Understanding your debt-to-income ratio and how it affects your Florida mortgage approval and loan amount.
Written by Renzo Johnson, Licensed MLO · NMLS #PENDING · Last updated: February 2026
- Front-end DTI: housing costs ÷ gross monthly income (target: under 28%)
- Back-end DTI: ALL debt payments ÷ gross monthly income (target: under 43%)
- Housing costs = PITIA (Principal, Interest, Taxes, Insurance, Association/HOA)
- All debts include: car payments, student loans, credit card minimums, child support
- FHA allows up to 57% back-end DTI with compensating factors
- VA has no DTI cap (uses residual income instead) but most lenders cap at 60%
- Conventional max: 50% (with strong compensating factors)
- Reducing DTI: pay off debts, increase income, or buy a less expensive home
- Student loans: IBR payment used for conventional, 1% of balance for FHA if $0 IBR