≈ $90,000 down
Ongoing housing costs
Estimated total
$2,323/mo
Want the occasional useful email?
New calculators, updated cost data, and the occasional money-saving guide. No account needed, and you can leave any time.
By Alex Diaz · How we calculate this
Buying a co-op means purchasing shares in the corporation that owns the building rather than a deed to the unit itself, and co-op boards typically impose stricter financial screening, sometimes including larger down payment minimums, than a comparable condo purchase. This calculator combines the co-op's price, down payment, interest rate, and loan term you enter into a monthly payment and weighs that against your income and credit profile to gauge how risky the purchase would be.
These key factors affect co-op apartment affordability
Income and expenses
A co-op payment doesn't exist on its own, it competes with rent you're already used to, a car payment, credit cards, whatever else you're carrying. We weigh it against your full income and debt picture rather than judging the monthly number by itself, since that's a truer test of what you can actually handle.
Credit score
Credit matters twice here. First with the lender, who's underwriting what's technically a share loan rather than a traditional mortgage in most cases, and prices it accordingly. Then again with the board, since your credit history is part of the packet they review before they ever meet you in person. A lower score can cost you on the rate, and in some buildings it can cost you the apartment outright if the board decides your finances don't fit what they're looking for.
Board approval and financials
Beyond the lender, almost every co-op requires board approval, and the board reviews your finances independently of whatever the bank already decided. Expect to submit tax returns, bank statements, and personal references, and in many buildings, a face-to-face interview before the board votes. Some buildings only allow a portion of the purchase price to be financed at all, and a handful require the whole thing in cash, so it's worth learning a building's specific financing rules before you fall for a unit you can't actually structure a deal on. Boards can also set their own debt-to-income ceiling or require reserves well beyond what the lender asked for, and there's little room to negotiate once a building has a policy.
Maintenance fees
Monthly maintenance covers your share of the building's underlying mortgage, property taxes, staff, and upkeep. It isn't optional and it isn't small. Build it into your monthly budget the same way you would a condo's HOA dues, because it lands every month whether you use the building's amenities or not. Some co-ops also charge a flip tax when you eventually sell, often a percentage of the sale price, so it's worth asking about that policy even before you buy.
How to use your results
Try adjusting the inputs to see what actually moves your risk score:
- Down payment - co-ops sometimes require more down than a comparable condo or house.
- Monthly maintenance fees - add these to get a true sense of the total monthly cost, not just the loan payment.
- Existing debt - add what you're already carrying for a more realistic picture.
Ways to increase how much co-op you can afford
- Pay down existing debt before applying, since boards scrutinize your finances closely.
- Save for a larger down payment, since some co-ops require more than a typical mortgage.
- Build a reserve of savings beyond the down payment, since boards often want to see one.
- Shop lenders that are familiar with co-op share loans in your specific market.
More housing calculators
Peer comparison data
Bureau of Labor Statistics (median income by age), Experian (credit score by age)
Used by the “how you compare” figures in the sidebar, not by the costs on this page.
Every figure on this site, with its source and the date it was last verified
How you compare
Income
Credit score
Nothing added yet - add something to see your risk.