What income do you need to buy a $600,000 house in Texas?
The short answer
A $600,000 house in Texas costs about $4,022 a month to own with 20% down, which takes a household income of roughly $172,351 a year to keep housing inside the 28% front-end ratio lenders use. That total is $3,081 of principal and interest, $700 of property tax and $240 of homeowners insurance.
Texas ranks 48th of 51 on what a $600,000 house costs to carry: $728 a month more than Hawaii at the bottom, $188 a month less than New Jersey at the top. The loan is identical in all three.
- Principal & interest
- $3,081
- Property tax
- $700
- Insurance
- $240
- Total monthly
- $4,022
- Income needed
- $172,351
What $600,000 buys in Texas
$600,000 is well above the Texas median of $341,800 — roughly 176% of it. At this price you are in the top tier of the Texas market, where the income requirement climbs faster than the price does.
| Metro | Price level | Typical home | $600,000 vs typical |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | 100.8 | $354,824 | +69% — above typical |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 100.6 | $354,120 | +69% — above typical |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 98.8 | $347,784 | +73% — above typical |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 95.7 | $336,872 | +78% — above typical |
Price level is the regional price parity for the metro, indexed so that 100 is the national average. Typical home is this state's median scaled by that index — an approximation, not a market survey.
If you put down less than 20%
Property tax and insurance do not move with the down payment; the loan and the mortgage insurance do. At $600,000 in Texas the tax and insurance floor is $940 a month before any mortgage payment at all.
| Down | Cash at closing | Loan | P&I | PMI | Total/mo | Income needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5% down | $21,000 | $579,000 | $3,717 | $458 | $5,115 | $219,233 |
| 5% down | $30,000 | $570,000 | $3,659 | $332 | $4,932 | $211,363 |
| 10% down | $60,000 | $540,000 | $3,467 | $207 | $4,614 | $197,730 |
| 20% down | $120,000 | $480,000 | $3,081 | — | $4,022 | $172,351 |
The same $600,000 house in other states
Identical price, identical loan, identical rate. Only the property tax rate and the insurance market change — and they change the income requirement by $31,509 a year across this set.
| State | Tax/mo | Insurance/mo | Total/mo | Income needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | $940 | $188 | $4,209 | $180,389 |
| Illinois | $940 | $164 | $4,186 | $179,387 |
| Texas | $700 | $240 | $4,022 | $172,351 |
| New York | $650 | $161 | $3,892 | $166,817 |
| Pennsylvania | $630 | $173 | $3,884 | $166,464 |
| Florida | $390 | $341 | $3,812 | $163,383 |
| Maryland | $460 | $144 | $3,685 | $157,926 |
| Georgia | $395 | $175 | $3,651 | $156,477 |
| California | $350 | $129 | $3,560 | $152,590 |
| Colorado | $250 | $142 | $3,474 | $148,880 |
Common questions
How much do I need to make to buy a $600,000 house in Texas?
About $172,351 a year at the 28% front-end ratio, with 20% down and a 6.65% thirty-year fixed. That covers a $4,022 monthly payment: $3,081 principal and interest, $700 property tax and $240 insurance. Lenders who stretch to a 31% ratio would accept roughly $155,672.
What is the monthly payment on a $600,000 house in Texas?
Roughly $4,022 a month with 20% down and no HOA. With 5% down the payment rises to about $4,932, because the loan is larger and PMI adds around $332 until the balance reaches 80% of value.
How much are property taxes on a $600,000 house in Texas?
About $700 a month, or $8,400 a year, at the 1.40% effective rate this state averages. County rates vary around that figure, and assessed value here cannot rise more than 10% a year, so a long-held home is taxed on far less than it would sell for.
How much cash do I need up front for a $600,000 house in Texas?
$120,000 for a 20% down payment, or $30,000 at 5% down. Closing costs typically add 2–5% of the price on top, and lenders will want a couple of months of the $4,022 payment in reserves.
This is a price point, not a house. Put in an actual Texas address, the date it closed and the price paid, and the calculator works out that home's payment, its mortgage-insurance dates and the equity behind it.