Earmark no more than 30% of your monthly income toward the housing payment. That's it, but it takes some calculation. If the household income is $10,000 a month, say, then the total monthly housing payment should not exceed $3,000.
Divide the number by 100 (move the decimal place two places to the left). Multiply this new number by the percentage you want to take off. Subtract the number from step 2 from the original number. This is your percent off number.
The 30% rule says that renters should spend no more than a third of their gross income on rent and utility payments. The less you can spend on rent and utilities, the more money you'll have to fund other financial goals, like saving for emergencies, paying off debt, and planning for retirement.
Divide your gross annual income by 12 to find your monthly income. Input your monthly rent. Divide your monthly rent by your monthly income. Multiply the result by 100 to get the rent-to-income ratio percentage.
30% Income Rule
According to this rule, multiply gross monthly income by 0.30 to find the maximum affordable rent. For example, if gross monthly income is $5,000, maximum rent would be $1,500 (5,000 x 0.30 = 1,500).
If 30% of your Gross Pay is more than you're currently paying each month in rent, then you may be at a more comfortable level for housing. If 30% of your Gross Pay is less than your monthly rent, many financial professionals would suggest that you find a more affordable home or increase your income.
Renters or homeowners who pay more than 30% of their income on housing may struggle to get ahead on other financial goals. For renters, the 30% rule means 30% of their pay should cover all of their rental costs, which may include renters insurance and utility bills.
You must make $5,000 per month to afford a $1,500 monthly rent.
Those will become part of your budget. The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals.
One popular guideline is the 30% rent rule, which says to spend around 30% of your gross income on rent. So if you earn $4,000 per month before taxes, you could spend up to about $1,200 per month on rent. This is a solid guideline, but it's not one-size-fits-all advice.
30 percent of Monthly Adjusted Income (divide the Adjusted Annual Income by 12 and multiply by 0.3) 10 percent of Monthly Gross Income (divide the Total Annual Income by 12 and multiply by 0.1)
For example, if you're making $20 an hour, assuming you work a standard 40-hour workweek, your monthly income is $3,200. Based on the 50% needs category, you should aim to spend no more than 30% of yours income on rent, which comes out to $960 per month.
The rule suggests that your rent should not exceed one-third of your gross monthly income, providing a practical way for both renters and landlords to assess affordability. For example, if you have a gross monthly income of $5,000, the 3X rent rule means you should aim for rent around $1,666 or less.
Here's an idea of the ideal rent for different salaries based on the 30% rule: If you make $30,000 a year, you can afford to spend $750 a month on rent. If you make $40,000 a year, you can afford to spend $1,000 a month on rent. If you make $50,000 a year, you can afford to spend $1,250 a month on rent.
California reigns as top state for small cities where $1,500 stretches the least. This year, California cities stood out on both of our lists of big and small cities where a monthly rent budget of $1,500 doesn't go far.
Input your gross income: This is your income before deductions such as taxes and social security contributions have been subtracted. Input the percentage of your income that you're willing to spend on rent: The general rule of thumb is to spend no more than 30% of your income on rent.
It's common for landlords to include basic utility charges—for essential services like water, sewage, and trash removal—in the rent price, while other utilities such as electricity and internet are typically the responsibility of the tenant.
Multiply the number of hours you work per week by your hourly pay, then multiply that by 52. Lastly, divide that number by 12 for your gross monthly income.
Say you're making $30,000 per year and have no household debt. According to the 30% Rule, you would be able to spend $750 per month on rent, which would leave roughly $1,300 a month for savings and expenses (or $325 per week, or $46 per day) after taxes.
Generally, experts recommend spending no more than 30% of monthly pre-tax income on housing. However, it's not always that simple. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, between 2017 and 2021, over 40% of renter households (19 million) spent more than 30% of their income on rent.
The 30% ruling means that 30% of the gross salary can be paid out tax-free as a non-taxable allowance. This is intended to cover the additional costs an international employee incurs when working and living in the Netherlands. The most common way this scheme is applied is by reducing the employee's gross salary by 30%.