How to Know You’re Ready to Buy a Home in 60 Minutes

The Ultimate Financial Prep Guide (with Budget Tracker + Affordability Quiz)

Most people decide they’re “ready” to buy a home the day they fall in love with a house on Zillow.  That’s exactly backwards.

The real deciding moment happens months earlier — when you finish an honest financial prep process and the numbers say “yes” instead of “maybe.”

Do these two exercises right now (they take less than 45 minutes combined) and you’ll know,  with zero guesswork, whether you’re actually ready.

PART 1: The 30-Day Real-Life Budget Tracker

(Stop guessing what you spend — prove it)

For the next 30 days, track every single dollar that leaves your accounts. No rounding, no “I’ll remember later.”

Use whatever works: spreadsheet, app (Mint, YNAB, Rocket Money), or the free printable tracker below.

30-Day Budget Tracker (copy-paste into Excel/Google Sheets)

Category	Monthly Average	Notes / Auto-Pay?
Rent / Current Housing
Renter’s / Home Insurance
Car Payment(s)
Car Insurance
Student Loans
Credit-Card / Other Debt		Minimums only
Groceries & Household
Dining Out / Coffee
Gas / Transit
Utilities (avg)
Cell Phone
Internet / Streaming
Gym / Subscriptions
Entertainment / Hobbies
Personal Care / Clothes
Medical / Prescriptions
Giving / Charity
Miscellaneous / “Stuff”
TOTAL MONTHLY SPEND

After 30 days, divide every category by 1 (or average two months if you want to be extra safe). This is your real spending baseline — not what you wish it was.

PART 2: The 2025 Home Affordability Quiz

(Answer Yes/No — be brutally honest)

1. 1. Emergency fund: Do you have 3–6 months of living expenses in cash or equivalents?
   2. Down payment: Do you have at least 5–20% saved (plus 3–6% extra for closing costs)?
   3. Credit score: Is your middle FICO score 660+ (740+ for best rates)?
   4. Debt-to-income (DTI): Is your total DTI (including future mortgage) under 43%? (36% or lower is ideal)
   5. Job stability: Have you been in the same job/field for 2+ years (or have strong prospects)?
   6. Leak test: After tracking your budget, can you free up $800–$1,500/month without feeling squeezed?
   7. Maintenance buffer: Are you comfortable adding 1–2% of the home’s value per year for repairs ($4,000–$8,000 on a $400k house)?
   8. Rate reality: Have you gotten pre-approved (not just pre-qualified) by at least two lenders in the last 30 days?
   9. Stay factor: Do you plan to live in the home at least 5 years (to beat transaction costs)?
   10. Stress test: If rates rose another 1% or you lost one income, could you still cover the payment comfortably?

Scoring

• • 10 Yes → You’re ready now. Start house hunting tomorrow.
  • 8–9 Yes → Very close — fix the weak spots in 1–3 months.
  • 6–7 Yes → Not quite. Give yourself 6–12 months of focused saving and debt payoff.
  • 5 or fewer → Pause. Rent longer, crush debt, and rebuild the foundation.

Quick 2025 Affordability Rule of Thumb (with today’s rates)

Combined Gross Monthly Income	Maximum Safe Home Price*
$5,000	$250,000–$300,000
$6,000	$320,000–$380,000
$7,000	$380,000–$460,000
$8,000	$440,000–$540,000
$10,000	$560,000–$680,000
$12,000	$680,000–$840,000

*Assumes 6.5–7.5% rate, 10–20% down, 28–33% front-end DTI, taxes/insurance included.

For Your Consideration

Final Reality Check

Run your dream house through this calculator right now:Monthly payment calculator (principal + interest + taxes + insurance + HOA)

• • 1–2% annual maintenance fund
  • Your current non-housing expenses from the tracker

If the total is still under 35–40% of your take-home pay and you have cash reserves left over, congratulations, you just passed the same test that the most successful home buyers use.

✅Kentucky Tom Pro Tip: Do the budget tracker tonight. Take the quiz tomorrow morning.

In less than one hour you’ll have more clarity than 90% of the buyers competing against you.Your future self (the one who isn’t house-poor) will thank you.

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