The back-end ratio is the percentage of an individual's (or household's) pre-tax, monthly income that is used to pay monthly debt obligations. Debt obligations include the mortgage payment, [..]

A calculation used by lenders to determine a borrower’s ability to repay his or her debts. This is calculated by taking the sum of housing expenses (mortgage payment, taxes and insurance) and all other monthly debts (credit cards, car payments, student loans, and other monthly payments) divided by monthly gross (pre-tax) income. Traditionally, lend [..]