Can You Afford to Buy a House? Here's How to Find Out

The last few years haven't been the best time to become a homeowner, thanks to a fine combination of higher home prices and higher mortgage rates. But thanks to the first (of likely multiple) Federal Reserve rate cuts, we could see mortgage rates continue falling. As of this writing, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage is 6.32% -- part of a gradual lowering trend that has seen rates below 7%.

Now could be a good time for you to enter the fray and start house hunting -- if you can afford to buy a house, that is. Here's a good way to tell if your finances befit a homeowner.

Design a new budget

Ready to see if you can afford to become a homeowner? It'll involve some math -- sorry about that! Based on some research, figure out how much you can expect to spend every month if you buy a home.

Start by seeing how much you're likely to pay for a home -- check Zillow or Realtor.com to see what homes are listed for in your area. You'll need to find out average home insurance costs (this may take some guesswork -- or you can ask friends or family who live locally what they pay).

If you're likely to buy a home in an HOA (homeowners association), see how much dues are expected to be. Check property taxes, too.

You'll also need to check average mortgage rates to see what you might pay for one -- so dig into mortgage lender websites to learn what they charge.

Want to save thousands on a home purchase? Shop around with some of our favorite mortgage lenders -- different lenders have different rates, and you could potentially save thousands on interest costs by shopping around.

OK, what do I do with this information?

Now, take all this research and plug it into a mortgage calculator. You can find out whether this is doable for you by pretending you're already a homeowner. Take the difference between what you pay for housing now and what you'd be looking to pay if you buy a home, and put it out of reach -- like into a savings account.

If you're still able to comfortably cover all your expenses and have breathing room after trying this for a few months, you'll know that buying a home could be affordable for you.

But if you're struggling, and too much of your income is going toward your housing costs (ideally, this figure should be less than 30% of what you earn), buying a home now might not be such a wise move.

How else can you get ready to buy a home?

We've already talked about setting a budget for homeownership and shopping for pre-approvals with multiple mortgage lenders. But buying a home is a huge financial undertaking, so here are a few more areas to focus on when you're getting ready.

Work on your credit

Your credit score has a major impact on how much you'll pay for a mortgage -- the higher your score, the less risky of a borrower you'll be in the eyes of mortgage lenders.

The minimum credit score for a conventional mortgage is 620 (government-backed loans have different requirements, and lender requirements also vary). If you haven't checked in on your credit score in a while, now's the time.

While you're at it, get copies of your credit report for free from AnnualCreditReport.com. You'll be able to see any issues bringing your score down, be they errors or old black marks that a mortgage lender might ask you about.

If your credit reports are riddled with errors (like a listing for a delinquent account that was never yours), you can have them removed by the credit bureau that issued the report.

Save, save, and save some more

Yes, you'll need money for a down payment -- and it'll likely be the biggest piece of the pie as far as money is concerned. But it's also a great idea to save money for closing costs, incidentals like appraisal and inspection fees, and of course your all-important emergency fund.

When you own the house, it'll be on you to pay for repairs and maintenance, so having that emergency fund is a wise idea. Learn more about our favorite high-yield savings accounts for your emergency fund.

Get the right real estate agent in your corner

I owe a lot of my success in buying a home this year to my real estate agent. She's been in the business for longer than I've been alive, and it was thanks to her connections that I learned my house was to be listed for sale the day before it happened. I viewed it the first day on the market, and my offer was accepted thanks to her savviness with escalation clauses.

You can find a great agent by reading online reviews and asking people you know in your local area. I found mine via a recommendation from friends who bought a home in our city several years ago.

In buying a home, as in all things money-related, knowledge is power. Once you see in real numbers how much your predictable homeownership costs will be, you'll be much better equipped to achieve your goal of buying a home. Good luck out there!