The salary used to qualify for a mortgage should meet the following criteria

1.    The sum of the monthly mortgage and monthly tax payments can be no greater than 28% of your monthly salary.

2.-    the sum of the monthly mortgage, monthly tax and other monthly debt payments can be no greater than 36% of your monthly salary.

These are general guidelines. Different lenders have different criteria and different programs. These numbers can vary depending the loan program for which you may qualify.