<prompt> Human: Dumb question, I know - I have a friend who is plugging all my numbers into those how much can you afford calculators, and I guess we cant afford anything. We make 90k before taxes, so monthly we get about 5600 our health insurance is taken out of my husbands pay check before taxes are taken out, and at 750mo for health insurance, it kinda kills us. Our expenses are about 2900mo car payments alone are 700 - this doesnt include rent.Heres a list of monthly expenses: kid care: 600 kid school: 146 9 months out of the year student loans: 223 cableinternet: 160 cellphones: 180 car payments: 700 my base is 330mo but I pay 400 toward it cc payments: total anywhere from 175 - 350, dependent on if we pay minimum or 50 toward each husband has like 5 cards, I only have 2 - all of our cards have a balance of 400 or less on them. gas for cars: I spend only 30mo, husband probably spends 60-70. I drive a prius lol food: probably 350-400mo electricgas: usually comes out to 100-120mo where we are now.car insurance: 125Were looking at homes that cost a max of 250k, and will be putting down 3.5 weve been pre-qualified for 260k. We have 5k in savings as it is - and are being given 10k by my dad to help us buy a home. There is a place I want that was just listed today, and it was listed for 250k, but monthly HOA and condo fees are 165 : ... so if thats the case, I probably wont be able to afford it - that right there will be 1765moCan anyone crunch numbers? Does home insurance always have to cost a crap ton of money? My thing is, if we bring home 5600mo, and our mortgage is like 1400mo we pay 1345 rent right now... why are all these calculators telling me I cant afford a home? Am I really gonna need like 4k free a month for my home?At the end of the day, where we live right now suburban DC, we will never be able to afford a 20 down payment, which is why were doing FHA. Our lease is up end of June, so we have some time, but the cheapest homes so 225k all carry HEFTY monthly HOA fees 300, or are in really shitty neighborhoods.Assistant: I think youve crunched the numbers enough. You cant afford to buy other than in crappy neighborhoods. So why buy? Heres an idea, stop carrying balances on your credit cards... Pay those down. Then pay your student loans down. Then start saving. Human: Why buy - because renting here costs just as much if not a tad less than a monthly mortgage. Plus, Im tired of living in someone elses owned condo - they wont replace the windows or the carpet, my downstairs neighbor is an asshole, and Im just over it.Assistant: But if you bought a house would you be able to afford to replace the windows or the carpet? Not really..Also, its nice to say that youd never be able to afford 20, but 250K for a house really isnt that expensive of a house. Its not like youre in the bay area where saving 20 on a 700K house really is daunting.If you wait until your kid grows up and out of daycare, if you wait until your student loans are paid off, if you wait until your cars are paid off, and if you wait until your credit cards are paid off you will have freed up over 1700 each month. Thats huge. If you saved that 1700 youd be able to afford a mortgage... and it would only take you two years to save up 50K for a downpayment.Even forgetting about the things that you cant control student loans and day care, youve committed yourself to a lot of monthly payments worth of debts by having 700 in car payments and credit card debt payments of 200. Thats why you cant afford a house.Human: Considering my kids are 7 months and 4 years, my husbands lease runs for another 2 years, my car payment is for another 3 years Im throwing 80mo extra to paying off the principal, and my student loans are good for the next 200 months...Ill never be able to afford a home.  <response>: Ill never be able to afford a home.I honestly dont mean to sound condescending here, but sometimes the truth is cold and it hurts. I think what you tried to do was come here and get encouragement from people that you can afford a home or can afford one in the semi near future, but the truth is that with the your income and expenses there is no way. Numbers are blind. Youve plugged them in already and admitted it wont work; now you need to accept it. For that kind of payment reducing your cell phone bill and paying off credit cards isnt going to cut the mustard. People doing what you are considering is what caused a lot of the subprime fiasco and made it much harder for people who can afford a mortgage to get one. Just the fact that you are questioning it at all should tell you its not a good idea. 