About DPA Calculator
An independent, free tool that answers one question most calculators skip: how much house you can afford with down payment assistance.
Why this exists
Standard affordability calculators ignore down payment assistance programs entirely, and the program directories that list those programs cannot do affordability math. A first-time buyer is left doing two separate pieces of research and joining them by hand. This site does both in one step, and shows its working.
Who publishes it
DPA Calculator is published independently by a small team based in South Africa, building free financial calculators for US consumers. We are not a lender, mortgage broker, real-estate agent, or government agency. We do not originate loans, we do not take applications, and we are not affiliated with any state housing finance agency.
How the numbers are produced
- Affordability — the total monthly housing payment (principal, interest, taxes and insurance) is capped at 31% of gross monthly income, and that payment plus your other debts is capped at 43%. These are the standard FHA front-end and back-end debt-to-income guidelines. The lower of the two limits is used.
- Loan size — we solve the standard 30-year amortisation formula for the loan supported by that monthly budget at the interest rate you set.
- Taxes and insurance — estimated at 1.1% and 0.35% of home price per year, US national averages. Your county will differ.
- Assistance — matched from a dataset of state housing finance agency programs, each linked to the agency's own page so you can verify current terms yourself.
Where the data comes from
- Program counts: Down Payment Resource quarterly program count.
- Interest-rate benchmark: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
- Individual programs: each state's own housing finance agency, linked on every state page.
Editorial standards
- Every statistic on this site carries a named, linked source. If we cannot source a number, we do not publish it.
- No fabricated reviews, testimonials, endorsements, or "as seen in" badges.
- Where a program's amount varies by county or funding round, we say so rather than quoting a figure that might mislead.
- When we find an error, we correct it and note the correction.
How the site is funded
The calculator is free and requires no account or email. To cover hosting and development we use three things, disclosed openly:
- Display advertising shown in clearly labelled slots.
- Optional paid guides for buyers who want a deeper walkthrough.
- Affiliate links to lender comparison services, marked as such. Lenders are never ranked or ordered by what they pay us — see our advertising disclosure.
Important limitation
This is an educational estimate, not a loan offer. It is not a pre-approval, not an eligibility determination, and not personalised financial advice. Program terms, income limits and availability are set solely by each housing finance agency and change often. Always confirm with the agency and a licensed loan officer or HUD-approved housing counsellor before making a decision.
Questions or corrections? Contact us — we read everything.