is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

House hunting here…
without giving too much personal info,
i could pay a mortgage on my salary and have $480 left over.about half that will go straight to commuting costs.

dh who owns his own business will be covering utilities, car / car insurance, cable/internet, groceries, and babysitting costs ( babysitter will be needed about 2-3 times a week) and any sort of entertainment if possible.

he always has a certain amount coming in each month but some months we get more b/c we are waiting for invoices/checks to come in..

I guess I am scared to pull the trigger! Should I find a place that leaves me with more money left over in my check? Or can we afford it and I am just scared?

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

To me, I would be comfortable buying a house with what you said.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

IMO I would look for more than that left over each month. After commuting you're saying you'd have about $240 to spare. That makes it difficult to save and doesn't account for unexpected life events/household costs/etc that could occur. Unless you have a good savings in the bank that you can leave otherwise untouched, that would be cutting it too close for me. Keep in mind I've always been financially conservative. I can only sleep at night knowing I'm extremely financially sound. Not everyone is like that and that's entirely okay - as long as you can rest easy.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I think with your husband's salary you should guarantee yourself a certain amount you want to save each month. If you have no issues with that, then go ahead with it. I know you'll be saving a lot more than $240 a month since you'll have his salary too.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I think you're good. I pay the mortgage and for food shopping and have very little left over afterwards ($300-$400 a month)

DH pays everything else from his salary. (Utiliies, AMEX bill, car nsurance, etc.). We bank the majority of his salary.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I think it would depend on the nature of your DH's business. Has his income been steady for several yrs or is it a new business? Maybe you can find something that has a rental or potential in case something happened to yours or DH jobs

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Going to go against the grain here (sorry) but I think thats cutting it way too close. God forbid you or DH loses a job or source of income, and then no one can afford the mortgage?

This actually happened to me several years back, I was left with $ 500 after all housing expenses were accounted for, until I found myself barely breaking even after 6 months of moving in, and then lost my job so had to almost go into foreclosure because my housing costs were too high.

I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Message edited 1/31/2011 4:31:06 PM.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

DH is ultra ultra conservative and would always want a good 500-1000 left over a month for just in cases...like a big emergency or something needs to be fixed right away, he also likes to put something in savings every month as well..so if you were asking my DH he'd say no...for me I don't know if I'd be that that comfortable...is this the mortgage with taxes or will u be paying taxes seperately, bc that would be a concern of mine covering the taxes

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

For me, no...I'd be too scared.

Someone can fall ill, a job can be lost, a car can need expensive repair work....etc...you need "oh sh!t" money.

Do people do it? yes..but it's not always the best option.


When you say you can pay the monthly mortgage on your salary, do you mean one paycheck out of the month? or the entire month's paycheck? For example, my DH gets paid 2 times a month. One paycheck covers our mortgage and taxes.

First, have you been pre-approved for a loan yet?

They will sit down with you with all of your financial info (before you even start looking for a house) and tell you exactly how much "house you can afford."

I really think that banks wouldn't let you only have that amount left over & approve you for a mortgage..but I could be wrong. Hope this helps!

Message edited 1/31/2011 8:49:18 PM.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Thats about what I have left over every month and I hate it. Something always comes up and I always have that fear of what if I lose my job or DH does. If you could I would either postpone buying a house until I had more of a down payment, Or buy a house that is less expensive so that you have more in your pocket at the end of the month. I feel like I'm always living paycheck to paycheck and its the worse feeling. It leaves very little for savings, not to mention for example this winter has been horrible as far as oil is concerned. We usually get a delivery 6 wks but this year is every 3 wks and usually $325-350 each time.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I would only be comfortable with that IF I had a good chunk of savings on the side - a few months of expenses. At least $15K banked for the "what ifs"

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I think it's plenty - more than I have leftover

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Posted by BatGirl9910

Going to go against the grain here (sorry) but I think thats cutting it way too close. God forbid you or DH loses a job or source of income, and then no one can afford the mortgage?

This actually happened to me several years back, I was left with $ 500 after all housing expenses were accounted for, until I found myself barely breaking even after 6 months of moving in, and then lost my job so had to almost go into foreclosure because my housing costs were too high.

I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Honestly I dont think so. There are alot of unexpected expenses that come up with owning a home. Plus, with today's economy you never know about your job. You want to feel comfortable in your home and not feel like its making you feel trapped.

I would sit down with your DH and pick a price point you are both comfortable with that will cover the "what-ifs" and still allow you to save.

It's very hard for young families like us on Long Island...unofrtunately!

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

thanks everyone for your answers!!

to answer some questions:
the mortage would include taxes and insurance.It would also take two of my paychecks ( i get paid every two weeks). so i would put money aside from each check...
we have a very large downpayment for the house and will have some money in savings after. I would like to have a little more so we will continue to build upon it...

I think i would prefer to have $700 left over each month b/c then i can take on more.. that way God Forbid my dh gets hurt and can't work, we wouldnt be totally screwed.


thanks for the insight everyone!!

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I would not be comfortable with that.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

See is that in addition to a nice sum of money in your savings. BC if no, then that to me is not enough leftover each month. If you have a great cushion in your savings account then I would say it would be ok.




Hard to give an opinion.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I would be too scared with that amount, but every family is different.

I don't work yet, but with DH's salary we have 600 to spare for fun after paying our bills every month and then put a minimum of 1000 in savings.

Trust me, once you own something there is always something you need to to or something will happen where you need spare cash. For us the first month it was a new lining in the chimney

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I would need more then that left over every month to buy a house

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

For me, definitely not enough but you know your lifestyle the best.

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

If you're the type that "freaks out" about money, then id say, thats prob not enough... For me, we have nada left after paying bills for this month, bc we paid off all CC's from xmas spending... we're the type who pay the balances on all our bills every month so we're left with very little... if we were struggling, we'd pay minimums... so you will prob have wiggle room somewhere if ya looked... If you have alot of debt, then I would def look into paying off more bills than buying a house at the moment KWIM?

Re: is this enough money left over after paying mortgage?

I don't have anything left over if we ONLY talk about my salary paying the mortgage. However combining both mine and DH's we have enough to pay the mortgage, 2 kids in daycare and all the other expenses that come with a house plus we still have $ left over. My mortgage is also insane because we bought at the height of the market.

I think you should total what you and your DH together bring home. See how much you would have each month after paying a mortgage and then decide if you are comfortable with that number.