Why is it important to assess your debt-to-income ratio?

Assessing your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio is essential because it provides lenders with a clear picture of your financial health, specifically your ability to manage monthly payments. The DTI ratio is calculated by dividing your total monthly debt payments by your gross monthly income, which indicates what portion of your income goes toward servicing debt.

A low DTI ratio suggests that you have a strong capacity to take on additional debt, such as a mortgage, because you’re likely able to afford the new monthly payments comfortably alongside your existing obligations. Conversely, a high DTI ratio may signal to lenders that a borrower is over-leveraged and may struggle to make payments on new loans. Therefore, lenders often use this ratio as a key factor in evaluating creditworthiness and determining whether to approve a loan application, the terms of the loan, and the amount that can be loaned.

The other options do not accurately reflect the primary purpose of analyzing the debt-to-income ratio. For example, while it may influence your credit usage and impact loan approval decisions, it does not determine your home's value or guarantee that you will receive a loan.