | $25,000 | $114,800 | $98,800 |
| $600,000 | $35,000 | $135,800 | $117,600 |
| $700,000 | $45,000 | $156,800 | $136,400 |
| $750,000 | $50,000 | $167,300 | $145,800 |
| $800,000 | $55,000 | $177,800 | $155,200 |
| $900,000 | $65,000 | $198,800 | $174,100 |
| $1,000,000 | $75,000 | $219,800 | $192,900 |
| $1,500,000 | $300,000 | Same as 20% down | $287,000 |
| $2,000,000 | $400,000 | Same as 20% down | $381,200 |
These figures use a 25-year amortization, property tax of 1% of the price a year, $150 a month for heat and no other debts. The contract rate is the Bank of Canada’s average for new 5-year fixed mortgages (4.01% insured, 4.35% uninsured, June 2026). Change any of them in the calculator.
Income needed by mortgage amount
If you know the mortgage you want rather than the price, this table starts from the loan. It assumes a 20% down payment, so there’s no insurance premium, and the same tax, heat and rate assumptions.
| Mortgage amount | Home price with 20% down | Payment at the qualifying rate | Income needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| $300,000 | $375,000 | $1,982 | $75,200 |
| $400,000 | $500,000 | $2,643 | $98,800 |
| $500,000 | $625,000 | $3,304 | $122,300 |
| $600,000 | $750,000 | $3,965 | $145,800 |
| $700,000 | $875,000 | $4,625 | $169,400 |
| $800,000 | $1,000,000 | $5,286 | $192,900 |
| $1,000,000 | $1,250,000 | $6,608 | $240,000 |
How lenders work out the income you need
The stress test. You have to qualify at the greater of your contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%. OSFI sets this for uninsured mortgages and CMHC applies the same rule to insured ones. At the insured rate above, that means qualifying at 6.01%.
Debt service limits. CMHC limits your gross debt service (GDS) ratio, the mortgage payment at the qualifying rate plus property tax, heat and half of any condo fees, to 39% of gross income, and your total debt service (TDS) ratio, which adds your other debt payments, to 44%. The income you need is whichever limit is harder to meet. The GDS and TDS guide explains both.
The minimum down payment. Under the federal rules, it is 5% of the first $500,000 of the price and 10% of the rest, up to $1,500,000. At that price or more, mortgage insurance isn’t available and you need 20% down. The insured-price cap rose to $1,500,000 on December 15, 2024.
Mortgage insurance. With less than 20% down, a CMHC premium is added to the loan: 2.80% to 4.00% of the loan (CMHC) on a 25-year amortization, depending on your down payment. The larger loan raises the payment and the income you need.
Amortization. Insured mortgages are normally limited to 25 years. Since December 15, 2024, first-time buyers and buyers of new builds can choose 30 years, which lowers the payment but adds 0.20 percentage points to the premium (CMHC Home Start).
A quick way to estimate
With 20% down and this site’s assumptions, the income needed works out to about 19.6% of the home price at $600,000, so a home costs about 5.1 times the income that qualifies for it. With the minimum down payment, the premium and the larger loan push the income needed higher: 22.6% of the price at the same $600,000. Treat these as rough guides; the table and calculator are more exact.
Guides by home price
- $300,000 home, $400,000, $450,000, $500,000
- $600,000, $700,000, $750,000, $800,000, $900,000
- $1 million, $1.5 million, $2 million
Related pages
- How much house can I afford on my salary? works the other way, from income to price.
- Mortgage payments by loan size
- Mortgage affordability by city and province, including Atlantic Canada and the Prairies
- Closing costs by province
- Mortgage stress test calculator
Browse All Income Needed to Buy a House in Canada (2026): Calculator and Table by Price Articles
Browse all 12 articles in this section.
I
- Income Needed to Afford a $1,000,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $1.5 Million Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $2 Million Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $300,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $400,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $450,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $500,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $600,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $700,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $750,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford a $900,000 Home in Canada
- Income Needed to Afford an $800,000 Home in Canada
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them between September 24, 2026 and September 25, 2026. How we check facts.
- Bank of Canada: Data table
- CMHC: Calculating GDS / TDS
- CMHC: CMHC Purchase
- CMHC: Home Start
- CMHC: CMHC Improvement
- Department of Finance Canada: Technical backgrounder mortgage insurance rules income proposals revised october 14 2016
- Department of Finance Canada: Government announces boldest mortgage reforms in decades to unlock homeownership for more canadians
- Department of Finance Canada: Straight switches and portfolio insurance
- Department of Finance Canada: Boldest mortgage reforms in decades come into force today
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: Down payment
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: Buying home
- OSFI: Minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages
4 more sources
- OSFI: Final Revised Guideline B-20: Residential Mortgage Underwriting Practices and Procedures
- OSFI: Amendments to the minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages
- OSFI: OSFI exempts uninsured mortgage straight switches from the prescribed MQR andβ¦
- OSFI: Loan-to-income limits for uninsured mortgage portfolios