Can I Buy a House With Student Loans?

A lot of people assume they have to pay off their student loans before they’re allowed to buy. Most don’t. What matters is how a lender counts that monthly payment, and that depends on your repayment plan and the loan program you choose.

Yes, you can

Student loans don’t disqualify you from a mortgage. Plenty of buyers close on a home while they’re still paying off school.

A lender looks at two things. The first is your credit history, where on-time student loan payments can help you. The second is your debt-to-income ratio, or DTI: the share of your gross monthly income that goes to debt payments, including the new house payment. Student loans mostly affect you through that second number, so that’s where we’ll spend our time.

How lenders count your student loan payment

If your credit report shows a regular monthly payment that pays down the loan, most programs use that amount. A $350 payment counts as $350.

The questions start when the payment on your report is $0, or lower than a standard payment. That happens when your loans are deferred or in forbearance, or when you’re on an income-driven plan, where the payment is set by your income instead of your balance.

In those cases, many programs use a percentage of the balance as a stand-in payment, often 0.5% or 1% a month. On a $60,000 balance, that’s $300 or $600 a month counted against you, even if you’re paying nothing right now. Some programs will accept a documented income-driven payment instead, and VA loans can leave out loans that stay deferred for at least 12 months after closing.

Each loan program sets its own rules here. Even the two agencies behind conventional loans, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, handle a $0 payment differently. The same borrower can qualify for a noticeably different loan amount depending on which program we use. That’s one of the first things I check.

Why 2026 is a little different

Federal repayment is changing right now. The SAVE plan has ended, and borrowers are being moved to other plans, including the new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) that began after July 1, 2026. RAP has a $10 minimum payment, so there’s no $0 option like there was under SAVE.

For a homebuyer, that means the payment on your credit report may be about to change, or may have changed in the last few months. If your servicer has sent you a notice about switching plans, bring it when we talk. I’d rather plan around your new payment than an old one that disappears halfway through your loan approval.

What to gather before you apply

A little paperwork up front saves a lot of back-and-forth later:

• Your most recent student loan statement for each loan, showing the balance and monthly payment.
• A letter or screenshot from your servicer confirming which plan you’re on and what you pay each month, especially for an income-driven plan.
• Any deferment or forbearance paperwork, including the end date.
• Proof that a loan is paid off or forgiven, if your credit report hasn’t caught up yet.

Check your credit report too. A loan reported with the wrong balance or the wrong payment can cost you real buying power, and fixing it before you apply is far easier than fixing it during underwriting.

Should you pay them down first?

Usually not as much as people expect. Paying down a student loan doesn’t lower a fixed monthly payment, so it usually won’t help your DTI the way paying off a credit card can. Your down payment and cash reserves often do more for your approval.

Where it can help is a loan that’s nearly paid off, or a plan where the counted payment is based on the balance. Say a lender is using 1% of a $15,000 balance: that’s $150 a month. Paying that loan off removes it from the math entirely. I can run the numbers both ways before you move any savings.

There are also times when waiting is the right call. If your student loan payment is about to jump, or your budget is already tight, buying in six months could be much more comfortable than buying now. I’ll tell you that honestly if I think so.

If your loans are part of a bigger DTI picture, I explain the full calculation in what is debt-to-income ratio.

The bottom line

Student loans rarely stand between you and a home. What matters is the monthly payment a lender counts, and that number depends on which plan you’re on and which loan program you use, with paperwork to back it up. With repayment plans changing this year, it’s worth confirming your current payment before you shop, so your pre-approval holds up all the way to closing.

Ready to learn more?

If you’d like to see how your student loans would be counted under each loan program, I’d be honored to run the numbers with you and help you find the path that fits your budget.