how is my debt to income ratio calculated 
your debt to income ratio is calculated by dividing all your monthly debt payments by your gross monthly income your debt payments include your mortgage any auto loan s and payments toward credit cards personal loans student loans and home equity loans 2the bottom lineeach lender establishes its own parameters for housing debt and total debt as a part of its underwriting process this process is what ultimately determines if you ll qualify for a loan household expense payments primarily rent or mortgage payments can be no more than 28 of your gross income and your total debt payments cannot exceed 36 of your income to meet the 28 36 rule 3you might be granted some leeway if you have a very good to excellent credit score so consider working to improve your score if your 28 36 calculation is borderline 